Le Grand Orient de France devient mixte (The Grand Orient of France becomes Mixed)

I recently received the following news regarding our sister Obedience, the Grand Orient of France:

"The Largest masonic obedience in France changed this Thursday evening its operating rules to authorize the members of its lodges to initiate women. The Grand Orient of France also elected a new Grand Master in the person of Guy Arcizet."

At last year's annual Convent, the Grand Orient of France narrowly voted against allowing it's lodges to accept women as members. Of course, as with other liberal Masonic obediences, women Masons have always been welcome as visitors.

Under the new rules, each lodge will be able to decide whether or not to actually accept women as members of the lodge. Women members of the Grand Orient of France will be eligible to hold elected office in the Obedience.

This is historic news. The Grand Orient of France, the oldest Masonic body in that country, founded in 1733, will now have women as members after 267 years of existence.

Congratulations to our Brothers (and soon, Sisters) in the Grand Orient of France!

Can a Woman Be a Freemason?

There are many in the mainstream Masonic community, as well as most members in the wider society, that believe a woman cannot be made a Mason. Many supporters of Women's Freemasonry point out examples in the past of women that have been made Masons, and, of course, there are many Masonic jurisdictions today that consist either exclusively of women, or accept women as equal members, my own jurisdiction included.

In reviewing the obligation taken by mainstream Masons, the following is particularly relevant:

"I will not aid, or be present at, the initiation,passing,or raising of a woman..."

If a woman could not be a Freemason, then this statement is irrelevant. A Minister cannot unite two two cats in Holy Matrimony, (regardless of the owners desire) since a marriage between two pets is an impossibility and illogical.

If it is an impossibility for a woman to become a Freemason, then this part of the obligation is nonsensical and serves no purpose whatsoever.

In their own obligation, mainstream Masons state that it is possible for a woman to be made a Mason; their members are sworn not to assist, or be involved in such an action.

Increasingly I am aware of the value and necessity of women belonging to Freemasonry. As a member of a mixed lodge, I could not imagine practicing Masonry without the insight that my Sisters bring to the work, nor the balance that they offer to the lodge.

Many mainstream Masons claim that the involvement of women would result in Masonry no longer being Masonry. In the United States and England, Freemasonry, for the most part, has already ceased to be Masonry, instead evolving into a charitable social club. As a men's club to hang out and discuss sports and socialize, I can see where they are coming from. The Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes and the International Order of Friendly Sons of the Raccoons of Television fame served a similar purpose.

Lodge Circumspect

Dear Readers,

Several days ago it came to my attention that what was formerly Lodge Circumspect of the "1613 Nation," had left that group, and is now an independent lodge of Women Freemasons.

It is sad, but inevitable, that when people see the truth behind an organization, those that respect honesty and transparency will feel the need to disassociate themselves from its practices.

According to WM June Lennon, after traveling to Belgium in an attempt to meet with members of 1613's supposed Loge Liberte Cherie, she was able to establish that what had been reported on many Masonic forums was true, namely that Liberte Cherie was fraudulent.

For those that read French, more about the bogus lodge can be found here:

http://www.hiram.be/Une-fausse-Loge-Liberte-cherie-et-d-autres-pseudo-Loges_a3675.html

While there is an attempt by the "1613 Nation" to claim that Lodge Circumspect is being reorganized within their group, the WM and her Sisters are in the process of continuing with the real work of Freemasonry in Lodge Circumspect, now minus the stigma of involvement with the 1613 crowd.

I wish them well in their efforts to get back on track as they practice the work of Freemasonry purged of the negative influence of the "Post-modern masonry" espoused by their previous associates.

At present, Lodge Circumspect's original website and blog are in the hands of the Grand Master of the 1613. The original Lodge Circumspect can be reached for the moment through their facebook page located here:

http://www.facebook.com/june.lennon?v=wall&ref=sgm#!/group.php?gid=111260272241449

Again, I wish these Sisters well as they rebuild and recover from their trying, and disillusioning experience with the "1613 Nation".

Lodge Athena

Mixed Masonry has been a part of the American scene for many decades now. Many of my readers are familiar with my own jurisdiction, the George Washington Union, as well as of the American Federation of Le Droit Humain.

One jurisdiction that others may not be as familiar with, is the International Masonic Order Delphi, which was originally a part of Le Droit Humain and became an independent jurisdiction in 1996.

While the Delphi Order is headquartered in Greece, the Obedience does have lodges in Romania, Bulgaria, and the United States. The Right Worshipful Lodge Athena, No.2009 works in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has been a beacon of Masonic light in that region for a number of years now.

