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Extracts From Two Sermons, Preached Before The Ancient And Honourable Society Of Freemasons,
more particularly by yielding a cheerful obedience to those whom in his providence the Architect of the Universe hath set over us , whether the more subordinate , or the supreme . Hail , mystic Art ! -thou source of utility , as numbers have experienced ; since if we were ever to be cast on an unknown shore , or obliged to travel through the most distant climes , however ignorant
of their language , their customs , and apparently strange to their inhabitants , thou lendest thy unfeigned votaries a secret key to open the rudest bosoms , and to unlock the most concealed hoards of niggardly parsimony . . Then , my much respected Brethren , foot to foot let us stand on the broad basis of rectitudeinscribed within the circle of harmony ,
, to shew that we are ready to move with and for a Brother in every just and laudable design . On bended knees let us join in each act of adoration and praise to the Grand Master of angels , saints , and men ; humbly begging , through the merits of Christ Jesus , that his inexhaustible goodness would be pleased to confer what his infinite wisdom sees most conducive for the essential and permanent felicity
cf ourselves and all our genuine Brethren , whether in the present or future state of our existence . May we display the reciprocity of our esteem in imitation of the early Christians , who are said to have had but one heart ; warmly pledging that , considering the instability
in all the gifts of fortune , we are resolved , according to our ability and the necessities of a Brother , to be equally ready liberally to give , or , if our situation requires it , thankfully to receive . . Thus acting , no human power can hurt you ; for your building thus fitly and compactly framed together , must grow into an holy temple , both in and for the Lord . In order to maintain unsullied the honour of the Craftbe cautious whom ye admit to the knowledge of
, your far more exalted than Eleusinian mysteries ; yet from the worshippers of Ceres be not ashamed to take a lesson of circumspection and vigilance . Be zealous in the discharge of all tbe duties demanded of you , nor faint though it may fall to your lot to labour in the plains of Jordan , in the clay ground between Sticcoth and Zeredathath . Thus may your Lodges appear beautiful as Thirzah , comely as
Jerusalem , fair as the curtains of Solomon , and supported by workmen that need not be ashamed . May they be taught and ruled by masters who comprehend the li ght of truth ; guarded by officers who will not remove the antient land-marks which their fathers have set ; and may tiie watchmen upon the towers suffer every man to pass who can give proofs of his being a good Mason and a trueadorninby
, g his life and conversation the secret tenets of the science , and , what is still more , the Gospel of-our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ , to which word of our salvation unless we give earnest heed , and render all things subservient , we are but deceiving ourselves , and the truth is
not in us . Can I conclude more emphatically than in the words of the apostle . Let all bitterness , and wrath , and anger , and clamour , and evilli ;
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Extracts From Two Sermons, Preached Before The Ancient And Honourable Society Of Freemasons,
more particularly by yielding a cheerful obedience to those whom in his providence the Architect of the Universe hath set over us , whether the more subordinate , or the supreme . Hail , mystic Art ! -thou source of utility , as numbers have experienced ; since if we were ever to be cast on an unknown shore , or obliged to travel through the most distant climes , however ignorant
of their language , their customs , and apparently strange to their inhabitants , thou lendest thy unfeigned votaries a secret key to open the rudest bosoms , and to unlock the most concealed hoards of niggardly parsimony . . Then , my much respected Brethren , foot to foot let us stand on the broad basis of rectitudeinscribed within the circle of harmony ,
, to shew that we are ready to move with and for a Brother in every just and laudable design . On bended knees let us join in each act of adoration and praise to the Grand Master of angels , saints , and men ; humbly begging , through the merits of Christ Jesus , that his inexhaustible goodness would be pleased to confer what his infinite wisdom sees most conducive for the essential and permanent felicity
cf ourselves and all our genuine Brethren , whether in the present or future state of our existence . May we display the reciprocity of our esteem in imitation of the early Christians , who are said to have had but one heart ; warmly pledging that , considering the instability
in all the gifts of fortune , we are resolved , according to our ability and the necessities of a Brother , to be equally ready liberally to give , or , if our situation requires it , thankfully to receive . . Thus acting , no human power can hurt you ; for your building thus fitly and compactly framed together , must grow into an holy temple , both in and for the Lord . In order to maintain unsullied the honour of the Craftbe cautious whom ye admit to the knowledge of
, your far more exalted than Eleusinian mysteries ; yet from the worshippers of Ceres be not ashamed to take a lesson of circumspection and vigilance . Be zealous in the discharge of all tbe duties demanded of you , nor faint though it may fall to your lot to labour in the plains of Jordan , in the clay ground between Sticcoth and Zeredathath . Thus may your Lodges appear beautiful as Thirzah , comely as
Jerusalem , fair as the curtains of Solomon , and supported by workmen that need not be ashamed . May they be taught and ruled by masters who comprehend the li ght of truth ; guarded by officers who will not remove the antient land-marks which their fathers have set ; and may tiie watchmen upon the towers suffer every man to pass who can give proofs of his being a good Mason and a trueadorninby
, g his life and conversation the secret tenets of the science , and , what is still more , the Gospel of-our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ , to which word of our salvation unless we give earnest heed , and render all things subservient , we are but deceiving ourselves , and the truth is
not in us . Can I conclude more emphatically than in the words of the apostle . Let all bitterness , and wrath , and anger , and clamour , and evilli ;