Table Of Contents.

TABLE OF CONTENTS .

PAGES F REEMASONRY AND ISRAELITISM ... 579 , 580 , & 581 T HE F ORTHCOMING EDITION OF THE IRISH A HIMAN R EZON 581 & 5 S 2 C ONSECRATION OF THE PANMURE MARK LODGE ,

No . 139 S » 2 & 583 B IRTHS , MARRIAGES , AND DEATHS 584 A NSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS 584 G RAND L ODGE 5 S 4 & 585 T HE " F REEMASON " LIFE-BOAT 585 MULTUM IN PARVO 5 S 5 & 586

O RIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE — Tftt Craft Grand Lodge 5 S 6 & . 587 " Freemasonry and Judaism " 587 T HE F REEMASONS'LIFE-BOAT ... • 587 C ONSECRATION OF THE UNITED SERVICE LODGE , No . 1361 587

THE CRAFTMetropolitan ... ... ... 587 Provincial 5 S 7 & 58 S M ARK MASONRY 5 S 8 O RDERS OF

CHIVALRYKnights Templar 58 S F OREIGN MASONIC INTELLIGENCEDistrict Grand Lodge of Burmah 58 S Canada 5 SS & 5 S 9 New Zealand 58 9 P OETRY—Sonnet 590 MASONIC MEETINGS FOR . NEXT WEEK 590 A DVERTISEMENTS 577 , 57 s , 590 , 591 , £ 592

Freemasonry & Israelitism.

FREEMASONRY & ISRAELITISM .

BY B RO . WILLIAM CARPENTER , P . M . & P . Z . 177 .

XVII . Religion and philanthropy are inseparably united . He who wrote , " If a man love God , he will love his brother ; also , " wrote that which must approve itself to every

man s judgment . It is a proposition that admits of no denial . What is religion ? The love of God . What is philanthropy ? The love of man . In both , the affection , if it exists , must exemplify itself in action .

Love to God exhibits itself in serving Him ; that is , in worshipping and obeying Himdoing what He enjoins , and avoiding what He prohibits . Love to man exhibits itself in sympathy , and in rendering active service

on his behalf—in relieving his wants , when within the compass of our power . In both cases it is a reasonable service . If a man says he is religious , and is deaf to the claims of his fellow-man , he is but a pretender . " If

a man love not his brother whom he hath seen , how can he love God whom he hath not seen ? " If men or people exhibit a zealous activity in promulgating the knowledge of God , by circulating His written

revelation ; by expounding and enforcing its doctrines ; by becoming , in a word , His messengers or missionaries , making Him known where he is not already known , putting down idolatry , and everything

which cxalteth itself against Him , while they arc indifferent to the distresses or wants of individual men , they fall under the just condemnation pronounced upon those who affected to be zealous in

attending to the word of the Lord , and showing much love to Him , while their hearts went aftcr ' covctousncss ( Ezek . xxxiii . 30-32 , & c . ) If Israel , then , is to raise up a standard to the nations , making known the

True God , and inviting men to love and serve Him , they arc to be animated by the love of their fellow-men , as they are animated by the love of God . And wc shall see the proof of the one as of the other ; that

is , m their works . " Brotherly love , relief , and truth" will be combined . Religion and philanthropy will go hand in hand . Of Israel , in their new state , this was predicted , in one of the most impressive , and ,

as to . style and construction , one of themoat perfect pieces of Isaiah ' s writings ( chap . Iviii . ) After solemnly reproving Israel for her sins , especially for her hypocrisy , the people are introduced as making confession , and deploring their wretched condition , as

Freemasonry & Israelitism.

the fruit of their wickedness . Then comes the Divine promise , that they shall be delivered—that their light shall break forth as the morning , and that their righteousness shall go before them . Here is what was

required of them , and what , having entered upon , the blessing was realised : " Is not this the fast which I choose ? to dissolve the bonds of wickedness ; to loosen the oppressive burthens ; to deliver those that

are crushed by violence ; and to break asunder every yoke ? Is it not to distribute thy bread to the hungry ; and to bring the wandering poor into thy house ? When thou seest the naked that thou clothe him ;

and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh " ( ver . 6 , 7 ) . If the Anglo-Saxons are really of the Israelites , this must be one of the most marked of their characteristics ; and that it is so the world not grudgingly

testifies . England stands foremost of all nations in its works of philanthropy , but other members of the great Saxon family take part in the Divine work—for such it is . To speak of England , first . May we not refer

to the millions we have expended , and the sacrifices we have made—not always wisely and well , it must be admitted—on behalf

of the oppressed and trodden-down , in almost every part of the world ? What is our National Debt , but a standing proof of that fact ? It was not to achieve territorial

conquests , though we necessarily made some ; it was to defend peoples against their invaders , and for the maintenance of their independence , that the wars involving

such an expenditure of blood and treasure were waged from 1793 to 1815 . Wc may have made many mistakes , and may have done some wrong , as I believe we did ; but the motive was not a selfish one . For

twenty-two years we fought as if for our own existence . An eloquent American testifies , that " The stability of England is the security of the modern world . If the English race were as mutable as the French ,

what reliance ? " he asks , but he adds , " The English stand for liberty . The conservative , money-loving , lord-loving English arc the liberty-loving ; and so freedom is safe , for they have more personal force

than any other people . The nation always resist the immoral action of their government . They think humanely on the affairs of France , of Turkey , of Hungary , of

