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Article THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MASONIC LIGHT. Page 1 of 2 Article THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MASONIC LIGHT. Page 1 of 2 →
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The Significance Of Masonic Light.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MASONIC LIGHT .
WE havo perused with peculiar pleasure a little brochure containing a lecture on this subject , which was delivered in tho Gladsmuir Lodge , No . 1385 , High Barnet , recently , by Bro . tho Rev . Charles W . Butler , F . R . H . S ., Chaplain to tho Robin Hood Lodge , 1493 , and which has been published at the request of many brethren . The sentiments contained in this well-considered address
are of so refining ancl elevating a character that it is only common justice that they should be as widely diffused as possible , for the benefit of the brethren at large ; and in making copious extracts from the text before us we feel
assured that our aim will be rightly understood and appreciated , namely , to prevent such gems of Masonic light from being hidden under the bushel of only a restricted circulation . After referring to tho undoubted fact that
Religion and Freemasonry wore wedded from the first , having an identical aim , though differing in their nature and method , he points out that Freemasonry is content to take position as handmaid to Religion , commending to its members the practice of pure morality , the cultivation of
every moral and social virtue , and enforcing the claims which religion and humanity make ou their zeal and service . It is , perhaps , no marvel that the position of Freemasonry has been misunderstood ; that it has been represented as assuming to be identical with religion ; and
still more preposterous , that it aims at superseding religion altogether ! Refuting this absurdity , Bro . Butler pithily sets forth that : — " What it actually claims is , simply to be a system of morality inculcated on scientific principles , and embodied in a series of symbols , alike pleasing to the eye
and impressive on tho mind and memory . Its utility lies partly in its impressive rituals , partly in the broad principle of philanthropy and virtue on which it is based , partly in its catholicit y and total freedom from political or ecclesiastical controversy , and partly in the ' Mystic tie' by
which a bond of unity is established among brethren in all parts of the world . " As the youngest tyro in the Masonic art well knows , Light takes the first and highest place amongst the symbols through which instruction is imparted to Freemasons . Up to a certain point in his earliest
introduction to Freemasonry , the candidate might retire from the Lodge without the faintest conception of its form , its arrangement , its symbolic beauty . The moment comes when , having gone too far to recede , he confesses the predominant wish of his heart , and a blessing , of which he has
suffered temporary deprivation , is restored to him . With the earliest flash of light that falls npon him ho receives mental impressions that will be solemnly treasured throu gh life . Henceforth he is a pilgrim in search of higher degrees of Light—a true and worthy Mason in proportion to the
zeal and perseverance with which the search is pursued . In its objective signification the lecturer reminds us of the canopy which in a fully-furnished Lodge covers the seat of the W . M ., and which is a symbolical representation of the open firmament , with its starry lights , under which the fathers of
Masonry were wont to assemble ; and of Heaven , the eternal seat of Deity . On the pedestal lies the open Bible , the great Light of Freemasonry , towards which the face of every brother in the Lodge is turned . From the great
Light on the altar comes the whole mystery , every confidential fact and every symbolism of Masonry . The G . A . O . T . U . is the source of Light ; and in all the personal communication of the divine will which He has been pleased
The Significance Of Masonic Light.
