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Article FREEMASONRY'S FUNCTION IN MODERN SOCIETY. Page 1 of 2 Article FREEMASONRY'S FUNCTION IN MODERN SOCIETY. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry's Function In Modern Society.
FREEMASONRY'S FUNCTION IN MODERN SOCIETY .
FROM TUB VOICE or MASONRY . IT is difficult to bo original in the treatment of Freemasonry . Its external aspects , its methods and its objects , havo been explained and illustrated in every langnnge in which science and literature address the tinman race . Its history has been traced and its anti . quity demonstrated , until it lias been connected with tho origin of established society aud of systematic industry . Its principles , few
and simple , havo been broadly nnfolded , and their practical effect in promoting tho growth of civilization conspicuously exhibited . Its symbolism and its ritual havo been described to the fullest extent compatible with tho preservation of those deep and sacred mysteries which , while thoy attest its universality , insulate and protect its institutional struoture . Its relation to those architectual monuments
of nil ages and countries , in which Wisdom conceived what Strength executed and Beauty adorned , has been amply proved and generally acknowledged . Its abandonment of its purely operative features , and its concentration of its labours into those forms of aotion whioh , by way of contradistinction , are termed speculative , are part of the records of modern times . On all these phases of its existence and of
its influence , erudition and eloquence have flowed with luminous perspicuity and truth . But there is ono point of view in which it appears to me that Free , masonry has not been adequately considered , and that is its fnnotion in modern society ; and , % vithont attempting to deal with this theme analytically or exhaustively , or indeed by any other than a suggestive
process , I design to make it the central thought in tho observations I have to ofFer . In order accurately to comprehend tbe present attitude of Free , masonry within the limits I havo delined—in other words , to enable you intelligently to follow me in tho purpose I have avowed , and which I shall at least execute with brevity—it is essential that a cer .
tain order and sequenco be observed ; and I reqnest you , therefore , to hear in mind a few subdivisions of the argument which is intended to support my conclusions . I shall pass , then , rapidly and compre . hensively , but I trust clearly , throngh a development of my subject , expressed in these heads : —First : The true meaning and object of hnman life . Second : The actnal condition of modern society .
Third : The dangers and necessities of modern society . Fourth : The extent and mnnnor in which Freemasonry , by its constitntion and methods , helps society to avert those dangers and to meet those necessities . And , Fifth : As a corollary to these propositions , the elevated conception of his dnties and obligations which should regn . late the conduct of every Mason , who is , first , Free ; and second ,
Accepted . I am not a scientist nor a philosopher , and there may be serious defects in my arrangement , which , to a mind trained in technical logic , might almost be offensive ; bnt I speak to plain and earnest men , imbued with love to God and to humanity , and I believo I shall be understood .
In the first place , then , individuals , communities , nations , races , the world , aro all manifestations and expressions of hnman life which is at once tbe invisible force that penetrates tho whole , and the outcome and result of the whole and of each of its constituent parts . The life of the individual man , originating with the Creator , is at once tbe source and the origin , the type and the representative of
all the forms that life assumes . It is in one sense the birth of a destiny—the growth and the development of an immortal and personal existence . It has been poetically compared to the flight of a bird from window to window through the warm and perfumed atmosphere of a banqueting hall . It is in reality a hard struggle through opposing forces , an unending wrestle with the powers of evil , In
which defeat entails moral degeneration and death . Its final object , through all the intricate machinery of society , taken in its broadest sense , is the perfection of man . The means by which that object is to be attained , which comprise the substance and essence of all true progress , are the use without the waste of the faculties in the direction of the true , the nsefnl , and the permanent . All intelligence
and all labour that are not woven into the one eternal purpose that moves the successive generations of men , that do not leave indelible impressions npon human life and human character , are misdirected , perverted and lost . These generalizations , though a faint outline , are all I need to introduce the second branch of my argument , namely , the actual condition
of modern society . But for the restrictions I have imposed npon myself , by a rigid adherence to the one point I have in view , this would bo an almost illimitable topic . Condensation , however , is the very essence of my purpose . By modern society , I mean society in the aggregate , including individuals , communities , states , nationsthe whole progressive family of man . What , then , is its actnal
condition , as bearing upon the conclusion I hope speedily to reach f It may be defined in a phrase as one of extraordinary and unprecedented activity . Great contests for the recognition of human rights , for the creation of opportunities for the exercise of physical , mental and moral powers , have been fought and won ; and , although liberty is yet far from being established in large sections of the globe ,
humanity , relatively to the past , is free . In our own land , the truo theory of government , based on the organic sovereignty of man , limited only by the decrees of the Almighty , and by the concessions necessary for the maintenance of law aud order , has been adopted and applied . In other countries , in varying degrees , the tendencies towards that final result a ^ e everywhere distinctly marked . Science is penetrating
the secrets of nature , and art is applying the discoveries of science . Knowledge accumulates and pervades the masses with startling rapidity . Comforts and luxuries multiply day by day . Invention turns the wheels of progress until the very air is full of sparks and flashes . Literature diffnses itself through all the strata of mankind . Labour is disciplined and aggressive . Capital is aggregated , and
Freemasonry's Function In Modern Society.
