Ladies Freemasonry in the UK video

It was snarky of me, but there is a difference between arguing/debating a topic, and him talking down to someone while attempting superiority.

 

I'd be more than shocked if UGLE recognised them as regular.



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For a long time the various Christian denominations only accepted male clergy - since Jesus was/is a man.

Then when some denominations ran out of clergy they started consecrating female clergy.

Fortunately Freemasons are made of sterner stuff. It is better that lodges close than that women be admitted.

 

Was it the Oddfellows who where exclusively male then began admitting women in an attempt to bolster numbers, if not them than some order..
Either way while I don’t pretend to know what the future holds but I can see a misguided attempt to make masonry the family friendly organisation and say extend recognition to more diverse orders and as time goes on things change.
Just a pie in the sky idea but who knows, honestly I don’t worry myself with the dealings of grand lodges here or abroad as I have plenty going on at my home lodge.

 

I enjoy a "male" only fraternity. Our craft is ancient and should not be altered nor changed to pacifiy a hand full of people. If regular and recognized lodges start to admit women I will become inactive. I guess you can say I will no longer be a travelingman.

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**EDITED**
Original Post - IOOF is men only.
Edited Post - IOOF now admits women into, not just its Rebecca Lodges, but also its primary lodges which were traditionally men only.

 

Hmmm who am I thinking of.. I donno.
I guess it didn’t really matter it’s just an example to illustrate the point that the only reason I can see them extending recognition would be some misguided attempt to address an issue they don’t understand the cause of, not that I’m claiming to have answers on that front.

 

The 1999 declaration appears on page 46 of the UGLE booklet entitled "Information for Guidance of Members of the Craft" which you can read here: http://www.ugle.org.uk/images/files/Information_Booklet_-_2016_-_Website_Edition_Secured.pdf

 

For what purpose?

 

Not according to its website: http://www.ioof.org/

I quote "We are the family of Odd Fellowship, composed of Men, Women, and Youth, believing in a supreme being, the creator and preserver of the universe, who have come together in our local communities having the same beliefs and values as others, that; Friendship, Love and Truth are the basic guidelines that we need to follow in our daily lives. Through working in our local Communities, States, Provinces, or Nationally we understand that we can make a difference in the lives of people in our World."

 

As would I! Both feminine Grand Lodges have been applying for recognition every couple of decades for as long as they've existed.

 

Yeah something like Daughters of Rebekah maybe is apart of IOOFs. Maybe it's their OES? Not sure. However, to compare OFs with Freemasonry is a little different. I think an IOOF member would be able to clarify all of this vs. speculation.

 

I think they would be talking about auxiliaries like the Rebekah Lodges - like we have OES & Amaranth in some parts... but there are some IOOF members here who might be able to clarify... although I do note "Some branches of the order (i.e., some countries) have allowed women to join the Odd Fellows itself," https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Order_of_Odd_Fellows#20th_century but I am moderately sure it remains a fraternity

 

Agreed. We are what we are, and I am not interested in becoming something else. Maybe we should check with the Odd fellows to see how that worked out for them?

 

To my knowledge Odd Fellows is not men only and hasn't been for some time. Maybe there's two separate orgs?

on edit, I found this:

 

Absolutely!

Yes.

 

Hmmm "The Odd Fellows opened general membership to women in 2001, said Dino Fioran, secretary for the provincial organization of Odd Fellows."
http://www.timescolonist.com/news/l...rs-woman-leads-victoria-odd-fellows-1.1734684

And

"When the Rebekah Degree was authorized by Odd Fellowship in the 19th Century, it was a huge breakthrough for women. Odd Fellows became the first fraternal order to admit women. Well, initially Odd Fellowship didn’t exactly admit women on the same par with men. The Rebekah Degree was created as an “honorary degree” than men could confer on their wives and daughters. Women were still not admitted into Lodges of Odd Fellows.... Essentially, the Odd Fellows Lodge became known as the “man’s Lodge” and the Rebekah Lodge became known as the “woman’s Lodge.” In fact, even today, some of the most senior members of the Order still refer to the Lodges in this fashion. That changed (thankfully) around the turn of the 21st Century, when membership in Odd Fellows Lodges was finally opened to women."

http://davislodge.org/dmc-degree-equality/
(and in the above link there is talk of the decline of the order)
And

"From 1945 to 2010 – a period spanning three generations – IOOF in California, and the rest of North America – saw a precipitous drop in membership. In California, membership dropped by over 90%. Clearly, the decline was unsustainable."

Its seems women are now part of mainstream IOOF Lodges, not just the Rebecca Lodges..

 

I’ve yet to see a discussion of this issue which was not divisive and usually rancorous.

 

So who is trying to impose their beliefs on others? We're just giving our opinions same as you.

Yep, you're right.