- Rite of Adoption
The Rite of Adoption was a Masonic rite which appeared in France in the 18th century. It was practised by women's lodges (known as Lodges of Adoption) and represents the beginnings of Freemasonry for women.It based its rituals not on the construction of the Temple as male Freemasnory does, but on other themes (though the gloves and aprons of male Freemasonry were retained [La Grande Loge Féminine de France Autoportrait, Collectif, Guy Trédaniel éditeur, 1995] ). The degrees were based on the following:
*First Degree -Tower of Babel
*Second Degree -Garden of Eden
*Third Degree - Flood [D. Ligou, op. cit. p. 149]This rite was the original rite of the
Grande Loge féminine de France , founded in 1945 as the Union maçonnique féminine de France, though this jurisdiction abandoned it in 1959 in favour of theScottish Rite . Some of the jurisdiction's members were opposed to this change, and left to form the "Cosmos" lodge, which in 1977 joined the GLFF in continuing to practice the rite of adoption. Since then it has been the only lodge in France and in the world to continue functioning under this rite. [La Grande Loge Féminine de France Autoportrait, Collectif, Guy Trédaniel éditeur, 1995]Upper degrees
Different and specific systems of Upper Degree Masonry were added to the three symbolic degrees, though it is still uncertain whether the rituals for these upper degrees were used. [D. Ligou, op. cit. p. 150] . One of these rituals was that of the
Queen of Sheba , under the name of "Princess of the Crown", which was the highest of 10 degrees attested at the end of the 18th century. [La Grande Loge Féminine de France Autoportrait, Collectif, Guy Trédaniel éditeur, 1995.] .Notes
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