Grand Lodge of Iran in Exile

Grand Lodge of Iran in Exile

The Grand Lodge of Iran, established in 1969 in Tehran, existed in the country prior to the Islamic Revolution of 1979, hosted membership from various political figures, including former prime minister Jafar Sharif-Emami (who served as the lodge's grand master at one point), and branched to 43 Lodges and at least 1,035 members.

Since the Revolution, Freemasonry has been banned in Iran; a "Grand Lodge of Iran in Exile" is currently established in Los Angeles, although it holds meetings in Massachusetts, where the local Grand Lodge approved its practice in 1985.

Persian Freemasons received in March 1985 the approval of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts to conduct Masonic activities in Boston. In the present they have Masonic Lodges in Washington D.C., France and in California all under the Persian Grand Lodge (in Exile). In present days (or at least until February this year) the Grand Master of the Iranian Freemasons is Most Worshipful Brother Abbas Satrap. Grand Master Satrap attended in February 2011 the Annual Conference of Grand Masters of Masons in North America, hosted by the Grand Lodge of Colorado in Denver.