The Universality Of Masonry And The Belief In God.

THE UNIVERSALITY OF MASONRY AND THE BELIEF IN GOD .

If we look around the whole of the globe we can scarcely find a country or a nation wherein Masonry has not p lanted its banner ; in the north , south , east , and west the roving Mason will find a brother . In Great Britain there are few towns of any size without a Masons' ledge ; the

same may be said of America—nay , more—even in the distant prairies , among the Indian tribes , " the light of Masonry has shined . " To go further South , the numerous States of South America—viz ., Peru , Venezuela , the Argentine Republic , Brazil , Mexico , Columbia , Uraguay , Chili , & c , —all possess Masonic governing bodies . On the Continent of Europe , in ctery nation , brethren of the

" Mystic Tie " will be found . Russia alone , at the present time , refuses permission to lodges to meet and transact business , but the interdict is only of comparatively recent date , and many Masons still exist there . If we turn to the East , India , like all other British possessions , fosters the Craft . China and Japan are said to be acquainted with the Order . Australia , New Zealand , Fiji and ether islands

boast of numbers of votaries of Masonry . In Africa , Masons' lodges are found in Algeria , Egypt , the Cape of Good Hope and Liberia . In tact , throughout the world , wherever the British or American trader , merchant or colonist have appeared , there Masonry has at once asserted its powers . Thus far we have only considered the extension of Masonry from its material point of view , and as

regards its connection more particularly with the Anglo-Saxon race . Let us row look at it in another light . Masonry is not confined to Christians , Catholic or Protestant ; it ' elongs to the Mahomedan , the Parsee , the Hindoo , the followers of Confucius , the red Indian of America , the native of Africa , and the islanders of the Southern Seas . What , then , is the common bond that

unites these various races , creeds , and sects in one universal order ? What is the ground-work on which the whole theory of the Craft is built up ? " The bulwark , the ' raison d ' etre , ' the first and greatest landmark of the Order , is ' the belief in God , ' the Creator , the Great Architect of the Universe !" To Mahomcdans , Allah ( Gcd ) is all supreme ; his firm

faith in the goodness and justice of God enables him to face death without fear . The mild and gentle Parsee does not worship the " Sacred Fire" as a God , but as a proof of the " presence of God . " An almost parallel case is to be found in the Bible as regards the Israelites—both in the Tabernacle and in the Temple of Jerusalem God signified His " presence" by the

fire always kept burning in the altar . The peaceful Rudhhist does not worship Brahma , Vishnu , and Sceva as the " Supreme God , " but as the representatives of the principal attributes of the Godhead . Just as Christians worship the Trinity as three persons in one God , so with the Budhhist —Brahma , Vishnu , and Sceva represent the Creator , Preserver and Destroyer . The disciples of Confucius

worship God through their prophet , Confucius ; the red Indian worships as his Supreme Being the " Good Spirit . " Few tribes and races exist , however idolatrous or paganish they may be , that do not in some sense acknowledge and worship " one Supreme God . " To all , then , the "belief in God . " is the common bond of union . Dogmatical discussions arc rigidly excluded from our lodges , when in session , so that the brethren of various

sects and creeds be not wounded in their religious feelings . Thus wc get an answer at once to our would-be perse-: utors , and also to those brethren of the Grand Orient of France , & c , who are now seeking to exclude "the very idea of God Almighty " from the constitutions of the Order . And why do they seek to do this ? Only forsooth that a few Hires penscurs ( Freethinkers ) Atheists , should be admitted .

Are we to give up the basis , the bond of union of the Order , for a few Atheists ? If we did so , the mighty . "difice raised with such care would fall to pieces , and "like Ihe baseless fabric of a vision , leave not a wrack behind . " Because the brtthen of Great Britain and other nations have inveighed against this exclusion , in no measured rones , they have been called " intolerant ! " and they are

•old that if they withdraw recognition of such French Masons that they will destroy the universality of the Order . Intolerant , forsooth I Rather most tolerant ? If we excluded the idea of and worship of the Great Architect , we should no longer have the Buddhists , Parsees , and Mahomcdans working with us ! If we refuse to recognise such French Masons as these , do we destroy the

universality of the Order ? We trow not . There are many right-thinking brethren and lodges in France who will not give up this , the greatest landmark of the Craft ; these good and true Masons can among themselves erect a Grand Lodge of France that will be recognized and acknowledged by every Grand Lodge in the world . There would be no diminution in the universality of Masonry ,

but rather a " separation of the sheep from the goats ! " or " a winnowing of the corn from the tares . " Masonry would profit by this . Without " the belief in and love of God , " how could we understand " the love of our neighbour . " In these two points consist the whole theory of the system of Masonry . Wc have often been asked what are the landmaiks of Mavonry , so often talked ab ut and

yet so little understood . Here are the two principal , the raison d ' etre of the system ; we have called it moreover , the " Bulwark of the Order , " and surely it is so . What arc the charges laid against us by our persecutors and detractors ? That we are " Enemies of God I subverters of

public order ; that we are , in fact , worshippers of the devil 1 " Our answer is , our system has as its foundation stone "Belief in God . " "No true Mason mentions the name of God save with the awe and reverence due from the creature to the Creator ! We implore His aid in all our difficulties , an-t in all our undertakings I" Are we