sometimes useful and sometimes dangerous . Wealih has anormonsl y increased . And , throngh all the elements that aro blended into modern society , thought penehates and ferments . But , in the third place , what aro the dangers ami what are Urn necessities of modern society ? Its dangers in form aro manifold ; in substance thoy may be expressed in the uWe of ^ ivrijij . All history
is full of illustrations of the trnth ot this ptoposition as applicable to past ages , and it was never so truo or so important as now . Tho pathway of tho race is literally strewn with ruins . Forms of civilian , tion , systems of government , theories of religion and moral , hypotheses of science , codes of legislation , diversities of manners ! , of fashions , of habits , havo existed and passed away , because they wero founded in
the eccentricities in tho unregulated passions , ambitions , and selfish . ne 3 S of men . And in our own day , and in some respects pro-eniin . ently in our own country , we are reproducing these evils with greater intensity than during any former epoch . Tho very excellences of modern progress , its accelerated speed , its multiplicity of forms , its enlargement of scope and purpose , havo quickened the pulse ,
stimulated the nerves and intellect , and fired the ambition of men , until they have sought to break down the barriers of discipline and to overleap the limits of their powers as defined in their own nature b y the God who made them , and aro delnging the world with those vanities which onr first recorded Grand Master investigated and abandoned .
Ton will not fail to observe that , in the line of this discussion , it is no part of my plan to contrast and balance the good and ovil in modern society ; and that the views I present , applied and limited as they are , do not imply any doubt of the steady advancement of our race . Optimism and not pessimism , in my opinion , is the true abstract creed of every close student of history , past and
contemporary j certainly of every such student who is possessed of a Masonio heart . Bnt we aro considering facts , which cannot bo disgnisod or concealed , and vviiicb must be met and controlled ; and we are con . sidoring them , too , on ono side only , and with reference to a definite result . It is a profound truth that , in our generation , the waste of energy , which , to adopt a commercial simile , implies the extinction
of capital , is folly commensurato with the increase of activity . The illustrations of this truth , which we encounter daily , are direct aud abundant . I cannot enumerate them , but will allude to some of tho most conspicuous . Agnosticism , which is a species of nihilism , is expending much of the intellect of the world in a ceaseless effort to dethrone tho Almighty , and to plunge humanity into a sea of
perplexity and scepticism , in which the rudiments of morality , as well as the essentials of religion , would be submerged and destroyed . And tho speculations which the modern Agnostics are reviving , through tho new facts and discoveries of science , end precisely where the speculations of the Greek infidels began . New social plans , inconsistent with the individual nature and history of man , with his
family relations , and with order , subordination , and prosperity , are insidionsly appealing , first , to tho imagination , second , to solfishness and covetousness , and third , to the destructive instincts and passions . The province of law is invaded , and its principles and its precedents , which havo marked step by step the regular growth of permanent civilization , are superseded by new doctrines of limitless flexibilit y
and absurdity . Legislation is swelled in volume until even the frco citizen , who is almost capable of being a law unto himse'f , is in a worse predicament than the Roman snbjeot who sought in vain to decipher the decrees of Caligula . Books , periodicals , newspapers , are produced by a rule of progression which threatens to defeat tbe object of literature by rendering education impossible throngh the
fixed limits to human capacity and to hnmnn endurance . Systems of instruction fluctuate aud change with the seasons , and often discard the essentials of good citizenship . The departments of industrymuscular , mechanical and professional—are divided and subdivided , until they aro as countless as they aro incomprehensible . And in the midst of all this pressure upon the hnman heart and the human
brain , a morbid desire for novelty and excitement usurps the place of dnty ; liberty drifts into licence ; calm reflection ceases ; character becomes weak , impressible and yielding ; and dissipation is the only alternate to labour . Sometimes at night , in the streets of a great city , walking beneath the still majesty of tho stars , and watching
the phantasmal multitudes as they jostle each otheT v \ tho wild rush for relief from the fever of modern life , I have asked myself where all this would end ; whether a time would not come when the world itself—that is , the world of human beings—would go mad , and reason fiy to brutish beasts , and the ve'y power of repose and serenity sink back into the breast of Nature .
