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Article THE "CHURCH HERALD. " ← Page 2 of 2 Article THE "CHURCH HERALD. " Page 2 of 2 Article A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION. Page 1 of 1 Article "VERBUM SAT SAPIENTI." Page 1 of 1 Article Original Correspondence. Page 1 of 2 Article Original Correspondence. Page 1 of 2 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The "Church Herald. "
any one to that recent and memorable article in the Church Herald , in re Freemasonry , it arises from another cause , and not from either approval or sympathy with its tone and arguments . It
is just possible that in its merely sensational utterances it may have attracted a moment ' s attention , but when we have said that , wc have said all . It would , indeed , constitute , in our
humble opinion , a very great reflection both on the intellect , and good feeling , and common sense of the readers of the Church Herald , lay or clerical , could we for a moment believe that they
were really in any way affected by one of the most vulgar and worthless diatribes against our unoffending Order that we have ever had the misfortune to peruse . To say nothing of the
childish perversity which to-day repeats the inane strictures of last century , we find , alas ! the " animus mendacii' most strongly represented in that article from first to last . And not
only this , but how can we fitly characterize those unblushing falsehoods—we might even term , in our good old Saxon vernacular , "lies" — with which that . silly writer closes his attack on
Freemasonry 5 All we can say is , that we do not fear such insinuations , or regard such incriminations in the slightest degree , for our belief still is most strongly that , in respect of
Freemasonry , as of many other things in this world , '' magna est Veritas et praevalabit . " We shall , therefore take no more notice of our contemporary , but relegate him to the glories of those
" feeble forcibles "—so many now-a-days—who have adopted for their controversial efforts that motto which so well always represents both their wish and anxiety for truth " aut inveniam , aut
fteciam . " Of such assailants , Freemasonry has no dread , and to such slanderers it cares not to make any reply , leaving both its professions and its practice , in all humble confidence , to the
calm consideration and approval of the fair , the truthful , and the tolerant . Our contemporary , the Church Herald , prints the speech of an abla brother of ours , ( Bro . J . C . Parkinson ) , recently
delivered by him to the Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire , and states that the " outcome " of it simply is , " our readers can need nothing further than the above to show that no Christian ,
much less a Catholic , can possibly have anything to do with such an organisation , " and that " its practice has been too faithfully painted by one of its own official lights . " We are not
concerned in defending all that Bro . Parkinson then said , firstly , because he is quite able , if need be to defend himself , and , secondly , because we confess that we do not quite take his view as
regards the Roman Catholic position in respect of Freemasonry . We think that the less is said of the Roman Catholic Church , qua the Roman Catholic Church , the better , except purely by
way of defence , as Freemasonry knows nothing officially , so to say , of the peculiar doctrines or the religious position of any denominational body . Freemasonry ignores alike all questions ,
whether affecting religion dogmas , or political principles . But we quite agree with Bro . Parkinson in his lucid explanation and seasonable
assertion ofthe Universality of Freemasonry , and we thank him for defending what the Church Herald so loudly condemns , inasmuch as that very Universal principle of reception and to-
The "Church Herald. "
leration constitutes , in our humble opinion , the greatness , and the utility , and the glory of Freemasonry .
A Few Words Of Caution.
A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION .
We have published lately several letters relative to Lord Ripon ' s secession to the Church of Rome , and also one or two , especially last week , which seem to have a tendency to evoke
a purely religious controversy . We therefore have come to the conclusion not to allow in our pages the appearance of any more similar letters , whether in tone or substance , either as regards
Lord Ripon , or the Roman Catholic Church . We are of opinion that the best way of treating Lord Ripon ' s resignation is by a respectful silence , though we may feel heartily sorry for our noble
brother . Freemasonry is not a controversial institution , and we have no right to allow a sp irit of sectarian bitterness to be imported into our peaceful fraternity , or to appear in the
columns of the only Masonic journal . As Freemasons , we have nothing to do with the special opinions or doctrines held by any religious bod y whatever , perse , except when , as lately , we are
unwarrantably attacked and insulted , and then we have a right to state , clearly and temperately , how ignorant of our true principles are all such assailants , and how worthless and unfounded are
all such attacks . But , as our readers will note , some of the recent letters speak of the Church of Rome from a purely religious point of view , or from political considerations , with which we
have equally , as Freemasons , nothing to do . Having allowed , then , such discussion to proceed , as far as we thought it could with safety do , we now beg to decline to insert any more letters on
the subject , on either side , and to call the attention [ of our many readers to the fact that we in no way profess to agree with , or to be responsible for the personal opinion and idisoyncracies of our various correspondents .
