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On Freemasonry. Evidences, Doctrines, And Traditions.
Rabbi Moses cle Cotsi , a learned Jew , in order to complete the above chain of tradition , ancl at the same time to demonstrate that it continued uninterrupted during the Babylonish captivity , introduces some illustrious persons who were of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin , ancl carried captives to Babylon ;—nay—he assures us that these very captives founded there the celebrated establishment or
fraternity of Nahardea on the Euphrates , for the preservation ot traditional knowledge ; the transmission of which was thus provided for , while it was kept profoundly secret from the rest of the world . And he further adds , that Zerubabel the prince of Judah , and Esdras the scribe , carried all the occult knowledge which were here preserved , with them to Jerusalem , and established there a similar fraternity for the same purpose .
Such is the authorit y on which the series of legends which 1 am about to recount respecting our Stone of Foundation rest . Some of them bear the stamp of probability ; while others are fanciful and evidently improbable . As , however , the details have been identified with Masonic tradition , there will be no impropriety in their introduction , if it were only tor the of
purpose showing to the Brethren of the nineteenth century , some ofthe conceits which their forefathers held in high estimation ; leaving to every reader the privilege of attaching such a degree of credit to each legend as may consist with his own taste and judgment . The Stone is represented double cube it is
as a . Now well known that this particular figure was reputed to be possessed of some mysterious properties , not only in the opinion of those who adhered steadfastly to the worship of the true God , which was confirmed by the fact that the altar ot incense constructed in the wilderness by Aholiab and Bezaleelwas made in this form by the Divine and
, comm but also of those who had fallen into the errors and superstitions of a false and mistaken worship . Thus the heathen deities were many of them represented by a cubical stone . Pausanias informs us that a cube was the symbol of Mercury , because , like the cube , he represented 1 ruth . And in Arabiablack stonein the form of
, a , a double cube , was reputed to be possessed of many occult virtues . Apollo was sometimes worshipped under the symbol of a square stone ; and it is recorded , that when a fetal pestilence raged at Delphi , the Oracle was consulted as to the means proper to be adopted for the purpose of arresting its progress ; and it commanded that the cube should be doubled
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On Freemasonry. Evidences, Doctrines, And Traditions.
Rabbi Moses cle Cotsi , a learned Jew , in order to complete the above chain of tradition , ancl at the same time to demonstrate that it continued uninterrupted during the Babylonish captivity , introduces some illustrious persons who were of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin , ancl carried captives to Babylon ;—nay—he assures us that these very captives founded there the celebrated establishment or
fraternity of Nahardea on the Euphrates , for the preservation ot traditional knowledge ; the transmission of which was thus provided for , while it was kept profoundly secret from the rest of the world . And he further adds , that Zerubabel the prince of Judah , and Esdras the scribe , carried all the occult knowledge which were here preserved , with them to Jerusalem , and established there a similar fraternity for the same purpose .
Such is the authorit y on which the series of legends which 1 am about to recount respecting our Stone of Foundation rest . Some of them bear the stamp of probability ; while others are fanciful and evidently improbable . As , however , the details have been identified with Masonic tradition , there will be no impropriety in their introduction , if it were only tor the of
purpose showing to the Brethren of the nineteenth century , some ofthe conceits which their forefathers held in high estimation ; leaving to every reader the privilege of attaching such a degree of credit to each legend as may consist with his own taste and judgment . The Stone is represented double cube it is
as a . Now well known that this particular figure was reputed to be possessed of some mysterious properties , not only in the opinion of those who adhered steadfastly to the worship of the true God , which was confirmed by the fact that the altar ot incense constructed in the wilderness by Aholiab and Bezaleelwas made in this form by the Divine and
, comm but also of those who had fallen into the errors and superstitions of a false and mistaken worship . Thus the heathen deities were many of them represented by a cubical stone . Pausanias informs us that a cube was the symbol of Mercury , because , like the cube , he represented 1 ruth . And in Arabiablack stonein the form of
, a , a double cube , was reputed to be possessed of many occult virtues . Apollo was sometimes worshipped under the symbol of a square stone ; and it is recorded , that when a fetal pestilence raged at Delphi , the Oracle was consulted as to the means proper to be adopted for the purpose of arresting its progress ; and it commanded that the cube should be doubled