Women and Freemasonry 6/27/07

I was hoping to get my friend Janet to write this entry but she is too busy right now but she did refer me to a site where I can get some help.

I received a comment on one of the posts on the blog which said, "Mason Society bothers the stuffing out of me with their, "No Girls allowed because you're not good enough." approach."

Grand Master M. W. Bro Halsey, Initiated in Lodge Golden Rule No 1 on 29th April, 1909, remained in office until 1927
I responded "I don't believe that is the reasons that women are not allowed in the Masonic Lodge. it is not because you are not "good enough" - Why are there no men in PEO?"

Joseph Fort Newton writing in The Men's House says:

"was called the Men’s House, a secret lodge in which every young man, when he came to maturity, was
initiated into the law, legend and tradition of his people. ..it was really the center of early tribal life, council chamber, the guest house, the place of meeting for men, where laws were made and courts were held, and where the trophies of war were treasured” “It is not easy to exaggerate the importance of these secret lodges in the formative period of society in promoting that sense of kinship, sanctity, and loyalty which lies at the roots of law, order and religion.”

In the same spirit the women had their secret meeting house where they met and learned how to become women. I believe that Masonry is the successor of the Men's House of primitive man. I also am aware of women who are Freemasons. They do not belong to my lodge nor may we visit each others lodges.

There are today and have been for decades (centuries, even) females who know themselves to be 'Masons'. They belong to 'lodges' that are composed of either single-sex female lodges or mixed-sex lodges.

They believe:
THE PRINCIPLES OF CO-FREEMASONRY
BY BRO. DUDLEY WRIGHT, ENGLAND
THE BUILDER, February 1921

1. Co-Freemasonry asserts, in accordance with the ancient declarations of Freemasonry, the existence of a Creative Principle, or Supreme Being, under the title of "The Great Architect of the Universe."
2. It maintains an open "Volume of the Sacred Law" in every lodge, when duly formed for Masonic purposes.

3. It maintains the ancient landmarks of Freemasonry.

4. It withholds recognition from all irregular and clandestine meetings, or lodges not holding proper charter.

5. It imposes no restrictions on the free search for Truth, and to secure that freedom exacts tolerance from all its members.

6. It is open to men and women, without distinction of race or religion, who are free, of good report, and abide by strict morals.

7. It pledges its members to obedience to the laws of the country, loyalty to their nation or national sovreign, silence with regard to Masonic secrets, a high standard of honour, and ceaseless endeavour to promote the welfare of humanity.

8. Every Freemason is bound faithfully to observe the decisions of the Supreme Council to which he or she owes allegiance.

An announcement in the 'Grand Lodge News' of the United Grand Lodge of England that followed the March 10, 1999 Quarterly Communication of UGLE says"

"There exist in England and Wales at least two Grand Lodges solely for women. Except that these bodies admit women, they are, so far as can be ascertained, otherwise regular in their practice (emphasis added!). There is also one which admits both men and women to membership. They are not recognised by this Grand Lodge and intervisitaion may not take place. There are, however, informal discussions from time to time with the women's Grand Lodges on matters of mutual concern. Brethren are therefore free to explain to non-Masons, if asked, that Freemasonry is not confined to men (even though this Grand Lodge does not itself admit women). Further information about these bodies may be obtained by writing to the Grand Secretary."

The Grand Lodge of British Columbia has this to say about Women in Masonry.

The Grand Lodge of British Columbia does not recognize as regular Freemasonry any self-styled body that initiates women. That said, there are several organizations calling themselves Freemasonry that do initiate women.
There is also an historical record of women’s participation in stonemasonry prior to the formation of the Grand Lodge of England; known examples—or legends— of women who were initiated into Freemasonry and remained active in their lodges; and the development of Co-Masonry, a mixed-gender order using the rituals of Freemasonry.
Co-Masonry came to the United States in 1907. By 1922, there were more than 450 Co-Masonic lodges around the world, according to Arthur Edward Waite’s The New Encyclopedia of Freemasonry.
There are at present Co-Masonic lodges in at least fifty nations, including the USA, Canada, Britain, Australia, Greece, Holland, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Mexico, Belgium, and Venezuela.

After saying that they publish several excellent short papers on the subject which may be found here.

There are many "Masonic" groups which do not recognize each other as "regular." The Grand Lodge to which I owe obedience does not initiate women nor would they let a woman become a member. Whether or not you agree with this it is their right to do things as they do. It does not mean that they do not respect women. Indeed, Masons value and honor women. It is not because they are not "good enough" that they are not members. It is because of a time honored tradition of a men-only society and that is valid. At least as far as I am concerned and this position has been upheld by the Courts. With that said I am a member of a Yahoo group called called "Masonic Light." It is described thus:

For open-minded Men and Women Freemasons only, the busy 'masoniclight' YahooGroup discusses all aspects of Freemasonry from the personal perspectives of its member Freemasons from around the globe in a fast-paced respectful manner. Topics range from Masonic history, philosophies, origins, archaeology and spirituality to important local lodge issues like candidate instruction, masonic education programs, special events and ways to improve our lodges and its members, at an individual and institutional level, in knowledge of all aspects of the Craft, its appendant bodies and other recognized and non-recognized Orders.

Men and Women Freemasons from all Masonic Jurisdictions around the earth are welcome to participate in this forum.

To Join!
Visit http://www.masoniclight.org/subscribe.html to enroll!

I met Janet through this forum and she wrote that she was visiting in Ames. We had dinner together and I took her out and gave her a tour of our Temple. Past Master Doug came out to her Motel and had coffee with us. We had a great conversation and without describing or discussing the "secrets" of our respective orders we exchanged enough information that, for me at least, Janet is a Master Mason. In fact, I think her initiatic experience is every bit as profound as the one I went through if not more so.

Janet sponsors a luncheon during "Masonic Week" in Washington DC. It is well received.

(I went to Masonic Week once and that is actually how I happened to join a lot of the organizations to which I belong. It was great fun and I am hoping to go again this year to receive the Charter for the new Green Degrees Council of Knight Masons (that is if we can get our by-laws adopted and out membership increased.) I hope to go to Janet's luncheon.)

So yes there are Women Masons, they go through similar, if not the same, ritualistic experience that we do. They study the symbols of Freemasonry and write papers on it and grow and learn. It is perfectly all right with me if my Lodge does not admit women and their Lodge does not admit men or if they choose to admit both women and men. It is still Masonry and each can be satisfied with their own experience. You may not agree with me that they are Masons and that is your right but I hope this entry has explained the situation a little and will lead you to more reading on the matter.
The Web of Hiram has this site devoted to Women Freemasons.
Le Droit Humain site is also called the Order of International Co-Freemasonry