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Women Freemasons

Should women be allowed to become Freemasons?

  • Yes

    Votes: 21 8.7%
  • No

    Votes: 205 85.1%
  • Doesn't matter either way

    Votes: 15 6.2%

  • Total voters
    241

dfreybur

Premium Member
Today teaching men to be men is not considered to be important.

Neither is teaching women to be women. Both are needed in our society even though, maybe even especially because, both roles are evolving rapidly.

Other than Masonry, teaching role models have been ceded to families with societal evolution happening too fast for most to react plus sports that seems too focus too much on winning to put value on sportsmanship and trade off between cooperation and competition. Now the type of sport focus on winning is now being taught to girls as well.

It's getting to the point were women need groups that teach a wide perspective on femininity even more than men need groups that teach a wide perspective on masculinity. We've got lodge and Boy Scouts (until folks notice that they are now a popcorn selling business).

In my Mom's generation there were all sorts of groups only for women. Now my wife has trouble finding even one. The cookie selling business aspect of the Girls Scouts long ago triggered anti-discrimination rules to force them to start taking boys. Masonry emerged in a time when women had more groups to chose from than men. Now that table has turned.
 

dfreybur

Premium Member
Dfreybur are you saying that winning isn't important?

Sports are supposed to be taught primarily for sportsmanship and secondarily for competition. Winning is less important than sportsmanship.

A man wins or loses gracefully in sports. A man works hard to win in sports. The order and relative importance of these two matters.

"It's not whether you win or lose it's how you play the game" to some extent. "It's not whether you win or lose but how you act when either happens" to a greater extent.

Out society has gotten to the point that we need to teach sportsmanship in Disney movies like the ending of Cars.

There are values more important than winning. There are values less important than winning. This type of relative judgment is important to learn.
 

Ripcord22A

Site Benefactor
I see your point brother but the way i look at it if we teach our children that winning isnt important then they will transfer that in to.other aspects of.life...ie school, job/career. They will be like "eh i didnt pass but i tried" or " eh the other guy got the promotion i deserved but at least i tried real hard...good for him!" No. Obviously you didn't try hard enough. If you aren't taught during your primary years that winning is important you won't live up to your full potential....just my opinion
 

pointwithinacircle2

Rapscallion
Premium Member
I had to re-read this page twice to find the point of disagreement. I believe it is here:
There are values more important than winning. There are values less important than winning.
What I disagree with is the words "more" and "less". For me, saying that winning is "more" important or "less" important is like saying that the pillar of Strength is "more" or "less" important that than the pillars of Wisdom or Beauty. Each Pillar expresses a specific attribute of man. Masonry is supported by Three Great Pillars. If the Pillars are not equal how will our Masonry be level?
This type of relative judgment is important to learn.
When I was a boy my brother and I used to spend a week at my aunt and uncle's farm in the country. The summer that I turned 12 they took in two foster children. They were older, 14 and 15, tough kids from bad homes. They were intruders in my family and I didn't like them from the moment I saw them. One night after chores we were playing tag in the barn. I was the youngest and smallest and when I got tagged I was out of breath and didn't have a chance of catching the older, faster kids. I took off after one of the hated foster kids anyway, even though he was the oldest and I didn't have a chance of catching him. I was frustrated and wanted to cry but I didn't give up. He was laughing and whooping, knowing I didn't have a chance of catching him. As he glanced over his shoulder to see me falling further and further behind the look on his face changed, he stopped, and I ran into him. He looked down, smiled at me, screamed "I'm it", and took off after the other boys. Maybe he lost that footrace, or maybe just wanted to win something different that day. In those few seconds I learned something that you couldn't have explained to me with 10,000 words. You can call him a loser if you want, but if you do it in front of me you are going to have an argument on your hands.
 
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