The Universality Of Masonry And The Belief In God.

then "Enemies of God ? " Subverters of order I Would our princes , rulers , ' judges , and magistrates be our votaries , if such were the case ? C ? 'i those who love and serve God be " worshippers of the devil ? " Exclude this love , this belief , and our enemies could well bring evil charges against us , and Masonry would become , as it should do under such circumstances , " a by-word and a reproach . "

So much , then for the Masonic crisis in France , Belgium , and , we fear , Hungary also . We would like , however , to say a few words on the " Belief in God , " as regards ourselves . We believe and hope that there are few among us who really are Atheists ; there may be some" of lax and careless views , but still , on the whole , our brethren believe or profess to believe in God I We will not be so pharasaical

as to say that in Great Britain all are good , all earnest believers in God I it may be that the winnowing the chaff from the wheat might be practised , with advantage , even among ourselves I But Anglo-Saxon Masons all profess , more or less , this great " Landmark" and teaching of Freemasonry . We should , however , do more than profess this , which should be the guiding principle of our

liveswe must seek to carry it out in practice . It matters not what sect of worshippers we belong to , we are , one and all of us , " children of God , " created by Him , imbued by Him with faculties which we should cultivate to his service . We would thus become more worthy of our calling as Masons . If the present struggle on the continent ends adversely , as it has done , alas ! in France , to the cause of Masonry ,

we must act promptly and with severity . It must never be said that the Grand Lodges of England , Scotland , Ireland , America , & c , for one moment tolerated such an innovation , such a destruction of the constitutions of our Order ; nay , more , it is a sacred duty that we owe , not only to Masonry all over the world , but a still greater duty due to those good and true brethren in France who are

now doing battle for the integrity of our noble and universal Craft . The path before us is broad and straight 1 we must not swerve to the right band or to the left ! but do our duty faithfully , honestly , and conscientiously . Then , and then only , will this crisis , this struggle in France , instead of being a stumbling b ' ock in our way , become a bright and sMtiing epoch in theannals of Masonry . —Scottish Freemason .

WELL SAID . We call attention to the above article , taken from the Scottish Freemason , and trust that every person into whose hands this copy of the Dispatch may fall may take the trouble to read it carefully , and think upon what he has read . It will be seen , by even a casual glance at the article in question , that the writer desires to rrake

allowances for those of the French minority who , by their ve > tes and influences , declared that they did not accept the dictum of the majority , and yet adhere to the old platform of Masonry—namely , an unquestioning belief in the existence of one ever-living and true God , the Creator and Ruler of the Universe . We desire to be understood as making the same

allowance , and as sympathising with those who , desirous of standing up to the real teachings of the Craft , find themselves overborne by a majority imbued with revolutionary ideas , and willing to sacrifice everything to theic notions of the moment . But at the same time we renew our protest against the official declaration ; of the Grand Orient which removes from the Masonic creed any recognition of

the Father . We take occasion again to say that we believe that it is not within the power of any man or any body of men to make innovations in the body of Masonry , and that all who profess to be Masons must accept without question the primitive dogmas of the Craft or simply quit . Now from the beginning , not only of the present organization of Freemasonry , but from the earliest times of which

we have any record , all societies or associations of men of a similar nature to ours have had for their underlying principle the existence of one God , acknowledged to be the Creator of the universe and worshipped as'the Father "from whom cometh down every good and perfect gift . " It follows that those who do not accept this dogma in its entire simplicity are not in communion with the rest and

do not follow ccnscientiously the work set for us to do , and it follows , also , that not believing and sympathizing in our doctrine as well as our work , they are really not of us . They demonstrate the truth of the Scripture that , " All are not Israel that are of Israel , " or , in other words , that all are not Masons who bear the name and pretend to exercise the profession . The world has got far beyond the time when there can

be any hesitation or equivocation on this question , and less than any other , can our Institution affortl frr a moment to dally with the vagaries of free thinkers or the delusions of downright infidels . Wc have been from the beginning on the side of God the Father , and there we must remain to the end , or cease to be members of the Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons . We take further occasion to repeat—for it cannot be too

often said—that unless we can from our inmost hearts and consciences declare our belief in God , wc have not been and are not Masons . Belic » ing thus , we are none the less ready to accept the fact that all French Masons are not and cannot be Atheists . We know of many instances to the contrary , and we accept the vote of the seventy-six lodges voting in the minority at the late meeting of the Grand Orient , when the question of striking out all

allusion to the Supreme Being was decided in the affirmative , as proof positive that atheism is not yet altogether rampant in France , but we must be governed by the official action of the governing body as having the right to speak for the constituency , and that body having deliberately resolved to strike out the Deity , we arc bound to accept that resolution as the sentiment of French Masonry , expressed through its official organ . It is , of course ,

