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Article ON THE ANTIQUITY OF FREEMASONRY. ← Page 10 of 10
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On The Antiquity Of Freemasonry.
an affinity can be traced in others , clearly proves that none of them can have any claim to originality , but that they are all derived from a system which preceded them . This takes us back to the time when the true religion , as practised by the antediluvian patriarchs , was the religion of the world . And if I were asked what was the original of these idolatrous mysteries , —I should , without hesitation , answer , " The form of worship practised by Adam and his immediate successors ; " and would claim
for Masonry the honour of being that plain , undeviating course , marked out by the great Architect of the Universe , for the guidance of his fallen , though still beloved children . For , as there are in every system of ancient idolatry , one or more symbols or ceremonies bearing evident marks of connection—a famil y likeness , as it were , to corresponding symbols or ceremonies in Masonry , though warped from their original reference—are there not strong grounds for affirming that the science
, to which they all have a stronger resemblance than either of them have to each other , is the great original from which they all emanated ? From no one of the mysteries could the system of Masonry be founded ; and even their whole collective bulk would not form the complex body of that beautiful science . Their signs , symbols , and ceremonies -have a corrupt and disgusting reference ; our corresponding rites can be proved by the square of God ' s word , and found perfect . Does truth
spring from error ? Do we gather grapes from thorns ? Has the true Light of Masonry sprung from the deluding beams of the mysteries ? No ; rather say that the effulgent rays of Masonry became lost in the fogs and mists of human ignorance and depravity—that its outward and visible signs were preserved , when their hidden meaning was perverted and tortured into the horrid religion of the mysteries—that this change was not the work of a moment , but the silent , mole-like working of Ignorance ; upon the god-like foundations of Wisdom . As the
landscape upon whose beauties the eye has gazed with pleasure fades into indistinctness , when our receding steps have placed distance between us and it , leaving the imagination to fill up what to the eye has become obscure—so as time rolled on ; and the increasing families of the earth spread over its surface in search of territory . Masonry , through the negligence of men—too much occupied in secular pursuits and schemes of aggrandisement , to bestow that care upon it necessary to preserve it
intact in doctrine and discipline , gradually changed from its pristine truth into that system of idolatry which was a disgrace to human reason , and a shame to its votaries . It would then have become extinct , hacl not God—who has never left Himself without a living witness of his might—treasured it in the hearts of a few faithful servants , who handed it down to us , to be the handmaid of Christianity—a humble , yet zealous instrument in the hand of God , for the welfare of man . CATO , ( 25 ) .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Antiquity Of Freemasonry.
an affinity can be traced in others , clearly proves that none of them can have any claim to originality , but that they are all derived from a system which preceded them . This takes us back to the time when the true religion , as practised by the antediluvian patriarchs , was the religion of the world . And if I were asked what was the original of these idolatrous mysteries , —I should , without hesitation , answer , " The form of worship practised by Adam and his immediate successors ; " and would claim
for Masonry the honour of being that plain , undeviating course , marked out by the great Architect of the Universe , for the guidance of his fallen , though still beloved children . For , as there are in every system of ancient idolatry , one or more symbols or ceremonies bearing evident marks of connection—a famil y likeness , as it were , to corresponding symbols or ceremonies in Masonry , though warped from their original reference—are there not strong grounds for affirming that the science
, to which they all have a stronger resemblance than either of them have to each other , is the great original from which they all emanated ? From no one of the mysteries could the system of Masonry be founded ; and even their whole collective bulk would not form the complex body of that beautiful science . Their signs , symbols , and ceremonies -have a corrupt and disgusting reference ; our corresponding rites can be proved by the square of God ' s word , and found perfect . Does truth
spring from error ? Do we gather grapes from thorns ? Has the true Light of Masonry sprung from the deluding beams of the mysteries ? No ; rather say that the effulgent rays of Masonry became lost in the fogs and mists of human ignorance and depravity—that its outward and visible signs were preserved , when their hidden meaning was perverted and tortured into the horrid religion of the mysteries—that this change was not the work of a moment , but the silent , mole-like working of Ignorance ; upon the god-like foundations of Wisdom . As the
landscape upon whose beauties the eye has gazed with pleasure fades into indistinctness , when our receding steps have placed distance between us and it , leaving the imagination to fill up what to the eye has become obscure—so as time rolled on ; and the increasing families of the earth spread over its surface in search of territory . Masonry , through the negligence of men—too much occupied in secular pursuits and schemes of aggrandisement , to bestow that care upon it necessary to preserve it
intact in doctrine and discipline , gradually changed from its pristine truth into that system of idolatry which was a disgrace to human reason , and a shame to its votaries . It would then have become extinct , hacl not God—who has never left Himself without a living witness of his might—treasured it in the hearts of a few faithful servants , who handed it down to us , to be the handmaid of Christianity—a humble , yet zealous instrument in the hand of God , for the welfare of man . CATO , ( 25 ) .