"Verbum Sat Sapienti."
"VERBUM SAT SAPIENTI . "
With reference to the letter under this signature , which appeared in our columns on the 3 rd October , we think it to be our duty to state to-day that we are fully satisfied that the
assertions and insinuations made in it were and are utterly untrue . We much regret that by an oversight we allowed the letter to appear in our
pages at all , as we have no intention of permitting the Freemason to be used for the purpose of propagating slander against any brother .
Original Correspondence.
Original Correspondence .
[ Wc do net hold ourselves responsible for , or even as approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , lint we wish , in a spirit of fair play to all , to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . —lio . ]
ORDERS OF THE TEMPLE AND MALTA .
To the Editor of Ihe Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Does not Sir Knt . W . Davies misapprehend the position and status of a Preceptor
under the new regime . As I read the statutes a Knight once installed a Preceptor is ever after a Preceptor , so long as he continues to subscribe to a preceptory , and is so qualified to attend , speak and vote in Convent General and Great
Original Correspondence.
Priory , ( see Statutes of Convent , p . 12 , and Statutes of Great Priory , p . 8 . par . 3 . ) Under these statutes there are no Past Preceptors . There must be a new title , that of Presiding Preceptor , to denote the actual head of the Preceptory , and notwithstanding the statutes of
Great Priory , p . 43 , Article no , those who , under the old customs , would have been Past Commanders must be styled Preceptors only . With regard to Sir Knt . J . H . Woodworth ' s complaint . I contend that a Knight , who is a past officer under the old regime , is not , in the
" proper costume of his rank in the order , " as laid down by Article 94 , English Great Priory statutes , 73 Irish , unless the statute of the Convent General is complied with , and he wears " the insigna which " he was entitled to wear before the " making of those statutes" ( see
statutes of Convent General , p . 19 , Article , Rank , and Precedence , last par ., p , 20 ) , and that a Knight so clothed cannot be excluded from Convent General or Great Priory . THOMAS COOMB , P . E . C , P . G ., 1 st Capt ., England , P . D . Prov . G . Com ., Dorset , Prov . Sub . Prior , Dorset .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — The complaint of your correspondent , " W . Davies , Preceptor , " in your last issue is , I think , so far as it relates to his status in the Order , under a misapprehension . It is not easy
to see the hardships which he appears to feel so strongly . Having been ( I will assume ) regularly elected and installed as Preceptor , so long as he is a subscribing member of any registered Preceptory he will take rank as a Preceptor , and be a member of the Great Priory ( see Statutes of
Great Priory , No . 3 ) . In fact he will enjoy all the privileges he had under the old Statutes . The only difference made by the new Statutes of the Convent General and Great Priory in his case appears to be , that whereas he was instituted " Knight Commander , " that title is now taken , away from hira and appropriated to a
select body of Knights of the rank of Preceptors , whom the Grand Master may nominate to that honour . This being so it is difficult to understand what is meant by the assertion that " this office [ Preceptor ] does not carry past rank . " I trust this explanation will tend to restore comfort and peace of mind to your correspondent . Yours fraternally , J . C . G . L .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Herewith I hand you extracts from the Statutes , and shall be glad if you will give the same a place in the Freemason of Saturday next , and at the same time give us your opinion
thereon , and also answer the following questions ; for when those in authority , who ought to know , differ as to the intent and effect of the Statutes , there is some excuse for the uninstructed asking the question •. Statutes of Convent General , page 1 r , reads ,
" AU Great Priors , Great Officers , Sub Priors , Provincial Priors , National Great Officers , Grand Crosses , Commanders , and Preceptors , shall be qualified to attend , speak , and vote in the Convent General . " Again at page 12 , " A Preceptor shall be taken to mean , a Knight who
shall have been duly installed to preside over a lawfully constituted Preceptory , and is on the roll of a lawfully constituted working Preceptory ; and again at page 19 , " In consideration of the introduction of the Dignities of Kni ghts Grand Cross and Commander , no person in
future , having served a dignified office , shall claim or receive any rank or precedence in virtue thereof , after having ceased to hold his office j and no status analogous to that heretofore designated as Past Rank shall be recognised nor allowed , nor any insignia thereof borne . " From
the above it is quite clear that past rank is entirely abolished ; but , what follows , with some Sir Knights completely upsets the above construction . Great Priory Statute , page 8 , sec . 3 , reads : " Every Knight regularly elected and installed Preceptor of a Preceptory , registered under the Convent General shall , so long as he
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The "Church Herald. "
