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Article CHAPTER I. ← Page 2 of 6 →
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Chapter I.
of faith are not allowed to interfere with or destroy its genial operation . All men are brethren . Those who are not Masons , lie under the same general obligation to act as brethren to us , and to each other , as we do lo all the world , and in particular to those of our pious and honourable community . For by creation we are all the children of one common parent ; of one blood , the Great Architect of the World made all the families of the earth . See the order of his work : lie laid the broad
foundation of the universe ; he raised , without axe or hammer , the circular walls of this terraqueous globe ; he roofed it with yonder beautiful canopy , aud ornamented it with all those unnumbered and unnieasurable glittering orbs of shining light and lustre ; perfected it in all its beauty , and furnished it with all its utility ; and , like a workman who needeth not to be ashamed of his performance , pronounced the wondrous fabric goodperfectand complete . Next he built the human frame
, , , and furnished it with immortality ; pronounced his creature man very good ; sent him forth as an inhabitant of his new-made world ; bid him multiply ; and declared him the common father of the intended human race . From this stock all mankind were propagated—AIA ARE BRETHREN ; —Adam was our federal head , and Adam was the son of God . * As , therefore , all men bear the same relation to each other , Freemasonrywhich professes to convey benefits to all ranks and descriptions
, of men , extends her arms of love and charity to the inhabitants of the earth , without reference to birth , language , education , or the colour of the skin ; male and female , infancy , manhood , and old age—all are included in its universal bond ; and all , I am inclined to believe , participate in its blessings . It is true the benefits derived by the uninitiated
are less obvious , because they refuse to acknowledge them ; but still they do partake , to a certain extent , in the unalloyed good which is distributed throughout society by the prevailing , though secret influence of masonry , to promote its moral and social interests . Our Rev . Bro . Town says , " when we speak ofthe moral principles of Freemasonry , we mean such as emanate from the divine essence , and immutable perfections of God . Such as impress their own truth , ancl
carry conviction of a just sense of duty to every enlightened conscience ; —such as are perfectly adapted to the constitutional endowments of man as an intellectual , moral , and social being , and especially such as the understanding will at once perceive to involve his highest and best interests , both as a creature of time , and an heir of immortality . In this , we are not to be understood as saying that the masonic code embodies every distinctive principle of moral virtue , in its more expanded form ,
hut only such as may be brought to bear on a specific object of common interest , and in the best manner subserve the accomplishment of a special purpose connected with the happiness of all our species . " This proposition , which every thinking Mason will be able to verify , and none will venture to dispute , is still doubted by some of our opponents amongst the uninitiated , and denied by others . And it is most extraordinary , that men of talentwho are professedlignorant of the
, y true design of Masonry , should compromise their reputation by writing on a subject where the information is sure to be superficial and imperfect , because it is derived from false lights , which always lead the enquirer into error . And it is seldom that our foes will take the trouble of reading any authorized work on Masonry , lest , perhaps , they should be enli ghtened , and cease to be opponents . Such uncandid persons com-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Chapter I.
of faith are not allowed to interfere with or destroy its genial operation . All men are brethren . Those who are not Masons , lie under the same general obligation to act as brethren to us , and to each other , as we do lo all the world , and in particular to those of our pious and honourable community . For by creation we are all the children of one common parent ; of one blood , the Great Architect of the World made all the families of the earth . See the order of his work : lie laid the broad
foundation of the universe ; he raised , without axe or hammer , the circular walls of this terraqueous globe ; he roofed it with yonder beautiful canopy , aud ornamented it with all those unnumbered and unnieasurable glittering orbs of shining light and lustre ; perfected it in all its beauty , and furnished it with all its utility ; and , like a workman who needeth not to be ashamed of his performance , pronounced the wondrous fabric goodperfectand complete . Next he built the human frame
, , , and furnished it with immortality ; pronounced his creature man very good ; sent him forth as an inhabitant of his new-made world ; bid him multiply ; and declared him the common father of the intended human race . From this stock all mankind were propagated—AIA ARE BRETHREN ; —Adam was our federal head , and Adam was the son of God . * As , therefore , all men bear the same relation to each other , Freemasonrywhich professes to convey benefits to all ranks and descriptions
, of men , extends her arms of love and charity to the inhabitants of the earth , without reference to birth , language , education , or the colour of the skin ; male and female , infancy , manhood , and old age—all are included in its universal bond ; and all , I am inclined to believe , participate in its blessings . It is true the benefits derived by the uninitiated
are less obvious , because they refuse to acknowledge them ; but still they do partake , to a certain extent , in the unalloyed good which is distributed throughout society by the prevailing , though secret influence of masonry , to promote its moral and social interests . Our Rev . Bro . Town says , " when we speak ofthe moral principles of Freemasonry , we mean such as emanate from the divine essence , and immutable perfections of God . Such as impress their own truth , ancl
carry conviction of a just sense of duty to every enlightened conscience ; —such as are perfectly adapted to the constitutional endowments of man as an intellectual , moral , and social being , and especially such as the understanding will at once perceive to involve his highest and best interests , both as a creature of time , and an heir of immortality . In this , we are not to be understood as saying that the masonic code embodies every distinctive principle of moral virtue , in its more expanded form ,
hut only such as may be brought to bear on a specific object of common interest , and in the best manner subserve the accomplishment of a special purpose connected with the happiness of all our species . " This proposition , which every thinking Mason will be able to verify , and none will venture to dispute , is still doubted by some of our opponents amongst the uninitiated , and denied by others . And it is most extraordinary , that men of talentwho are professedlignorant of the
, y true design of Masonry , should compromise their reputation by writing on a subject where the information is sure to be superficial and imperfect , because it is derived from false lights , which always lead the enquirer into error . And it is seldom that our foes will take the trouble of reading any authorized work on Masonry , lest , perhaps , they should be enli ghtened , and cease to be opponents . Such uncandid persons com-