-
Articles/Ads
Article THE INSTALLATION OF PRINCE LEOPOLD. ← Page 2 of 2 Article MASONIC PORTRAITS (No. 17.) THE CHRISTIAN MINISTER. Page 1 of 2 Article MASONIC PORTRAITS (No. 17.) THE CHRISTIAN MINISTER. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Installation Of Prince Leopold.
position scarcely equalled by any Lodge throughout the country . On looking over the list , one cannot fail to be struck by the number of familiar and celebrated names that there find record . Thus , under the year 1833 , we find the names of two ex-Cabinet Ministers—Lord Granville and
Robert Lowe ; a year or two earlier those of Earl Canning , the Marquis of Abercorn , and Lord De Tabley ; and four years later the name of the late member for Horsham , Sir Seymour Fitzgerald . To be elected to tho Mastership of so distinguished a Lodge was an honour worthy of a prince ' s ambition .
But a further dignity awaited his Royal Highness on the following day . At a meeting of tho Provincial Grand Lodge of the county , held in the Sheldonian Theatre , he was formally installed Provincial Grand Master . The ceremony was conducted in the presence of a distinguished
assemblage of the brethren , including the following officers of the Grand Lodge : —Lord SkelmersdaleD . G . M ., Marquis of Hamilton S . G . W ., Alderman Stone J . G . W ., the Rev . Canon J . Simpson G . C ., iEneas J . Mclntyre Q . C . G . R ., John Hervey G . S ., P . J . Morrell J . G . D ., Sir A . W . Woods ,
Garter , Grand Director of Ceremonies ; besides the Earl of Hardwicke , tho Earl of Shrewsbury , the" Earl of Limerick , Lord de Tabley , Lord Methuen , Lord Leigh , Lord Balfour , the Earl of Jersey , Lord Ramsay , Lord Newry , General Brownrigg , Colonel Burdett , J . C . Parkinson ,
Fredorick Binckes , and many other members of the Craft . The installation was conducted b y Lord Skelmersdale , acting for tho Grand Master of England , who took
occasion to compliment His Royal Highness on his promotion , and on tho steadfastness he had displayed in tho cause of Masonry during the period of his association with the fraternity .
Some other proceedings were gone through , and , amongst them , the presentation to Bro . R . J . Spiers , who had for twenty years held the office of Deputy Provincial Grand Master , of a massive silver inkstand , a purse of 500 guineas , and an album containing the names of the
subscribers . The Lodge was then formally adjourned to May next . We need scarcely add that the proceedings of both days were brought to a close by a banquet , at which the usual toasts were given and received with due honours .
Masonic Portraits (No. 17.) The Christian Minister.
MASONIC PORTRAITS ( No . 17 . ) THE CHRISTIAN MINISTER .
" There stands the messenger of truth , There stands the legate of the skies ; His theme divine , his offico sacred , His credentials clear . By him
I ho violated law speaks oat its Thunder , and by him , in strains As sweet as Angels use , the gospel Whispers peace . "
THERE are a number of foolish people in society who think it is one of the signs of good breeding to affect an utter indifference to all the questions which interest the great mass of people . They declare that they never could be enthusiastic , that they never had a hobby , and have
never felt any particular interest in any subject under the sun . These people are , of course , affected creatures , who assume the air of the stoic just because it happens to be the fashion with their set . Some of them may indeed be really lymphatic persons , constitutionally unfitted to cope
with the business of the world . If the fashionable stoics had their way , society would soon be reduced to a dead level of dulness and misery . Laughter would be interdicted , not merely for its inherent vulgarity , but because of its supposed injurious effect on the features . Criticism
would be voted a bore , and exertion , or any undue display of energy , the height of absurdity . Fortunately , the great mass of men , the people who mould a generation and direct the stream of civilisation into new channels , are not much influenced by the imme chatter of a few votaries of fashion .