any one to that recent and memorable article in the Church Herald , in re Freemasonry , it arises from another cause , and not from either approval or sympathy with its tone and arguments . It
is just possible that in its merely sensational utterances it may have attracted a moment ' s attention , but when we have said that , wc have said all . It would , indeed , constitute , in our
humble opinion , a very great reflection both on the intellect , and good feeling , and common sense of the readers of the Church Herald , lay or clerical , could we for a moment believe that they
were really in any way affected by one of the most vulgar and worthless diatribes against our unoffending Order that we have ever had the misfortune to peruse . To say nothing of the
childish perversity which to-day repeats the inane strictures of last century , we find , alas ! the " animus mendacii' most strongly represented in that article from first to last . And not
only this , but how can we fitly characterize those unblushing falsehoods—we might even term , in our good old Saxon vernacular , "lies" — with which that . silly writer closes his attack on
Freemasonry 5 All we can say is , that we do not fear such insinuations , or regard such incriminations in the slightest degree , for our belief still is most strongly that , in respect of
Freemasonry , as of many other things in this world , '' magna est Veritas et praevalabit . " We shall , therefore take no more notice of our contemporary , but relegate him to the glories of those
" feeble forcibles "—so many now-a-days—who have adopted for their controversial efforts that motto which so well always represents both their wish and anxiety for truth " aut inveniam , aut
fteciam . " Of such assailants , Freemasonry has no dread , and to such slanderers it cares not to make any reply , leaving both its professions and its practice , in all humble confidence , to the
calm consideration and approval of the fair , the truthful , and the tolerant . Our contemporary , the Church Herald , prints the speech of an abla brother of ours , ( Bro . J . C . Parkinson ) , recently
delivered by him to the Provincial Grand Lodge of Warwickshire , and states that the " outcome " of it simply is , " our readers can need nothing further than the above to show that no Christian ,
much less a Catholic , can possibly have anything to do with such an organisation , " and that " its practice has been too faithfully painted by one of its own official lights . " We are not
concerned in defending all that Bro . Parkinson then said , firstly , because he is quite able , if need be to defend himself , and , secondly , because we confess that we do not quite take his view as
regards the Roman Catholic position in respect of Freemasonry . We think that the less is said of the Roman Catholic Church , qua the Roman Catholic Church , the better , except purely by
way of defence , as Freemasonry knows nothing officially , so to say , of the peculiar doctrines or the religious position of any denominational body . Freemasonry ignores alike all questions ,
whether affecting religion dogmas , or political principles . But we quite agree with Bro . Parkinson in his lucid explanation and seasonable
assertion ofthe Universality of Freemasonry , and we thank him for defending what the Church Herald so loudly condemns , inasmuch as that very Universal principle of reception and to-
The "Church Herald. "
leration constitutes , in our humble opinion , the greatness , and the utility , and the glory of Freemasonry .
A Few Words Of Caution.
A FEW WORDS OF CAUTION .
We have published lately several letters relative to Lord Ripon ' s secession to the Church of Rome , and also one or two , especially last week , which seem to have a tendency to evoke
a purely religious controversy . We therefore have come to the conclusion not to allow in our pages the appearance of any more similar letters , whether in tone or substance , either as regards
Lord Ripon , or the Roman Catholic Church . We are of opinion that the best way of treating Lord Ripon ' s resignation is by a respectful silence , though we may feel heartily sorry for our noble
brother . Freemasonry is not a controversial institution , and we have no right to allow a sp irit of sectarian bitterness to be imported into our peaceful fraternity , or to appear in the
columns of the only Masonic journal . As Freemasons , we have nothing to do with the special opinions or doctrines held by any religious bod y whatever , perse , except when , as lately , we are
unwarrantably attacked and insulted , and then we have a right to state , clearly and temperately , how ignorant of our true principles are all such assailants , and how worthless and unfounded are
all such attacks . But , as our readers will note , some of the recent letters speak of the Church of Rome from a purely religious point of view , or from political considerations , with which we
have equally , as Freemasons , nothing to do . Having allowed , then , such discussion to proceed , as far as we thought it could with safety do , we now beg to decline to insert any more letters on
the subject , on either side , and to call the attention [ of our many readers to the fact that we in no way profess to agree with , or to be responsible for the personal opinion and idisoyncracies of our various correspondents .