to make to man He has , in the language of King David , " clothed Himself with Light as with a garment . " It was probably in the form of a bright cloud that God conversed with Adam in Paradise . After man's degradation , Light guarded the entrance of Eden , that the tree of life might
not be invaded by profane hands . Freemasonry constantly reminds us of the weary and benighted Jacob , when he saw the vision of that wonderful Ladder , with seraphim ascending and descending , while the G . A . O . T . U . in a flood of Light communicated to him those assurances of prosperity
which were so amply realised in his day and generation . Moses at the Burning Bush was favoured with the inspiration of Light , and received that Incommunicable Name which constitutes tho secret of Speculative Masonry . The homes of tho Israelites were filled with the Light of the
Divine presence during- the three days in which tho plague of darkness afflicted the Egyptians ; ancl tho cloud of Light was a guide to the Hebrews in their flight , and a darkness and terror to their angry pursuers . It was in an awful display of Light shining in darkness that the Divine
presence was revealed to our Grand Master Solomon at tho dedication of the Temple . " The House , " we read , " was filled with a cloud so that the priests could not stand to minister , by reason of the cloud . Then said Solomon The Lord hath said that He would dwell in the thick
darkness . " Ancl so for ages the solemn darkness of the inner Temple was enlightened by the Shekinah—the Light resting between the cherubim and the mercy seat , as a visible proof to mankind of the presence of Deity in their midst . Recognising the fundamental principle of tho
worship of the one true God as the very foundation oi Masonic teaching , there is hut little danger of this Grand Objective Light being slighted or covered with Atheistic darkness in this country ; and we believe with the writer of the little work from which we are quoting when he says
that this danger , which so long has loomed upon the Grand Orient of France , will be fatal to the interests ancl the very existence of the brotherhood in that country if not firmly and bravely overcome . To smother the Light on the altar ,
to shut out that Supreme Light which is the truest and highest object of a Mason ' s pursuit , would be to strike the death-blow upon our Order , and to destroy the deepest bond of union by which our world-wide brotherhood has from time immemorial been cemented . Then the author
dilates at some length on the subjective aspect of this Li ght , which is rather the cultivation of an inner principle than an object to gaze upon . The symbolic darkness in which tho candidate is introduced to Masonry is emblematical of the ignorance which precedes the reception of knowledge , and tho
various stages to which the brother is elevated in his progress in the science are all indications of the dawning of new Light , the result of his intelligent apprehension and earnest pursuit of the teachings of the Order . He is reminded in his progress of the darkness of death ancl the obscurit y
of the grave , together with " the never-fading Light which follows at the resurrection of the just . " Rising" to a scene of intellectual brightness , he his reminded that , being obedient to the precepts of Masonry and the dictates of Religion , he shall " rejoice on the resurrection morn , when
the clouds of error and imperfection shall be separated from his mind , and shall behold with unveiled eye the glories which issue from the expanse of Heaven , the everlasting splendour of the throne of God . " Passing from the floor
of one degree to that of another , through the field of corn by the river-side , and the pillars of the Temple into the sanctum sanctonim , where the Eastern Light gleams through tho "darkness visible , " the lessons become
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Significance Of Masonic Light.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MASONIC LIGHT .
WE havo perused with peculiar pleasure a little brochure containing a lecture on this subject , which was delivered in tho Gladsmuir Lodge , No . 1385 , High Barnet , recently , by Bro . tho Rev . Charles W . Butler , F . R . H . S ., Chaplain to tho Robin Hood Lodge , 1493 , and which has been published at the request of many brethren . The sentiments contained in this well-considered address
are of so refining ancl elevating a character that it is only common justice that they should be as widely diffused as possible , for the benefit of the brethren at large ; and in making copious extracts from the text before us we feel
assured that our aim will be rightly understood and appreciated , namely , to prevent such gems of Masonic light from being hidden under the bushel of only a restricted circulation . After referring to tho undoubted fact that
Religion and Freemasonry wore wedded from the first , having an identical aim , though differing in their nature and method , he points out that Freemasonry is content to take position as handmaid to Religion , commending to its members the practice of pure morality , the cultivation of
every moral and social virtue , and enforcing the claims which religion and humanity make ou their zeal and service . It is , perhaps , no marvel that the position of Freemasonry has been misunderstood ; that it has been represented as assuming to be identical with religion ; and
still more preposterous , that it aims at superseding religion altogether ! Refuting this absurdity , Bro . Butler pithily sets forth that : — " What it actually claims is , simply to be a system of morality inculcated on scientific principles , and embodied in a series of symbols , alike pleasing to the eye
and impressive on tho mind and memory . Its utility lies partly in its impressive rituals , partly in the broad principle of philanthropy and virtue on which it is based , partly in its catholicit y and total freedom from political or ecclesiastical controversy , and partly in the ' Mystic tie' by
which a bond of unity is established among brethren in all parts of the world . " As the youngest tyro in the Masonic art well knows , Light takes the first and highest place amongst the symbols through which instruction is imparted to Freemasons . Up to a certain point in his earliest
introduction to Freemasonry , the candidate might retire from the Lodge without the faintest conception of its form , its arrangement , its symbolic beauty . The moment comes when , having gone too far to recede , he confesses the predominant wish of his heart , and a blessing , of which he has
suffered temporary deprivation , is restored to him . With the earliest flash of light that falls npon him ho receives mental impressions that will be solemnly treasured throu gh life . Henceforth he is a pilgrim in search of higher degrees of Light—a true and worthy Mason in proportion to the
zeal and perseverance with which the search is pursued . In its objective signification the lecturer reminds us of the canopy which in a fully-furnished Lodge covers the seat of the W . M ., and which is a symbolical representation of the open firmament , with its starry lights , under which the fathers of
Masonry were wont to assemble ; and of Heaven , the eternal seat of Deity . On the pedestal lies the open Bible , the great Light of Freemasonry , towards which the face of every brother in the Lodge is turned . From the great
Light on the altar comes the whole mystery , every confidential fact and every symbolism of Masonry . The G . A . O . T . U . is the source of Light ; and in all the personal communication of the divine will which He has been pleased
The Significance Of Masonic Light.