Poland , and of Schleswich Holstein , though sometimes overborne by the state-craft of their rulers . " How often have we interfered —too often , perhaps—though some tell us that we now often stand aloof when we should

interfere . Be that as it may , the page of history gives abundant proof of the fact , that , in every international quarrel or difficulty , the voice of England is heard , and is never treated with lightness . And as

England has ever evinced sympathy , and often afforded help , at great cost to herself , to foreign nations and peoples struggling against internal or external oppression , so she has afforded an asylum to all exiles ,

without distinction of race or nation , who have cither been expelled from their own country , or have expatriated themselves , for political reasons . As Dr . Fischcl , in his work on the English Constitution , observes ,

" not only has England afforded an asylum to foreigners , at all times , but she has likewise abstained from legislating to oppress them . " This is true , upon the whole , but it is not to be denied , that , at times , some

of our kings have emancipated themselves from our humane laws and customs towards strangers , and that there have been occasional exhibitions of jealousy , by the mercantile community , and efforts made to restrict the liberty of foreigners in regard

Freemasonry & Israelitism.

to trade and commerce . The fact , nevertheless , remains , that one of the brightest jewels in the crown of England is her sympathetic treatment of oppressed foreigners . Other Saxon nations participate in the honour , but she stands foremost of all .

But this philanthropic spirit and conduct may be said to cost England nothing . But her deeds of active philanthropy and benevolence are of great magnitude . The

kingdom is literally covered with evidences of them ; and the sums voluntarily contributed to sustain institutions of various kinds are prodigious , and excite the admiration of the world . The charitable

institutions of London , alone , acknowledge tne receipt of voluntary contributions amounting to about two millions and a half sterling ; annually ; independent of numerous and munificent donations . The Lancet has

recently been at the pains of ascertaining how many donations of . £ 1 , 000 , anonymous or otherwise , have been giveu to the metropolitan hospitals , within the last five years . Its list may not be quite complete ,

but it cannot be far off . These donations appear to have been seventy-one in number , the greater part from anonymous benefactors . In addition , there were gifts , which brought the total up to , £ 89 , 000 . I have

just cast my eye upon an appeal on behalf of St . Thomas' Hospital . The new building , it seems , has cost £ 590 , 000 , exclusive of fittings , museums , furniture , & c . The former had been paid for , and the appeal

was for funds to pay for the latter . The response was contributions amounting to £ 15 , 000 , exclusive of gifts to the hospital and chapel , by the President and others . In the same day ' s Times appeared

advertisements stating that the contributions to the Bishop of London ' s fund , for building churches and supplying the means of worship where needed and called for , amounted to £ 439 , 821 , and was still progressing ; and

that the fund for the relief of those who had suffered through the loss of the Captain had reached £ 56 , 000 . Every week-, too , brings before the readers of the public journals ,

considerable amounts bequeathed by deceased persons to charitable institutions ; and if to these we could add the large sums dispensed in private charity , and given to numberless associations which do not find

a place among public institutions , the amount dispensed in charity , in the metropolis , alone , would be seen to be immense . And then come local provincial charities ,

such as hospitals , asylums , dispensaries , and schools of various kinds , in almost every city and town , throughout the United Kingdom—all the fruits of philanthropy . Could we but add the amount of these to

the metropolitan charities , the sum would be almost incredible . Nor can we omit to notice our national poor-rates , which in the year last past ( 1870 ) amounted to no less than £ 7 , 644 , 309 , being about £ 30 , 000 less

than m the previous year , by many , this is not regarded with much complacency , but as a matter of reproach . But , in whatever circumstances our pauperism may originate , the fund raised , and devoted to

the relief of the poor , must be held to be a philanthropic fund . It should be remembered , too , by those who reproach us with the number of our paupers , that with no

poor-law to be found abroad , or none so lenient as ours , the natural inducement to quit the country is taken away ; and that , on the oilier hand , there is every inducement to the needv of other lands to come here .

Thus , it is the fate of England to retain her own poor , and to attract those of other countries . So long as cheap Belgian and German labour i : ; invited hither , we cannot