Enthusiasm , energy , and muscular Christianity have achieved much . The mind of man is indeed a force , compared with which the steam engine is a child ' s toy . It is the thinker who really produces revolutions in society ;
but _ it is the man of action—the man with well-balanced brain and well-developed muscles—who really carries out the behests of the man of thought . No phrase , to our thinking , is so expressive of a beautiful combination of
Masonic Portraits (No. 17.) The Christian Minister.
strength , gentleness , and goodness as "muscular Christianity . " Its author has been much ridiculed for having coined it , but only by unthinking persons , or by that small knot of sentimental fanatics who are rapidly sinking into obscurity and contempt . Why should not a Christian
be muscular?—why should he not jump a five-barred gate , if need be , or bare his arm to protect innocence from the wrongdoer ? The combination of strength and goodness is , AVO repeat , beautiful in our eyes , and we are always moved when wo see a strong man fighting manfully against evil .
Wo know not whether tho subject of our sketch may fairly be called a muscular Christian , or whether he would feel flattered by the designation ; but of this we are assured , that his honest , kindly face is indicative of a Avellbalanced mind , and his frame is that of a man who
possesses a fair share of muscle to back up his brains . We feel assured that ho can laugh as heartily as any member of his flock , and that ho is just as much pleased with tho feats of strength performed by the village lads as he is with their proficiency in the Catechism . We aro not quite
sure whether he can ride across country , but if he can and does , we are quito certain that his ministrations in the pulpit are not injuriously affected thereby . We imagine that his professional labours are really a pleasure to him , and that he feels a just pride in performing the simple
service of the Protestant ritual in his truly magnificent parish church . That church indeed is a fit temple for tho worship of a devout Mason . Built at a time when the Gothic architecture was in its most vigorous condition , it strikes the observer by its vastness , the beauty of its
proportions , and the grace of its ornament . One imagines that it must have been built by one of those old master Masons who have adorned this country with so many works of genius . In this grand pile one might dream away an hour or two over the glorious symbolism of the
Gothic builders , or one might fancy that these masters of the art of construction were magicians , who compelled the rigid stone , under mystic spells , to assume a plastic nature . But the magnificence of his church has carried us away from the central figure , the good clergyman , who ministers
in this grand house of prayer . It is not our intention to write his biography , or to sketch his clerical career . It is sufficient for us to say that his professional life has been an eventful one ; that he has been a great worker , and has carried away with him to his rural deanery the gratitude
and love of many congregations of Christians . His Masonic career , of course , arrests our attention , and claims all our consideration , and that career has been a very remarkable one indeed . He was initiated into Masonry in the Apollo University Lodge , at Oxford , in January 1856 ,
and was successively Inner Guard and then Secretary . He also joined the Alfred and Churchill Lodges . In 1858 he was W . M . of the latter , and on the occasion of his installation the Provincial Grand Lodge was held under his banner . In the same year he was appointed
Provincial Grand Secretary of Oxfordshire , and occupied that post on the occasion of Lord Zetland ' s visit to Oxford . He was made a Royal Arch Mason with Lord Carnarvon and others , and was Secretary of his first Lodge , the Apollo , when Lord Skelmersdale was initiated . At Oxford
he was made a Knight Templar of tho Cceur de Lion Encampment , and with this distinction his Masonic career at the University appears to have terminated . Subsequently , we find him a member of the Faithful Lodge at Harleton , in Suffolk , and while engaged in church work
at Cheltenham he joined the Foundation Lodge , of which he was successively S . W . and W . M . In the year 1865 he was a Mark Master Mason at tho latter town , and in 1868 was appointed Grand Chaplain of Mark Masters of England , and Grand Aide de Camp in Grand Conclave . In the
following year , Lord Zetland appointed him Grand Chaplain of England , which office was renewed by Lord Ripon the following year . The inhabitants of Cheltenham , feeling greatly honoured by the fact that our worthy brother had achieved this last distinction , presented him with a
testimonial , in the shape of a magnificent full length portrait of himself . This portrait was exhibited in the Royal Academy in 1870 . In this latter year he became Grand Principal Sojourner in Grand Chapter , and upon taking
up his abode at Long Melford Rectory he joined the Stour Valley Lodge at Sudbury , which was then struggling for existence , and was shortly afterward elected its W . M ., an office which he held for two years . Under his able administration the Lodge speedily passed through the critical
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Installation Of Prince Leopold.
