PROTOCOL - An accepted mode of doing something : convention, form, custom, standard, precept, propriety, formality, social rule, practice. A course of action to be followed regularly : agenda, program, order of the day, routine, schedule, rounds. A standard of social behavior for a special event : ceremony, etiquette, formalities, proprieties, code of behavior, decorum, manners, customs, standards, conventions, dictates of society, state. (American Heritage Thesaurus)
ETIQUETTE - Well-mannered behavior toward others : politeness, civility, courtesy, courtliness, decorum, good manners, politesse, propriety, respectfulness. Conformity to social conventions or standards; propriety, conventionality, correctness, decorum, seemliness, courtesy, decorousness, dignity, formality, respectability. Social conduct that conforms to the conventions; amenities, conformability, civilities, decorum, manners, mores, proprieties, propriety, conventions. (American Heritage Thesaurus)
As you can see from the above definitions, the meanings of these words are very similar. In the Lodge room PROTOCOL is more the rules we live by and ETIQUETTE is the common courtesy we afford each other. Although there is no penalty for failure to observe most of these Masonic courtesies, you will be thought much more highly of as a person and a Mason if you observe them.
PROTOCOL tells us that we will not enter the Lodge unless properly clothed. How many times have you seen a Brother, being late for a meeting, come into the lodge room tying his apron on and adjusting it as he walks to the Altar to salute the Master? Properly clothed is not with an apron half on and half off. It would only take a few more seconds to have it on and properly adjusted before entering the Lodge. Masonic tradition informs us that the apron is the "Badge of a Mason". No man should enter the Lodge Room until his "Badge" is properly affixed.
ETIQUETTE tells us that we do not walk between the East and the Altar. By Masonic tradition, it is supposed that the Master draws his strength and wisdom from the Great Lights. Therefore, it is a common courtesy that no Brother shall come between the Master and the Great Lights any time the Lodge is open (except during degree work).
PROTOCOL tells us that it is illegal to leave the Lodge during a ballot. ETIQUETTE tells us that it is discourteous to leave the Lodge while a Brother is addressing the Lodge or while degree work is going on, except at one of the several breaks during the degree.
PROTOCOL dictates that when we have something to say in the Lodge, we rise, wait until acknowledged by the Master, give the proper Due Guard and begin speaking. ETIQUETTE tells us that we do not speak while another Brother has the floor. If we observe the above PROTOCOL, we will by default observe the above ETIQUETTE.
I would like to expound on the above paragraph. In my visits to other Lodges, in both official visits as a DDGL and unofficially as a Brother, I have observed, time and time again, a Brother replying to a question without either rising or giving a Due Guard. This is highly disrespectful to the Master. It normally takes several years of hard work to be privileged to sit in the East. When you address the Master, you are not just addressing the person sitting in the East. You are addressing the most exalted position in the Lodge, the East. The person who is occupying the East is representative of every Master who has ever sat there and as such you owe him the courtesy of a proper salute. A Due Guard is a salute of respect for the Master of the Lodge. It should be given with the respect it deserves. So many times you see a Brother rise and give the Due Guard as if he's trying to shoo a fly off his hand. If you are too tired, too bored, too lazy, or in too much of a hurry to give the Due Guard with the proper respect it deserves, you probably should have stayed home.
One of the greatest breaches of ETIQUETTE in any Lodge room is talking among the Brethren while some one else has the floor. This is very impolite in any situation, especially while a Brother is giving a report to the Lodge or in the process of making a motion. You might not care to hear what the person giving the report is saying, but there is a very good chance that the people around you might. ETIQUETTE in any situation demands that you respect another person's right to speak without interruption, and other people's right to hear what he is saying without your murmuring around them.
PROTOCOL demands that there be no talking during a degree. There is a lot of memory work involved in putting on a Degree. Trying to keep your thoughts straight while conferring a degree is hard enough without someone mumbling in the background to distract you. This also true while trying to deliver a lecture. Any one who has memorized a lecture has many hours of hard work invested and you owe him the courtesy of remaining quiet while he is in the process of delivering it. You might also want to consider what kind of impression you might leave with the candidate as to the respect other people (you) have for the Fraternity if he hears background talking during the degree or lecture.
I will be adding more to this section as my time permits. I am a "two-finger typist" and it takes me a while to compose these sheets off-line and add them to the web site.
Ray