🚀 go-pugleaf

Craig asks for some source documents on Co-Masonry.  (And someone rather
rudely suggested that I was wrong to post what I previously did on the
use of the term Co-Mason.)  This document, and some of the related discussion
with Co-Masons in alt.magick, is what caused me to say that the term
Co-Masonry applied specifically to the mixed-sex offshoot of French Masonry.
Ron says that, in fact, it is used by other groups.  However, if I'm reading
this and the discussions correctly, the mixed-sex Masons use it as the term
to refer specifically to their order.

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Enjoy the journey!
                       --B.A. "Bran" Davis-Howe (ba@mrcnext.cso.uiuc)

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Witches have the sick sense (of humor). ;)



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From: john@actrix.gen.nz (John Vorstermans)

I am myself a co-mason and as far
as I am concerned I consider myself quite regular and our co-masonic lodge
to be a properly constituted lodge by co-masonic authority.  If male only
orders have a problem with that, then it is simply their problem.
For those who have not knowledge of the history of women as freemasons I have
included a section of a talk I gave in our lodge earlier this year.

                  * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Tonight we have enacted the Festival of Honour.  It is a short, simple
ceremony by which we pay homage to the founders of International
Co-Freemasonry and the founding of this Lodge 75 years ago on the
27 January 1917.

It is not so-much the personalities that we honour, although we see some of
there photographs before us but more the great ideal they stood for and worked
so hard for.  Co-Freemasonry is one of the organisations in the world that
truly embraced equality as its founding principle.

I would now like to give to you some of the history of our order and an
understanding of the strength behind the spreading of Co-Freemasonry around
the glob.

The Initiation of Mrs. Aldworth
===============================

The most obvious point that marks the difference of Co-Freemasonry from
regular masonry (or what we often called Male-Craft-Masonry) is that we also
initiate women into our order. The first women to be admitted to Masonry was
not Mademoiselle Maria Deaismes, who we will hear more of shortly, but rathe
a Mrs Aldworth in 1735.

Lodge No. 44 was an aristocratic Lodge, consisting mainly of gentry and
respectable and wealthy inhabitants of the area around Doneraiel.  Usually the
meetings were held in the town but during the Mastership of Lord Doneraile,
under whom his sister Mrs. Aldworth was initiated, the meetings were held at
his Lordship's residence.  Here is a account of what happened:

``It happened on this particular occasion that the Lodge was held in a room
separated from another, as is often the case by stud and brickwork.  The young
women being thoughtless and determined to gratify her curiosity, made her
arrangements accordingly and, with a pair of scissors removed a portion of
brick from the wall and placed herself so as to command a full view of
everything which occurred in the next room.

``So placed, she witnessed the first two degrees in Masonry, which was the
extent of the proceedings of the Lodge on that night.  Becoming aware that the
brethren were about to separate, she for the first time felt tremblingly alive
to the awkwardness and danger of her situation and began to consider how she
could retire without observation.  She became agitated and nearly fainted, but
so far recovered herself as to be fully alive to the necessity of withdrawing
as quickly as possible.  In the act of doing so, being in the dark, she
stumbled and overthrew something.

``The crash was loud and the Tyler who was in the lobby, or landing on which
the door of both the room where. gave the alarm, burst open the door and with
a light in one hand and a drawn sword in the other, appeared to the now
terrified and fainting women.  He was soon joined by the members of the Lodge
present and luckily, for it is asserted that but for the prompt appearance of
her brother, Lord Doneraile, her life would have fallen sacrifice to what was
then esteemed a crime.

``The first care of the Lordship was to resuscitate the unfortunate lady
without alarming the house and endeavour to learn from her an explanation of
what had occurred.  Having done so, many of the members being furious at the
transaction, she was placed under the guard of the the Tyler and a member in
the room in which she was found while the members reassembled and deliberated
as to what, under the circumstances, was to be done.  For over two long hours
she could hear the discussion and her death deliberately proposed and seconded.
At length the good sense of the majority succeeded in calming, in some
measure, the angry and irritated feelings of the rest of the members when
after much had been said and many things proposed , it was resolved to give
her the option of submitting to the Masonic ordeal to the extent she had
witnessed and if she refused the brethren were again to consult.

Being waited on to decide, exhausted and terrified by the storminess of the
debate, which she could not avoid partially hearing and yet notwithstanding
all, with secret pleasure, gladly and unhesitatingly accepted the offer.  She
was accordingly initiated.

Founding of Co-Freemasonry
===========================

However it was not until the 4 April 1893 that a world-wide Masonic Order was
founded to admit women.  The Supreme Council of Universal Co-Masonry
was constituted on May 11th 1899.  The French Lodge which took the great step
of formally admitting a women was called the ``Freethinkers'' Lodge.

This Lodge espoused the principle of ``a free Mason in a free lodge.'' This
principle its brethren put into practice by initiating a women, Mademoiselle
Maria Deraismes.  In the little Norman village of Le Pecq, a small company of
Masons broke with tradition and prejudice and affirmed the equality of women
with men in the age-old mysteries and privileges of Freemasonry.  They duly
initiated Mademoiselle Deraismess.  This was in January 1882, and since then
women have been freely admitted to the special order of Co-Freemasonry.

Sister Maria Derasmes for some time did nothing in the way of extending to
others the Masonic privileges she had received.  Eventually she yielded to the
persuasions of friends and notably of a Dr. Georges Martin who was a member of
the Lodge when Mdlle. Deraismes was initiated.  He gave her his staunch
support and the benefit of his wide Masonic experience throughout her Masonic
career.  Upon his retirement from political life -- he had been a Senator
--he devoted his energies to the helping of humanity through our Order. On
March 14th 1893, Sister Deraismes initiated a number of women in the presence
of Dr. Martin and on April 4 ``Le Droit Humain'' came into being.

The first English women to enter the order was the highly esteemed Sister
Francesca Arundale.  Mrs. Annie Besant, a strong English feminist of the time,
feeling that a Masonic movement open to men and women alike could be made a
powerful force for good in the world, who had been offered initiation by Mdlle.
Deraimes, learned of the continuance of the order from Miss Arundale, and
sought initiation in Paris.  She was subsequently created Vice-President Grand
Master of the Supreme Council and Deputy for Great Britian and its
Dependencies.  The first Co-Masonic Lodge was consecrated in London in
September 1902, by the Grand Officers of the Supreme Council, under the title
of Human Duty, No.6.

From this point on ``The Co-Masonic'' movement spread quickly around the
world where today there are Lodges in almost every country.  Co-Masons tend
to work largely in the background rather than in a public fashion as it has
been the tendency for most "Male-Craft" masons to ridicule and persecute
those belonging to the Co-Masonic order.  Co-Masonry has also over the years
re-kindled the esoteric aspects of rituals and in general the lodges tend to
focus more on the inner side of workings, much as you will see in the rituals
of the Golden Dawn.

                          * * *  * * *  * * *

I have always had a strong interest in the developments of Golden Dawn and
some other similar organisations which were formed at the same time.  It is
interesting to note that many of the initial founders of the Golden Dawn
were also active in the early days of the Co-Masonic order.  Eventually each
choosing the ritual that best suited them.

I feel often that we spend too much time arguing about what is true or what
is clandestine or regular that we tend to forget what is the purpose of the
rituals in the first place.  Wouldn't it be better if we could acknowledge
that we are actually all involved in these things for asimilar purpose and
instead embrace each other as fellow students???