Masonic Religion.

MASONIC RELIGION .

THE word " religion " means to " bind fast , " and is ordinarily used in matters pertaining fco divine government , as the word " politics " is used in matters relative-to civil government . In its full sense , "it includes a belief in the being and perfections of God , in the revelation of His will to man , in man ' s obligation to obey His commands , in a state of reward and punishment , and

m man ' s accountability to God . " The word refers to no particular creed , but covers all . There is Pagan , Jewish , Mohammedan , Christian , Protestant , Catholic , and even Mormon religion , all differing widely in their doctrine relative to God's dealing with man , yet with a noticeable agreement in practice in man ' s relation to his fellow-man . These religious divisions deal

largely in matters theological , ecclesiastical , and evangelical , and each binds its adherents to its own doctrinal tenets and modes of worship and plan of salvation ; but Masonry , as such , stands aloof from such matters , preferring to leave them to the church where they properly belong , and whose prerogatives it never

usurps , nor does Masonry ever trespass on the church's field of labour . Being a secular organisation , it does not assume the rights , duties and privileges of a divine institution in any form ; nor does it profess to unfold the divine scheme of human redemption .

Ancient Graft Masonry is not a religion in this sense , and therefore does not deal with the " great mystery of godliness , " nor is it a part of its work to " make known the mystery of the gospel . " It occupies a different sphere of action ; and yet it gives direction to those who are " ignorant of this mystery , " that they may readily find their way , if so disposed , to that source of

knowledge where they may learn to know " the mystery of the kingdom of God . " Masonry was not organised to make known the " revelation of the mystery , which was kept secret since the world began ; " nor to induct men into the " fellowship of the mystery , which from the beginning of the % vorld hath been hid

¦ with God . " The entire work of inducting members of the human family into this deep mystery is assigned to another and higher institution divinely appointed with all its agencies and instrumentalities for this purpose , while Masonry is contented with the humble position of the handmaid to religion .

It is true Masonry has a creed , aud binds ( religib ) its members so firmly to that brief creed that " no atheist or irreligious libertine " can ever be made a Mason . Every member of the Fraternity must believe in God and receive the Holy Bible as God ' s inestimable gift to man , and as man ' s rule and guide of life , and then govern himself accordingly . Every Mason

is taught that the Bible is the great light in Masonry , which will guide him into all truth ; direct his path to the temple of happiness , and point out to him his whole duty to God and man . Masonic religion—if such may be called as binding ( religions ) its adherents to faith in God and hope in immortality—limits

itself more especially to the moral code , and among all the articles of religion , natural or revealed , it confines itself to the practical duties of life , which , under God ' s law , are due between man and his fellow-man , with a recognition of the fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man . The first article of its old

constitution ( which can never be changed ) asserts that " a Mason is bound ( religitur ) by his tenure to obey the moral law , " and such obedience is an essential element in all religion . It is the practical part of it , starting with faith in God and proceeding to charity to all mankind .

The Great Light throws a luminous ray on this point , revealing that "If any man among you seemeth to be religious , and bridleth not his tongue , but deceiveth his own heart , this man ' s religion is vain . " This demands " a tongue of good report , " and clearly forbids obscene or profane language ,

backbiting , slandering , talebearing , or any other evils of an unbridled tongue—which , by ths way , are all too common , even among Masons , and all so un-Masonic as , when indulged , to bring scandal and disgrace on the Fraternity . All such use of tongue is strictly forbidden in the moral law , which every Mason is obliged to obey as a basis of his Masonic religion .

Again , the Great Light shines , and reveals , that " pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this : To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction , and to keep himself unspotted from the world . " On such lines does the religion of Freemasonry proceed , the practical tenet of its creed

being " charity to all mankind . This includes charity of tongue , as well as of heart and baud ; [ . hat charity which thinks no evil and speaks no wrong of a Brother ; that is ever ready to advise , sympathise , aid and cheer thoso in need of its benefactions ; that charity which includes love to God aud universal good-will and affection to man .

