Freemasonry
Collings was one of the most prominent clerical Freemasons of his era. Initiated in the Earl of Mornington Lodge (London) in 1978, he went on to belong to more than a dozen lodges. He served as a Lodge Chaplain, and later as Provincial Grand Chaplain in both the Provinces of Hertfordshire and Devonshire, subsequently becoming Assistant Provincial Grand Master of Hertfordshire. In the United Grand Lodge of England he was appointed Assistant Grand Chaplain in 1988, Deputy Grand Chaplain in 1996, and Grand Chaplain in 1999. In 2003 he was given the very senior honorary appointment of Past Junior Grand Warden. [5]
In Holy Royal Arch Freemasonry he was appointed Third Grand Principal, [6] one of the three rulers of Royal Arch Masonry, in 2002, serving in that office until his death in 2010. [5]
Less than a year before his death Collings urged his fellow Freemasons to be bold in proclaiming their membership of the fraternity, stating "I believe that it is time that we, as English Freemasons, re-examined our roots and the things we do. In our dealings with individuals and organisations we need confidence in explaining and commending ourselves." [7]
The history of Freemasonry encompasses the origins, evolution and defining events of the fraternal organisation known as Freemasonry. It covers three phases. Firstly, the emergence of organised lodges of operative masons during the Middle Ages, then the admission of lay members as "accepted" or "speculative" masons, and finally the evolution of purely speculative lodges, and the emergence of Grand Lodges to govern them. The watershed in this process is generally taken to be the formation of the first Grand Lodge in London in 1717. The two difficulties facing historians are the paucity of written material, even down to the 19th century, and the misinformation generated by masons and non-masons alike from the earliest years.
The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic grand lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron Tavern in London, it is considered to be the oldest Masonic Grand Lodge in the world. Together with the Grand Lodge of Scotland, and the Grand Lodge of Ireland, they are often referred to by their members as "the home Grand Lodges" or "the Home Constitutions".
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The Holy Royal Arch is a degree of Freemasonry. The Royal Arch is present in all main masonic systems, though in some it is worked as part of Craft ('mainstream') Freemasonry, and in others in an appendant ('additional') order. Royal Arch Masons meet as a Chapter; in the Supreme Order of the Holy Royal Arch as practised in the British Isles, much of Europe and the Commonwealth, Chapters confer the single degree of Royal Arch Mason.
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