MASONRY AND WOMAN
by Robert Ramsay
Voice of Masonry - 1880
MASONRY occupies a peculiarly interesting
position with regard to woman. From time immemorial the Craft
have been opposed to her reception within the portals of
their lodge-rooms. The ancient regulations, charges,
and obligations, one and all, exclude her from a participation
in the ceremonies. This has been seized upon by the opponents
of Freemasonry as an excuse for wanton attacks upon, and gross
insults to, our beloved Institution. " We must be performing some
mystic ceremonies of a peculiarly immoral character, since woman
cannot share our secrets and unite with us in the performance of
our mysteries," or "we must be indulging in nocturnal revelry and
midnight debauchery." Such insinuations have been thrown out,
and such statements have been made, time and again,
by Blanchard and his narrow-minded allies. Now, what
connection has Masonry with woman? Its principles inculcate the
highest code of honor and respect for every daughter of Eve.
"Masonry is a peculiar system of morality veiled in allegory and
illustrated by symbols." It is the purest and holiest system of
morality ever taught by man and approved of by GOD. It is not the
sniveling, sneaking morality of the Pharisee or the deceitful
morality of the hypocrite, but a morality that teaches every
follower of the martyred Hiram to regard woman as pure and holy;
as a being created by an All-Wise Father to be the helpmate
of man; his friend and ally in the time of trouble; his guiding
star in his earthly career, and his guardian angel during the
dark hour of temptation, and when the shadow of the
winged messenger of death is hovering by his bedside in
the chamber of mourning and lamentation. Those who dare to
insinuate that Masonry does not respect woman, because she is not
permitted to participate in Masonic ceremonies, know naught of
the character of the Masonic Institution. One of its great
objects is to teach men to appreciate the exalted character of
woman, and all who have passed through its mystic ceremonies know
how solemnly it regards, supports, and upholds the honor of
a brother and the virtue of those near and dear to him.
The Mason's wife, the Mason's widow, the Mason's mother,
the Mason's sister, and the Mason's daughter, are sacred in
the eyes of the Hiramite. And, as we render them
especially sacred, so do we teach every neophyte that, unless he
is a truly moral man, he is unworthy of the name of a Mason.
The licentious libertine and the obscene jester are alike objects
of pity and disgust to the Craft. They oppose
blasphemy, obscenity, drunkenness, and all things that tend to
render the mind of man coarse, his morals impure, and his
thoughts unholy. On the other hand, do they not inculcate honesty
of purpose, uprightness of intention, and purity of thought?
Do they not teach the neophyte a blessed faith in the
goodness and greatness of GOD, a hope in immortality, more
grand than the mind of man can conceive, and a charity
more boundless than that of any creed, sect, or church, because
it is a charity that embraces a liberality of thought that
permits man to view the errors of others from a kindly and
liberal point of view? Now, we ask our opponents, in all
fairness, if these are a few of our principles, can we fail to
honor and respect woman; to regard her virtue as sacred, and
to uphold her whenever her name is aspersed, or her
character maligned? It is one of the glories of our society that
we respect woman, and, whilst true and faithful td her we
love, we are equally willing to guard over and protect the
name and character of any when falsely accused, or should
one fall under the alluring tongue and damnable promises of
the seducer, we are bound to rescue such an one, if within
our power. Woman, in the eyes of the true Freemason, is
the holiest gift of GOD to man. We exclude her from our
lodge-rooms because our esoteric ceremonies are not suitable for
her, and because our ancient landmarks are opposed to her
admission, but above all things because we believe home is the
place for woman, by the fireside with her sisters or children. We
do not wish to see woman emasculate herself and forget her sex in
the performance of the duty of man. We love to find her
gentle, and kind, and good, a holy being, as it were, sent from
GOD to render home happy and man pure. We desire not to
see her assuming duties that fall to our coarser natures; she
can help us as Masons in our deeds of love and charity; she
can go with us to the bedside of sickness and smooth the
pillow, and moisten the lips, and sit with patience by the side
of the suffering and the dying, and "administer relief to
their afflictions, and comfort to their distresses." This, then,
is the true connection that Masonry has with woman. To
the Mason she is a pure, holy, exalted being, his friend
in trouble, his helpmate in joy, his guardian angel when
the dark shadow of temptation surrounds him; and, in a
word, the grandest gift that the Creator has bestowed upon
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