Masonry takes its lesson iVom tho Bible , closely following the precepts of tho moral law ; and perhaps might better be called a system of morality , approaching religion ; not in any way claiming to be a religion , yet teo . ching and practising the duties essential to true religion ; and the more closely a Mason obeys

Masonic Religion.

the moral law , the more thoroughly does he become imbued with the idea of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man , and the more intensely will he become interested in rendering that service which he recognises as duo to God and man . Its code of practice more closely corresponds with moral philosopy than with theology , and therefore Masonry invites men

of all creeds to join its ranks and engage in its work of subduing the passions , curbing the appetites and allaying the prejudices which disturb the harmony of all society , as well as in the performance of deeds of benevolence and acts of kindness , and soothing the unhappy , sympathising with their misfortunes , compassionating their miseries and restoring peace to their troubled minds .

It requires no one to yield anything pertaining to the religion he may profess , aud only " obliges its votaries to that religion in which all men agree , leaving their particular opinions to themselves , and each free to exercise his own judgment in the selection of that religious creed whioh he may deem truest and most appropriate for himself . " It demands thafc its members be " good men and true—men of honour and honesty , by whatever

denomination or persuasion they may be distinguished , " by which means " Masonry becomes the centre of union , thereby conciliating true friendship among persons that must have remained at a perpetual distance . " All deviations from fche moral law are un-Masonic and tend to disturb the peace of the Fraternity , for the reason that moral and immoral men cannot dwell together in unity in that social and fraternal manner which is included in the purpose and plan of Masonry as a brotherhood .

If Masonry ii a system of that morality which is an essential element in religion ; if its object and aim is to " divest the mind and conscience of all vices and superfluities of life ; " if it teaches to " walk uprightly in our several stations before God and man , squaring our actions by the square of virtue ; " if it binds fast " into one sacred band of brothers among whom no contention

should ever exist ; " and if the Book of the Law is taken as the guide of life and rule of conduct—" a lamp to the path and a light to the feet "—for " travellers upon fche level of time , fco thafc undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveller returns , " then every just and upright Mason should govern , himself accordingly and , following his guide and pursuing his journey in

search of all the hidden mysteries of Masonry , he will be led onward , beyond and above , till at length he shall arrive in Zion and acquire a knowledge of "the mystery which has been hid from ages and from generations , but is made manifest to the saints , to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery . "—Eev . Gilbert Small , in " Masonic Home Journal . "

Ye Olden And Ye Modern.

YE OLDEN AND YE MODERN .

MASONEY is " precisely the same in its essential character to-day as it was in ye olden times , but io differs greatly in many respects . There are more degrees now than then . There are more Lodges , more Masons , more charities , more rites and ceremonies . The simple and crude mode of initiation into one degree has passed through a form of evolution until au edifice of elaborate proportions , gorgeous in paraphernalia and grand in

ceremonials , of many degrees , stands—the admiration of all men . Lodge meetings are not now held in taverns , neither do they use spirits at table entertainments in the same manner as they used to do . It is of record in many Lodge minutes , that certain sums were appropriated for the purchase of wines and liquors for the use of the Brethren at Lodge meetings ; and that Brother So-and-So had donated a ceitain number of gallons of wine to the

Lodge . Now the use of intoxicating liquors is strictly forbidden in the Lodge room , and the most stringent laws have been enacted to enforce the principle of temperance among the members . Instead of meeting in taverns , whore the bumper could be filled high and often , as in ye olden times , Masons now have their own buildings in almost every city , town and village in the

world . Many stately edifices , costing millions of dollars , are devoted exclusively to Masonry . Ic is no longer necessary for a man to attend his Lodge by stealth , or approach the Lodge room by a winding and secret path . There is no danger of his being ostracised from society because of his connection with the Fraternity . He may proudly proclaim to the world , " I am a

Mason , " by wearing upon his person certain jewels , emblems and charms that are everywhere recognised as symbols of the Craft . The square and compasses , the keystone , the Templar ' s cross , the double-beaded eagle , the claws and other devices , are to be seen in every company of men . Indeed , wc may say that there is sometimes an undue display of Masonic jewellery . But that shows the difference between then and now .

There is also a difference between the benefactions of ye olden times and the great works of charity of to-day . Then a needy Brother was helped on bis way by the mutual contributions of a few farthings from his fellows . Now palatial homes are