position scarcely equalled by any Lodge throughout the country . On looking over the list , one cannot fail to be struck by the number of familiar and celebrated names that there find record . Thus , under the year 1833 , we find the names of two ex-Cabinet Ministers—Lord Granville and
Robert Lowe ; a year or two earlier those of Earl Canning , the Marquis of Abercorn , and Lord De Tabley ; and four years later the name of the late member for Horsham , Sir Seymour Fitzgerald . To be elected to tho Mastership of so distinguished a Lodge was an honour worthy of a prince ' s ambition .
But a further dignity awaited his Royal Highness on the following day . At a meeting of tho Provincial Grand Lodge of the county , held in the Sheldonian Theatre , he was formally installed Provincial Grand Master . The ceremony was conducted in the presence of a distinguished
assemblage of the brethren , including the following officers of the Grand Lodge : —Lord SkelmersdaleD . G . M ., Marquis of Hamilton S . G . W ., Alderman Stone J . G . W ., the Rev . Canon J . Simpson G . C ., iEneas J . Mclntyre Q . C . G . R ., John Hervey G . S ., P . J . Morrell J . G . D ., Sir A . W . Woods ,
Garter , Grand Director of Ceremonies ; besides the Earl of Hardwicke , tho Earl of Shrewsbury , the" Earl of Limerick , Lord de Tabley , Lord Methuen , Lord Leigh , Lord Balfour , the Earl of Jersey , Lord Ramsay , Lord Newry , General Brownrigg , Colonel Burdett , J . C . Parkinson ,
Fredorick Binckes , and many other members of the Craft . The installation was conducted b y Lord Skelmersdale , acting for tho Grand Master of England , who took
occasion to compliment His Royal Highness on his promotion , and on tho steadfastness he had displayed in tho cause of Masonry during the period of his association with the fraternity .
Some other proceedings were gone through , and , amongst them , the presentation to Bro . R . J . Spiers , who had for twenty years held the office of Deputy Provincial Grand Master , of a massive silver inkstand , a purse of 500 guineas , and an album containing the names of the
subscribers . The Lodge was then formally adjourned to May next . We need scarcely add that the proceedings of both days were brought to a close by a banquet , at which the usual toasts were given and received with due honours .
Masonic Portraits (No. 17.) The Christian Minister.
MASONIC PORTRAITS ( No . 17 . ) THE CHRISTIAN MINISTER .
" There stands the messenger of truth , There stands the legate of the skies ; His theme divine , his offico sacred , His credentials clear . By him
I ho violated law speaks oat its Thunder , and by him , in strains As sweet as Angels use , the gospel Whispers peace . "
THERE are a number of foolish people in society who think it is one of the signs of good breeding to affect an utter indifference to all the questions which interest the great mass of people . They declare that they never could be enthusiastic , that they never had a hobby , and have
never felt any particular interest in any subject under the sun . These people are , of course , affected creatures , who assume the air of the stoic just because it happens to be the fashion with their set . Some of them may indeed be really lymphatic persons , constitutionally unfitted to cope
with the business of the world . If the fashionable stoics had their way , society would soon be reduced to a dead level of dulness and misery . Laughter would be interdicted , not merely for its inherent vulgarity , but because of its supposed injurious effect on the features . Criticism
would be voted a bore , and exertion , or any undue display of energy , the height of absurdity . Fortunately , the great mass of men , the people who mould a generation and direct the stream of civilisation into new channels , are not much influenced by the imme chatter of a few votaries of fashion .
