How GOUSA got its patent from and amity with GOdF

In March, 2008, several members of the Grand Orient of the United States of America traveled to Washington, D.C., for a historic meeting with officials of the Grand Orient de France and other Masonic bodies.

GOUSA's Grand Master Bro. Aaron Peavy, Grand Treasurer Bro. Brian Roper, Grand Orator Bro. Chris Michalek, and Grand Junior Warden Bro. Jeff Peace had several meetings in Washington, DC, with GOdF Grand Secretary of External Affairs Bro. Avelino Valle and Assistant Grand Secretary of External Affairs Bro. Patrice Billaud, along with George Washington Union's Grand Master Bro. Jean-Louis Petit and GOdF's Guarantor of Amity and Worshipful Master of GOdF Lafayette Lodge No. 89 Bro. Jean-Francois Mefort. The officers from the Grand Orient de France presented the GOUSA with a medallion and letter congratulating GOUSA on its formation on behalf of the Grand Master of GOdF, Bro. Jean-Michel Quillardet.

The visiting French and American brethren then sat in a tyled lodge meeting at Lafayette Lodge with members, visitors and visiting officers from the Grand Lodge of Luxembourg, the Feminine Grand Lodge of Belgium, and Le Droit Humain. Afterwards, a pleasant festive board was enjoyed. Later that month the GOUSA's petition to the GOdF was received and accepted unanimously by its Council of the Order.

On June 27, Bro. John Slifko, the new Grand Master of GOUSA, Grand Orator Bro. Chris Michalek, and Bro. Joel Michalek, past master of Halycon Lodge in Ohio, traveled to Paris, France, to meet with GOdF officials. There they were presented with a patent from the Grand Orient de France granting GOUSA permission for use of the Scottish Rite and Modern Rite degrees, along with other lesser known degrees.

While in France, GOUSA representatives also met with officers of the Feminine Grand Lodge of France, the Grand Lodge of France (not to be confused with the Grand Orient of France), the Grand Orient of Spain, and French members of the George Washington Union. Another very festive festive board followed the meeting.

At the meeting, GOdF previewed an article slated for publication in their upcoming official magazine, not only about the new bonds between GOdF and GOUSA, but about how France and the United States have traditionally helped each, such as during world wars as well as during the American Revolution.

On July 4, 2008, the Grand Orient of the United States of America officially announced their new patent and treaty of amity with the Grand Orient de France.

GOUSA has or will soon have lodges in New York City; Washington, DC; Savannah, Georgia; Cleveland, Ohio; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Los Angeles; Phoenix; Atlanta; Mobile, Alabama; Patras, Greece; and Paris, France. Treaties of amity with several grand orients across the globe are pending, and will be announced on the GOUSA website as they are finalized.

GOUSA sees Freemasonry as a secular fraternity dedicated to the brotherhood/sisterhood of all humanity. By secular they do not mean non-spiritual, but rather non-religious, as opposed to "mainstream" American Freemasonry, which has over the years taken on a distinctly sectarian religious character in many parts of the United States.

GOUSA and its constituent lodges have chosen to support through financial donations and personal involvement organizations that are involved in human rights and the pursuit of science and knowledge. These groups include Amnesty International, NOVA, the Nature Conservancy, Free Speech TV, and BOINC, a computer time-sharing system used in many scientific endeavors.

The Grand Lodge of the United States of America's website is at http://grandorientusa.org. The English version of the Grand Orient de France's website is at http://www.godf.org/foreign/uk/index_uk.html.

— By The Widow's Son based on information provided by Bro. Jeff Peace, August 13, 2008

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Grand Orient of the United States of America announced

On Sunday evening the website of the United Grand Lodge of America was updated to reflect a new status, a new focus, and a new order of amity with worldwide Freemasonry.

The UGLA is now officially the Grand Orient of the United States of America. After months of discussion, the organization is now in amity with the Grand Orient de France and through them, with George Washington Union and Freemasons across the world.

The Grand Orient de France is the largest Masonic organization in France, and was formed in 1733. It was the only Masonic Order in France until the end of the 19th century. Its members outnumber all other French grand lodges combined.

The new Grand Orient of the United States of America's website says:

LIBERTY — FRATERNITY — EQUALITY

The Grand Orient of the United States of America is a continuation of the Masonic traditions began by brothers such as Benjamin Franklin and the Marquis De Lafayette. Our lineage can be traced back through the Grand Orient of France to the original speculative Grand Lodge of London that was established in 1717. These traditions and ideas are at the very core of Enlightenment thinking that eventually resulted in the freedoms enjoyed by every American today.

We hold true to these beliefs:

• That every man is endowed with certain inalienable rights
• That peace and harmony among human beings is only possible where there exists a separation between church and state
• That absolute freedom of conscience is an essential element in the pursuit of happiness among all peoples
• That all human beings are created equal and that equality is fundamental to democracy and freedom

What is today the Grand Orient of the United States of America began on December 27th, 2005; several lodges declared their independence from the 'Antient' Masonic system and formed a confederation of sovereign lodges under the banner of United Grand Lodge of America. In so doing, they sought to restore Modern Free-Masonry to the American continent and return to the traditional Enlightenment and cosmopolitan ideals expressed in the original Craft. This event allowed the original streams of Masonic thought still existing in Europe to once again flow freely into lodges in America.

In November of 2007, several more lodges declared their independence from the 'Antient' Masonic system and the Council of the Order was convened to formalize our relationship with our brethren in France and throughout Europe. The Council voted unanimously to change the name of the United Grand Lodge of America to the Grand Orient of the United States of America to better and more precisely identify it with the existing currents of Modern Free-Masonry throughout the world.

The Grand Orient of the United States of America is a masculine Masonic obedience that works together with the mixed-gender obedience lodges operating under George Washington Union throughout the United States. Together, these two systems represent the most liberal and progressive form of Freemasonry in America, which is open to all people regardless of race, creed, or sex.

Our aim is the brotherhood of all humanity through a universal chain of union extending around the globe. If you are already with us in spirit then you are welcome to join with us in Masonic lodges throughout the world.

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Grand Orient of France votes against allowing women to join

The blog Lost in France reports that at the recent annual meeting of the Grand Orient of France, "sixty percent of the 1,200 delegates attending rejected outright the proposal that was put forward by their slightly more liberated Grand Master Jean-Michel Quillardet to allow women to join their Lodges."

According to the website, the GODF was founded in 1773, and has over 48,000 members.

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