to make to man He has , in the language of King David , " clothed Himself with Light as with a garment . " It was probably in the form of a bright cloud that God conversed with Adam in Paradise . After man's degradation , Light guarded the entrance of Eden , that the tree of life might
not be invaded by profane hands . Freemasonry constantly reminds us of the weary and benighted Jacob , when he saw the vision of that wonderful Ladder , with seraphim ascending and descending , while the G . A . O . T . U . in a flood of Light communicated to him those assurances of prosperity
which were so amply realised in his day and generation . Moses at the Burning Bush was favoured with the inspiration of Light , and received that Incommunicable Name which constitutes tho secret of Speculative Masonry . The homes of tho Israelites were filled with the Light of the
Divine presence during- the three days in which tho plague of darkness afflicted the Egyptians ; ancl tho cloud of Light was a guide to the Hebrews in their flight , and a darkness and terror to their angry pursuers . It was in an awful display of Light shining in darkness that the Divine
presence was revealed to our Grand Master Solomon at tho dedication of the Temple . " The House , " we read , " was filled with a cloud so that the priests could not stand to minister , by reason of the cloud . Then said Solomon The Lord hath said that He would dwell in the thick
darkness . " Ancl so for ages the solemn darkness of the inner Temple was enlightened by the Shekinah—the Light resting between the cherubim and the mercy seat , as a visible proof to mankind of the presence of Deity in their midst . Recognising the fundamental principle of tho
worship of the one true God as the very foundation oi Masonic teaching , there is hut little danger of this Grand Objective Light being slighted or covered with Atheistic darkness in this country ; and we believe with the writer of the little work from which we are quoting when he says
that this danger , which so long has loomed upon the Grand Orient of France , will be fatal to the interests ancl the very existence of the brotherhood in that country if not firmly and bravely overcome . To smother the Light on the altar ,
to shut out that Supreme Light which is the truest and highest object of a Mason ' s pursuit , would be to strike the death-blow upon our Order , and to destroy the deepest bond of union by which our world-wide brotherhood has from time immemorial been cemented . Then the author
dilates at some length on the subjective aspect of this Li ght , which is rather the cultivation of an inner principle than an object to gaze upon . The symbolic darkness in which tho candidate is introduced to Masonry is emblematical of the ignorance which precedes the reception of knowledge , and tho
various stages to which the brother is elevated in his progress in the science are all indications of the dawning of new Light , the result of his intelligent apprehension and earnest pursuit of the teachings of the Order . He is reminded in his progress of the darkness of death ancl the obscurit y
of the grave , together with " the never-fading Light which follows at the resurrection of the just . " Rising" to a scene of intellectual brightness , he his reminded that , being obedient to the precepts of Masonry and the dictates of Religion , he shall " rejoice on the resurrection morn , when
the clouds of error and imperfection shall be separated from his mind , and shall behold with unveiled eye the glories which issue from the expanse of Heaven , the everlasting splendour of the throne of God . " Passing from the floor
of one degree to that of another , through the field of corn by the river-side , and the pillars of the Temple into the sanctum sanctonim , where the Eastern Light gleams through tho "darkness visible , " the lessons become