Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Earning the Title of Freemason


I was thinking today about the Sisters at Lodge Aletheia in Los Angeles, a lodge that I have had the pleasure of visiting more than once, and the dedication that they show to Freemasonry.

Lodge Aletheia belongs to the Women’s Grand Lodge of Belgium and has sister lodges in Washington D.C. and New York. The founders had to travel to Belgium to be initiated, passed, and raised, which in itself is an indicator of their dedication to bringing women’s Masonry to the United States.

The sisters are required to attend education meetings at 10 am, followed by a break for lunch, and the lodge opens at 2 pm and normally lasts until 5pm, followed by a common meal (in the European tradition this is known as an Agape).

How many of us would be willing to commit ourselves to what is essentially an entire Saturday for Masonic work, and this is every month?

As with those mainstream lodges that belong to the Masonic Restoration Foundation or that follow a European Lodge pattern, these are the lodges that are the future of Freemasonry in this country.

Those lodges that require commitment and hard work are the lodges that prosper and attract the highest quality candidates. Lodge Aletheia turns away more candidates than it accepts, as I can testify to personally. At one blindfold interview session I was witness to, only one of three women applying to the lodge was accepted for initiation.

If we don’t ask much of our members, we should not expect much. Being a Freemason is a privilege and an honor. It is not an entitlement. When the West Gate is opened to whoever knocks, there is no telling who we are letting in the door; Freemasonry must maintain high standards to be a beneficial and quality organization.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

International Masonic Order Delphi


I know that it is quite awhile since I have posted here, the summer has been quite busy. I recently affiliated with the International Masonic Order Delphi.

I have had the pleasure of getting to know some wonderful brothers and sisters in the Delphi Order, which is headquartered in Greece, and is growing in the United States. Originally part of Le Droit Humain in Greece, the Order serves as an umbrella of sorts for the Mixed Grand Lodge of Greece, the Mixed Grand Lodge of Romania, and the Mixed Grand Lodge of Bulgaria. The lodges in the U.S. are under the Greek Grand Lodge. The Delphi Order is a member of Clipsas as well, as is the GWU, the Women's Grand Lodge of Belgium, and many other progressive Masonic Orders.

What was once just Lodge Athena in Salt Lake City has now grown to Prometheus Lodge in Phoenix, Helios Triangle in Las Vegas, and soon to be Apollo Triangle in Austin.

These are truly exciting times for co-masonry in the United States and I know that the Delphi Order will play an important role in liberal Freemasonry's future here.

More information of the International Masonic Order Delphi can be found here:
http://www.delphiorder.org/eng/index.htm