The Universality Of Masonry And The Belief In God.

unfortunate for the minority that their views of the light , and their devotion to the principles of the Craft should have been thus misrepresented and officially overruled ; but there is only one resource left to them , and that is the one suggested by our Scottish contemporary , namely , that they should at once proceed to form a Grand Lodge—not a Grand Orient—for thepropagation of true Ancient Craft

Masonry as it was at first communicated to them through Lord Derwentwater , and we can confidently assure them of the sympathy and recognition of all English speaking Masons throughout the world . If , however , they choose to sit still and allow the atheistical majority to rule and speak for them , then it will be only a fair deduction that the real principles of our fraternity have not been

understood in France , and that in that country forms have been mistaken for principles . We sincerely hope that such will not prove to be the fact , and that upon sober second thought a majority of our French brethren will be found to have taken place on the side of Masonic principle , and in favour of supporting to extremity—if necessary—the governing ideas of the association . —New York Dispatch .

The Masonic Hall In Dublin.

THE MASONIC HALL IN DUBLIN .

This Masonic Hall embodies in its style the five orders of architecture . It was built from the design of Mr . Edward Holmes , who is architect of the fine Masonic Hall in the town of Birmingham . Although externally the edifice is neither ornate or imposing , once the portals are entered the eye is charmed with the variety of

architectural adornment . Th irty-five Blue Lodges meet within the building ; and in addition there are rooms devoted to the Royal Arch Chapter Masons , the Knights Templars and the Prince Masons . Thus of the various styles of architecture we have the Ancient Egyptian , which is the earliest , in the Royal Arch Chapter Room ; the classical in the Grand Lodge Room ; and in the Chapel of the

Knights Templars , the Gothic , which is the style of most of the ecclesiastical structures in the United Kingdom , France and Germany . The Grand Lodge Room , devoted to Craft Maiorry , the Order may justly contemplate with pride . It has undergone a satisfactory transformation , and is now one of the most tastefully decorated apartments in the United

Kingdom . Lightness of tone and simplicity and elegance of design at once strike the beholder , while , at the same time , the vast dimensions of the room ( being larger than St . Patrick ' s Hall , Dublin Castle ) , and its classical pillars and entablature impart a due degree of solemnity . At a glance the harmony of the decorations is apparent ; and the longer in contemplation the greater the satisfaction in

arriving at the conclusion that uniformity has been observed in every detail . First of all , examine the frescoes in the space 'twixt the groined arches . What a wonderful episode in sacred history they unfold ! The ten combined tell the story of the building of Solomon's Temple , each contributing its own fragment in an eloquent manner that cannot be mistaken . Mr . Edward Gibson ,

44 , Great Russell-street , London , youngest son of Mr . H . James Gibson , of Mary-street , Dublin , is the designer and painter . He is a young man in the springtide of life , and his present work undoubtedly gives promise of great things to come . Each design manifests deep thought and sound judgment , while the drawing is accurate and the dresses and composition of the various

subjects prove the scholar as well as the artist . Although the treatment of the figures is in sepia or monochrome on a gold ground , the effect is thoroughly satisfying , the facial expression and the natural , easy flow of the drapery being especially so . Standing in the East where the Grand Master ' s throne is placed , on the right are described the incidents in close connexion with Hiram ,

King of Tyre , and his builders and artificers , while on the left are those more immediately relating fo Solomon and the Israelites . The central cartoon on the right is the genesis of the story . It represents the reception ol Solomon's servants by Hiram , King of Tyre . Hiram regally attired , is seated on his throne , which is copied from Egyptian monuments , and . is ornamented with

flowers and emblems . On either side stand female slaves , waving fans or punkahs , to cool the air for his Majesty , while in the foreground sits another , as if awaiting her turn of duty . At the right hand side of the King stands his Minister or Grand Vizier , his hands resting on his sword ; and behind this throne is stationed the King ' s body guard , armed with sword and buckler .

Solomon ' s three messenger ' s kneeling at the foot of the throne complete the groups . One of them seems to act as spokesman , while another presents gifts . At once the distinctive appearance of the Israelites and the Tyrians is discernible . The Tyrians wear their beards curled short ; the Israelites let theirs flow in the natural manner . The references on the frieze beneath to the

texts in I Kings , v ., vi ., vn ., furnish a key to the cartoons . "And Solomon sent to Hiram , saying , 'Thou knowest how that David , my father , could not build an house in the name of the Lord his God , for the wars that were unto about him on every side , until the Lord put them undet the soles of His feet . But now the Lord my God hath given me rest on every side , so that there is neither adversary

nor evil occurrent . And , behold , I purpose to build a house unto the name of the Lord my God , as the Lord spake unto David , my father , saying , " Thy son , whom I will place on thy throne in thy room , he shall build an house in my name . " Now , therefore , command thiu that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon ; and my

servant shall be with thy servants ; and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all thai thou shall appoint—for thou knowest that there are not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians . " And it came to pass that when Hiram heard the words of Solomon , he rejocetl greatly , and said , "Blessed be the