The Brotherhood of Freemason Sisters
The Brotherhood of Freemason Sisters

Author: Lilith Mahmud

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2014-03-28

Total Pages: 262

ISBN-13: 022609605X

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This “stupendous ethnography of female Freemasonry in Italy” reveals the fascinating paradox of elitism and exclusion experienced by “female brothers” (Michael Herzfeld, author of Evicted from Eternity). From its cryptic images on the dollar bill to Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol, the Freemasons have long been one of the most romanticized secret societies in the world. But a simple fact escapes most depictions of this elite brotherhood: there are also female members. In this groundbreaking ethnography, Lilith Mahmud takes readers inside Masonic lodges of contemporary Italy, where she observes the ritualistic and fraternal bonds forged among Freemason women. Offering a tantalizing look behind lodge doors, The Brotherhood of Freemason Sisters unveils a complex culture of discretion in which Freemasons reveal some truths and hide others. Female initiates—one of Freemasonry’s best-kept secrets—are often upper class and highly educated, yet avowedly antifeminist. Their self-cultivation through the Masonic path is an effort to embrace the deeply gendered ideals of fraternity. In this lively investigation, Mahmud unravels the contradictions at the heart of Freemasonry: an organization responsible for many of the egalitarian concepts of the Enlightenment and yet one that has always been, and in Italy still remains, extremely exclusive. The result is not only a thrilling look at a surprisingly influential world, but a reevaluation of the modern values we now take for granted

International Masonic Collection, 1723-2011
International Masonic Collection, 1723-2011

Author: Larissa P. Watkins

Publisher:

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781584562924

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This extensive bibliography is based on the international Masonic holdings in the library of the Supreme Council, Southern Jurisdiction of the USA. It represents an important cross section of Masonic literature obtained by the Supreme Council from about 89 countries worldwide and covers a historic period of about three centuries. Anderson's Constitutions, the first book to discuss activities of the Fraternity, was published in 1723. Since that time interest in Freemasonry has developed and emerged on a worldwide scale. The House of the Temple's International Masonic Collection now contains over 8,000 volumes written in 25 languages. The bibliography is illustrated with more than 1,000 images which graphically depict major classic themes in Masonic symbolism. Begun at the initiative of Grand Commander Albert Pike in the mid-nineteenth century, it now covers over one hundred years of acquisition effort. The geographic scope of this bibliography, along with historic period of literary coverage provides unique insight into the nature, substance, and evolution of Masonic philosophy of at least eight generations of Masonic authors worldwide. More important, it is the first time in the history of American bibliography that the international Masonic fraternity is documented in context as the oldest universal brotherhood. Thus, it is a fundamental extension to the two previous Masonic catalogs published by this experienced author. We are pleased to announce that this is the third "must-have" catalog for Masonic libraries, collectors, and students of Masonic literature. Co-published with the Library of the Supreme Council.Larissa P. Watkins is Assistant to the Librarian at the Library of the Supreme Council in Washington, D.C. Educated in the Russian Federation as a journalist and librarian, she holds an honors degree in Library Science from the Cultural Sciences Institute of Higher Learning in Ussurisk, Primorskiy Krai, and was Director of Acquisition and Automation at the State Scientific Library in the Maritime Provinces in Vladivostok.

Emulation Ritual
Emulation Ritual

Author: The Emulation Lodge of Improvement Unknown

Publisher: Lewis Masonic Pub Limited

Published: 2007-07-26

Total Pages: 299

ISBN-13: 9780853182825

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The most detailed and authoritive text on the true meaning of the Taylors Masonic rituals! The principal contents of this book are the Official Taylors Lectures on the Three Degrees of Craft Freemasonry. These lectures deal with the description of the ritual of those Degrees along with their moral and symbolic significance and are of a formal nature, arranged as catechisms - that is by question and answer form. The text can be studied at home or can be preformed by two or more brethren in open lodge. Much evidence suggests that many sections of these lectures are as old as the degrees themselves. This book adds much to ones enjoyment and understanding of Freemasonry.