Enthusiasm , energy , and muscular Christianity have achieved much . The mind of man is indeed a force , compared with which the steam engine is a child ' s toy . It is the thinker who really produces revolutions in society ;
but _ it is the man of action—the man with well-balanced brain and well-developed muscles—who really carries out the behests of the man of thought . No phrase , to our thinking , is so expressive of a beautiful combination of
Masonic Portraits (No. 17.) The Christian Minister.
strength , gentleness , and goodness as "muscular Christianity . " Its author has been much ridiculed for having coined it , but only by unthinking persons , or by that small knot of sentimental fanatics who are rapidly sinking into obscurity and contempt . Why should not a Christian
be muscular?—why should he not jump a five-barred gate , if need be , or bare his arm to protect innocence from the wrongdoer ? The combination of strength and goodness is , AVO repeat , beautiful in our eyes , and we are always moved when wo see a strong man fighting manfully against evil .
Wo know not whether tho subject of our sketch may fairly be called a muscular Christian , or whether he would feel flattered by the designation ; but of this we are assured , that his honest , kindly face is indicative of a Avellbalanced mind , and his frame is that of a man who
possesses a fair share of muscle to back up his brains . We feel assured that ho can laugh as heartily as any member of his flock , and that ho is just as much pleased with tho feats of strength performed by the village lads as he is with their proficiency in the Catechism . We aro not quite
sure whether he can ride across country , but if he can and does , we are quito certain that his ministrations in the pulpit are not injuriously affected thereby . We imagine that his professional labours are really a pleasure to him , and that he feels a just pride in performing the simple
service of the Protestant ritual in his truly magnificent parish church . That church indeed is a fit temple for tho worship of a devout Mason . Built at a time when the Gothic architecture was in its most vigorous condition , it strikes the observer by its vastness , the beauty of its
proportions , and the grace of its ornament . One imagines that it must have been built by one of those old master Masons who have adorned this country with so many works of genius . In this grand pile one might dream away an hour or two over the glorious symbolism of the
Gothic builders , or one might fancy that these masters of the art of construction were magicians , who compelled the rigid stone , under mystic spells , to assume a plastic nature . But the magnificence of his church has carried us away from the central figure , the good clergyman , who ministers
in this grand house of prayer . It is not our intention to write his biography , or to sketch his clerical career . It is sufficient for us to say that his professional life has been an eventful one ; that he has been a great worker , and has carried away with him to his rural deanery the gratitude
and love of many congregations of Christians . His Masonic career , of course , arrests our attention , and claims all our consideration , and that career has been a very remarkable one indeed . He was initiated into Masonry in the Apollo University Lodge , at Oxford , in January 1856 ,
and was successively Inner Guard and then Secretary . He also joined the Alfred and Churchill Lodges . In 1858 he was W . M . of the latter , and on the occasion of his installation the Provincial Grand Lodge was held under his banner . In the same year he was appointed
Provincial Grand Secretary of Oxfordshire , and occupied that post on the occasion of Lord Zetland ' s visit to Oxford . He was made a Royal Arch Mason with Lord Carnarvon and others , and was Secretary of his first Lodge , the Apollo , when Lord Skelmersdale was initiated . At Oxford
he was made a Knight Templar of tho Cceur de Lion Encampment , and with this distinction his Masonic career at the University appears to have terminated . Subsequently , we find him a member of the Faithful Lodge at Harleton , in Suffolk , and while engaged in church work
at Cheltenham he joined the Foundation Lodge , of which he was successively S . W . and W . M . In the year 1865 he was a Mark Master Mason at tho latter town , and in 1868 was appointed Grand Chaplain of Mark Masters of England , and Grand Aide de Camp in Grand Conclave . In the
following year , Lord Zetland appointed him Grand Chaplain of England , which office was renewed by Lord Ripon the following year . The inhabitants of Cheltenham , feeling greatly honoured by the fact that our worthy brother had achieved this last distinction , presented him with a
testimonial , in the shape of a magnificent full length portrait of himself . This portrait was exhibited in the Royal Academy in 1870 . In this latter year he became Grand Principal Sojourner in Grand Chapter , and upon taking
up his abode at Long Melford Rectory he joined the Stour Valley Lodge at Sudbury , which was then struggling for existence , and was shortly afterward elected its W . M ., an office which he held for two years . Under his able administration the Lodge speedily passed through the critical