Of course there is a reverse side ( o this picture . But , at present , we are concerned only with tho dangers of modern society , and with i ! s necessities growing out of those dangers . I proceed to inquire , then —What is the remedy for these evils ? The answer is plain and spontaneous—the remedy is rest . But what is rest ? Surely not sloth , surely not torpor , surely not that placid contentment which
indicates the satisfaction of an animal or of a savage whose daily wants are gratified to repletion ? No ! Rest is found only in balanced activity , from which all that is snperfluons is excluded . It means the arrest of wasted energy . It means stalwart humanity , standing upon the rock , with its eye towards heaven , and all its faculties , calmlv and resolniely bent upon the fulfilment of dnty , upon the
true , the useful , the lasting elements of a life which commenced i ' God and is to be projected into immortality . It means wisdom , clearly understood and inexorably applied . It moans tbe rejection of all materials that do not fit into the human temp l e designed by the Supreme Architect I ' or the Ieuipo''ary habitation of a pure intelligence , of a holy spirit , pervaded by truth and aspiring to angelic
companionship . It means that con & cious hnmilily which sees tho ' beginning of human life , and by faith forecasts iis future . It means the definite recognition of the bounds that are without tho widest range of human reason . It means ibe concentration of limited powers upon practicable objects . It means Ibe apprehension of complicated facts throngh the light of unaltei able principle . It means ihc obliteration of selfishness in the warm love of humanity . It means the develop-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Freemasonry's Function In Modern Society.
FREEMASONRY'S FUNCTION IN MODERN SOCIETY .
FROM TUB VOICE or MASONRY . IT is difficult to bo original in the treatment of Freemasonry . Its external aspects , its methods and its objects , havo been explained and illustrated in every langnnge in which science and literature address the tinman race . Its history has been traced and its anti . quity demonstrated , until it lias been connected with tho origin of established society aud of systematic industry . Its principles , few
and simple , havo been broadly nnfolded , and their practical effect in promoting tho growth of civilization conspicuously exhibited . Its symbolism and its ritual havo been described to the fullest extent compatible with tho preservation of those deep and sacred mysteries which , while thoy attest its universality , insulate and protect its institutional struoture . Its relation to those architectual monuments
of nil ages and countries , in which Wisdom conceived what Strength executed and Beauty adorned , has been amply proved and generally acknowledged . Its abandonment of its purely operative features , and its concentration of its labours into those forms of aotion whioh , by way of contradistinction , are termed speculative , are part of the records of modern times . On all these phases of its existence and of
its influence , erudition and eloquence have flowed with luminous perspicuity and truth . But there is ono point of view in which it appears to me that Free , masonry has not been adequately considered , and that is its fnnotion in modern society ; and , % vithont attempting to deal with this theme analytically or exhaustively , or indeed by any other than a suggestive
process , I design to make it the central thought in tho observations I have to ofFer . In order accurately to comprehend tbe present attitude of Free , masonry within the limits I havo delined—in other words , to enable you intelligently to follow me in tho purpose I have avowed , and which I shall at least execute with brevity—it is essential that a cer .
tain order and sequenco be observed ; and I reqnest you , therefore , to hear in mind a few subdivisions of the argument which is intended to support my conclusions . I shall pass , then , rapidly and compre . hensively , but I trust clearly , throngh a development of my subject , expressed in these heads : —First : The true meaning and object of hnman life . Second : The actnal condition of modern society .
