...to all those Brethren that individually have send their Christmas best wishes to
Luz do Oriente. We hope that the new Masonic year is the best in new progresses in the Royal Art for the Brethren of other constituencies. Freemason faces great challenges in the next years most of them the decrease of number of members, the routine in masonic works, the aging of officialdom, and the awakening of new forms of enjoying the Royal Art
beyond the traditional forms of it. We have all been attentive to the enlarging debate that is going on about the role of women and feminine initiation. As far as I remember there are declarations of Past-Grand Masters of GLLP considering this
a problem that time will decide. I don't know if this doctrine is the current one but as far as new discoveries emerge about the first days of Christianity, we become ashtonished by the role that the femeale followers of Jesus have in the spread of its message and teachings. We Scottish freemasons have a more open spirit on these things that other rites (namely the Rectified Rite or the York Rite) whose inspiration in Catholic or Protestant interpretations of the tradition make them very suspicious about it. As Dylan tune sings "the times they are a changing".