Lodge Athena, like the other lodges in the Delphi Order, is a member of the international association known as CLIPSAS which consists of the Grand Orient of Belgium,Le Droit Humain, the Grand Lodge of Italy, the George Washington Union, The Women's Grand Lodge of Belgium, and many other adogmatic, progressive Grand Lodges and Grand Orients around the world.

I applaud the dedication, work, and example of Lodge Athena, and send my heartfelt greetings to the Brothers and Sisters of Lodge Athena in Salt Lake City. Lodge Athena of the Delphi Order, the lodges of the George Washington Union, and the lodges of the American Federation of Le Droit Humain in the United States work the European forms of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.

For those men and women in the Salt Lake area that would like to learn more about legitimate Freemasonry, Lodge Athena can be contacted through their website at:

http://lodgeathena.us/US/

The Mother Obedience of Lodge Athena, The International Masonic Order Delphi can be reached at:

http://www.delphiorder.org/eng/index.htm

Emeth Lodge & Rose of Venus

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Brothers at Emeth Lodge in Phoenix, Arizona. Several years ago Emeth Lodge was formed as a constituent lodge of the Grand Orient of the United States of America. Today Emeth Lodge is a member of an association of independent lodges and has recently sponsored the formation of a Co-Masonic lodge, Rose of Venus, also in Phoenix.

I am familiar with the WM of Emeth, as is my own WM at Lodge New Isis of the George Washington Union in Los Angeles, and we both greatly respect him as a fine Freemason and a man of integrity.

I wish both lodges well and I am happy to see a new Co-Masonic lodge so close to San Diego. Congratulations to the Sisters at Rose of Venus!

The Inventor

My good friend and fellow Freemason Willy Gutman recently has published another book, "The Inventor". I hope to write a review in the near future but until then I would like to post this review of Willy's work from one of the Central American papers to which Willy is a frequent contributor:

Review by Marco Cáceres

I remember the first time I picked up a Harry Potter novel. I read about thirty or forty pages, and then I put it down. There were so many characters, and the plot did not emerge fast enough to hold my attention. Ultimately, I rented the first Harry Potter movie and immediately became so enamored with the characters and the story that I ended up reading each of the seven books in the series twice. My initial experience with W. E. Gutman's The Inventor was similar... although I'm not sure a movie is in the offing.

The Inventor is elegantly written. Through his protagonist and a colorful melding of artists and other notable personalities plucked from the past, Mr. Gutman weaves an intriguing journey within the dark history of the Catholic Church, which has as much a surreal and fantastic texture to it as Harry Potter. This is a book with which you must dine. It does not allow you to consume it in a hurry. It is as if Mr. Gutman dares you to read on and simply accept that the aim of his work is not primarily to entertain you, but rather to provoke you to think and struggle and savor.

There is a cynical undertone to The Inventor, but it is reasonable and even courageous, given the target of that cynicism -- the Papacy and the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. And now with the Church wallowing in the early stages of yet another crisis involving the sexual abuse of children by priests and the cover up of these crimes by their superiors, it almost makes Mr. Gutman appear visionary. The book is timely and certainly relevant to the conversation about the increasingly uncomfortable relationship between the Church and secular society.

At a minimum, The Inventor serves to remind us that the Church has traditionally been the predator, not the victim, as its apologists disingenuously claim. It is a kind of blunt testament which challenges those who are ignorant of the Church's history or prefer to downplay the more unsavory aspects of it.

Be it the Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition and the persecution of Galileo or the silence of Pope Pius XII during the Jewish Holocaust, Pope John Paul II's efforts to squash Liberation Theology in Latin America, and Honduran Cardinal Óscar Rodríguez's attempts to tie accusations of priestly pedophilia to a "worldwide Jewish conspiracy", there is ample justification for the kind of eclectic mix of history, fiction, and social commentary that is so well crafted by Mr. Gutman.

Note: The author of The Inventor is a regular contributor to Honduras Weekly. His book is published by CCB Publishing of British Columbia, Canada. The book is available through Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.

Busy Weekend

I have not posted recently but I do have posts on the way that I am working on. I returned from a meeting of Lodge New Isis in Los Angeles less than an hour ago and enjoyed participating in the initiation of a new brother.

Quite a lot of work was accomplished and I had the honor of reading an architecture that I wrote recently. Several guests were on hand from the Women's Grand Lodge of Belgium, OITOR (L'Ordre Initiatique et Traditionnel de L'Art Royal), and Le Droit Humain.

A truly wonderful afternoon of masonic fellowship. I will have new posts up in the next few days.