The Expanding Salon on Freemasonry for Women and Men

The Salon on Freemasonry for Women and Men was founded approximately six months ago in the Los Angeles areas as an informal meetup for an educated discussion and exploration of the subject of Liberal Freemasonry for women and men. It has with the New Year expanded and now the Salon on Freemasonry for Women and Men is meeting on both coasts. The Salon is pleased to report that yesterday, Jan 29, The Philadelphia Chapter of the Salon held its first meeting. A short piece of Architecture based on an original Spanish one was presented and a general discussion was had, well lubricated by fine coffee, tea, and some truly sinful chocolate.

The Salon has this to say about itself: "'a salon is a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine taste and increase their knowledge of the participants through conversation. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to please or to educate" ("aut delectare aut prodesse est"). Salons, commonly associated with French literary and philosophical movements of the 17th century and 18th centuries, were carried on until quite recently, in urban settings, among like-minded people.' The current Salon is intended to be a gathering of people all who are inspiring, equal and progressive/creative in outlook. Initial topics are the value spheres of the arts, ethics and science in Freemasonry and in wider civil society. Non-Mason and Mason are invited. Other areas of discussion are the traditions, current status and future developments of Freemasonry. Anyone with a disciplined curiosity about human experience and interested in meeting like-minded and new people should join. One unifying purpose of the group is the comparative and global study of tradition, initiation, myth, symbol and renewal."

The Salons, both the Los Angeles and Philadelphia chapters, may be accessed through the Meetup.com site.

http://www.meetup.com/Salon-on-Freemasonry-for-Women-and-Men-Los-Angeles/

http://www.meetup.com/Salon-on-Freemasonry-for-Women-and-Men-Philadelphia/

It should be noted that the salons, while having a web location exist primary to arrange monthly face to face meetings, and thus are not open to anonymous web memberships.

And so steps are being taken to assist in the growth of a responsible, serious Liberal Freemasonry in the United States.