Third : The dangers and necessities of modern society . Fourth : The extent and mnnnor in which Freemasonry , by its constitntion and methods , helps society to avert those dangers and to meet those necessities . And , Fifth : As a corollary to these propositions , the elevated conception of his dnties and obligations which should regn . late the conduct of every Mason , who is , first , Free ; and second ,
Accepted . I am not a scientist nor a philosopher , and there may be serious defects in my arrangement , which , to a mind trained in technical logic , might almost be offensive ; bnt I speak to plain and earnest men , imbued with love to God and to humanity , and I believo I shall be understood .
In the first place , then , individuals , communities , nations , races , the world , aro all manifestations and expressions of hnman life which is at once tbe invisible force that penetrates tho whole , and the outcome and result of the whole and of each of its constituent parts . The life of the individual man , originating with the Creator , is at once tbe source and the origin , the type and the representative of
all the forms that life assumes . It is in one sense the birth of a destiny—the growth and the development of an immortal and personal existence . It has been poetically compared to the flight of a bird from window to window through the warm and perfumed atmosphere of a banqueting hall . It is in reality a hard struggle through opposing forces , an unending wrestle with the powers of evil , In
which defeat entails moral degeneration and death . Its final object , through all the intricate machinery of society , taken in its broadest sense , is the perfection of man . The means by which that object is to be attained , which comprise the substance and essence of all true progress , are the use without the waste of the faculties in the direction of the true , the nsefnl , and the permanent . All intelligence
and all labour that are not woven into the one eternal purpose that moves the successive generations of men , that do not leave indelible impressions npon human life and human character , are misdirected , perverted and lost . These generalizations , though a faint outline , are all I need to introduce the second branch of my argument , namely , the actual condition
of modern society . But for the restrictions I have imposed npon myself , by a rigid adherence to the one point I have in view , this would bo an almost illimitable topic . Condensation , however , is the very essence of my purpose . By modern society , I mean society in the aggregate , including individuals , communities , states , nationsthe whole progressive family of man . What , then , is its actnal
condition , as bearing upon the conclusion I hope speedily to reach f It may be defined in a phrase as one of extraordinary and unprecedented activity . Great contests for the recognition of human rights , for the creation of opportunities for the exercise of physical , mental and moral powers , have been fought and won ; and , although liberty is yet far from being established in large sections of the globe ,
humanity , relatively to the past , is free . In our own land , the truo theory of government , based on the organic sovereignty of man , limited only by the decrees of the Almighty , and by the concessions necessary for the maintenance of law aud order , has been adopted and applied . In other countries , in varying degrees , the tendencies towards that final result a ^ e everywhere distinctly marked . Science is penetrating
the secrets of nature , and art is applying the discoveries of science . Knowledge accumulates and pervades the masses with startling rapidity . Comforts and luxuries multiply day by day . Invention turns the wheels of progress until the very air is full of sparks and flashes . Literature diffnses itself through all the strata of mankind . Labour is disciplined and aggressive . Capital is aggregated , and
Freemasonry's Function In Modern Society.
sometimes useful and sometimes dangerous . Wealih has anormonsl y increased . And , throngh all the elements that aro blended into modern society , thought penehates and ferments . But , in the third place , what aro the dangers ami what are Urn necessities of modern society ? Its dangers in form aro manifold ; in substance thoy may be expressed in the uWe of ^ ivrijij . All history
is full of illustrations of the trnth ot this ptoposition as applicable to past ages , and it was never so truo or so important as now . Tho pathway of tho race is literally strewn with ruins . Forms of civilian , tion , systems of government , theories of religion and moral , hypotheses of science , codes of legislation , diversities of manners ! , of fashions , of habits , havo existed and passed away , because they wero founded in
the eccentricities in tho unregulated passions , ambitions , and selfish . ne 3 S of men . And in our own day , and in some respects pro-eniin . ently in our own country , we are reproducing these evils with greater intensity than during any former epoch . Tho very excellences of modern progress , its accelerated speed , its multiplicity of forms , its enlargement of scope and purpose , havo quickened the pulse ,
stimulated the nerves and intellect , and fired the ambition of men , until they have sought to break down the barriers of discipline and to overleap the limits of their powers as defined in their own nature b y the God who made them , and aro delnging the world with those vanities which onr first recorded Grand Master investigated and abandoned .
Ton will not fail to observe that , in the line of this discussion , it is no part of my plan to contrast and balance the good and ovil in modern society ; and that the views I present , applied and limited as they are , do not imply any doubt of the steady advancement of our race . Optimism and not pessimism , in my opinion , is the true abstract creed of every close student of history , past and
contemporary j certainly of every such student who is possessed of a Masonio heart . Bnt we aro considering facts , which cannot bo disgnisod or concealed , and vviiicb must be met and controlled ; and we are con . sidoring them , too , on ono side only , and with reference to a definite result . It is a profound truth that , in our generation , the waste of energy , which , to adopt a commercial simile , implies the extinction
of capital , is folly commensurato with the increase of activity . The illustrations of this truth , which we encounter daily , are direct aud abundant . I cannot enumerate them , but will allude to some of tho most conspicuous . Agnosticism , which is a species of nihilism , is expending much of the intellect of the world in a ceaseless effort to dethrone tho Almighty , and to plunge humanity into a sea of
perplexity and scepticism , in which the rudiments of morality , as well as the essentials of religion , would be submerged and destroyed . And tho speculations which the modern Agnostics are reviving , through tho new facts and discoveries of science , end precisely where the speculations of the Greek infidels began . New social plans , inconsistent with the individual nature and history of man , with his
family relations , and with order , subordination , and prosperity , are insidionsly appealing , first , to tho imagination , second , to solfishness and covetousness , and third , to the destructive instincts and passions . The province of law is invaded , and its principles and its precedents , which havo marked step by step the regular growth of permanent civilization , are superseded by new doctrines of limitless flexibilit y
and absurdity . Legislation is swelled in volume until even the frco citizen , who is almost capable of being a law unto himse'f , is in a worse predicament than the Roman snbjeot who sought in vain to decipher the decrees of Caligula . Books , periodicals , newspapers , are produced by a rule of progression which threatens to defeat tbe object of literature by rendering education impossible throngh the
fixed limits to human capacity and to hnmnn endurance . Systems of instruction fluctuate aud change with the seasons , and often discard the essentials of good citizenship . The departments of industrymuscular , mechanical and professional—are divided and subdivided , until they aro as countless as they aro incomprehensible . And in the midst of all this pressure upon the hnman heart and the human
brain , a morbid desire for novelty and excitement usurps the place of dnty ; liberty drifts into licence ; calm reflection ceases ; character becomes weak , impressible and yielding ; and dissipation is the only alternate to labour . Sometimes at night , in the streets of a great city , walking beneath the still majesty of tho stars , and watching
the phantasmal multitudes as they jostle each otheT v \ tho wild rush for relief from the fever of modern life , I have asked myself where all this would end ; whether a time would not come when the world itself—that is , the world of human beings—would go mad , and reason fiy to brutish beasts , and the ve'y power of repose and serenity sink back into the breast of Nature .
Of course there is a reverse side ( o this picture . But , at present , we are concerned only with tho dangers of modern society , and with i ! s necessities growing out of those dangers . I proceed to inquire , then —What is the remedy for these evils ? The answer is plain and spontaneous—the remedy is rest . But what is rest ? Surely not sloth , surely not torpor , surely not that placid contentment which
indicates the satisfaction of an animal or of a savage whose daily wants are gratified to repletion ? No ! Rest is found only in balanced activity , from which all that is snperfluons is excluded . It means the arrest of wasted energy . It means stalwart humanity , standing upon the rock , with its eye towards heaven , and all its faculties , calmlv and resolniely bent upon the fulfilment of dnty , upon the
true , the useful , the lasting elements of a life which commenced i ' God and is to be projected into immortality . It means wisdom , clearly understood and inexorably applied . It moans tbe rejection of all materials that do not fit into the human temp l e designed by the Supreme Architect I ' or the Ieuipo''ary habitation of a pure intelligence , of a holy spirit , pervaded by truth and aspiring to angelic
companionship . It means that con & cious hnmilily which sees tho ' beginning of human life , and by faith forecasts iis future . It means the definite recognition of the bounds that are without tho widest range of human reason . It means ibe concentration of limited powers upon practicable objects . It means Ibe apprehension of complicated facts throngh the light of unaltei able principle . It means ihc obliteration of selfishness in the warm love of humanity . It means the develop-