"Verbum Sat Sapienti."
"VERBUM SAT SAPIENTI . "
With reference to the letter under this signature , which appeared in our columns on the 3 rd October , we think it to be our duty to state to-day that we are fully satisfied that the
assertions and insinuations made in it were and are utterly untrue . We much regret that by an oversight we allowed the letter to appear in our
pages at all , as we have no intention of permitting the Freemason to be used for the purpose of propagating slander against any brother .
Original Correspondence.
Original Correspondence .
[ Wc do net hold ourselves responsible for , or even as approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , lint we wish , in a spirit of fair play to all , to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . —lio . ]
ORDERS OF THE TEMPLE AND MALTA .
To the Editor of Ihe Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Does not Sir Knt . W . Davies misapprehend the position and status of a Preceptor
under the new regime . As I read the statutes a Knight once installed a Preceptor is ever after a Preceptor , so long as he continues to subscribe to a preceptory , and is so qualified to attend , speak and vote in Convent General and Great
Original Correspondence.
Priory , ( see Statutes of Convent , p . 12 , and Statutes of Great Priory , p . 8 . par . 3 . ) Under these statutes there are no Past Preceptors . There must be a new title , that of Presiding Preceptor , to denote the actual head of the Preceptory , and notwithstanding the statutes of
Great Priory , p . 43 , Article no , those who , under the old customs , would have been Past Commanders must be styled Preceptors only . With regard to Sir Knt . J . H . Woodworth ' s complaint . I contend that a Knight , who is a past officer under the old regime , is not , in the
" proper costume of his rank in the order , " as laid down by Article 94 , English Great Priory statutes , 73 Irish , unless the statute of the Convent General is complied with , and he wears " the insigna which " he was entitled to wear before the " making of those statutes" ( see
statutes of Convent General , p . 19 , Article , Rank , and Precedence , last par ., p , 20 ) , and that a Knight so clothed cannot be excluded from Convent General or Great Priory . THOMAS COOMB , P . E . C , P . G ., 1 st Capt ., England , P . D . Prov . G . Com ., Dorset , Prov . Sub . Prior , Dorset .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — The complaint of your correspondent , " W . Davies , Preceptor , " in your last issue is , I think , so far as it relates to his status in the Order , under a misapprehension . It is not easy
to see the hardships which he appears to feel so strongly . Having been ( I will assume ) regularly elected and installed as Preceptor , so long as he is a subscribing member of any registered Preceptory he will take rank as a Preceptor , and be a member of the Great Priory ( see Statutes of
Great Priory , No . 3 ) . In fact he will enjoy all the privileges he had under the old Statutes . The only difference made by the new Statutes of the Convent General and Great Priory in his case appears to be , that whereas he was instituted " Knight Commander , " that title is now taken , away from hira and appropriated to a
select body of Knights of the rank of Preceptors , whom the Grand Master may nominate to that honour . This being so it is difficult to understand what is meant by the assertion that " this office [ Preceptor ] does not carry past rank . " I trust this explanation will tend to restore comfort and peace of mind to your correspondent . Yours fraternally , J . C . G . L .
To the Editor of the Freemason . Dear Sir and Brother , — Herewith I hand you extracts from the Statutes , and shall be glad if you will give the same a place in the Freemason of Saturday next , and at the same time give us your opinion
thereon , and also answer the following questions ; for when those in authority , who ought to know , differ as to the intent and effect of the Statutes , there is some excuse for the uninstructed asking the question •. Statutes of Convent General , page 1 r , reads ,
" AU Great Priors , Great Officers , Sub Priors , Provincial Priors , National Great Officers , Grand Crosses , Commanders , and Preceptors , shall be qualified to attend , speak , and vote in the Convent General . " Again at page 12 , " A Preceptor shall be taken to mean , a Knight who
shall have been duly installed to preside over a lawfully constituted Preceptory , and is on the roll of a lawfully constituted working Preceptory ; and again at page 19 , " In consideration of the introduction of the Dignities of Kni ghts Grand Cross and Commander , no person in
future , having served a dignified office , shall claim or receive any rank or precedence in virtue thereof , after having ceased to hold his office j and no status analogous to that heretofore designated as Past Rank shall be recognised nor allowed , nor any insignia thereof borne . " From
the above it is quite clear that past rank is entirely abolished ; but , what follows , with some Sir Knights completely upsets the above construction . Great Priory Statute , page 8 , sec . 3 , reads : " Every Knight regularly elected and installed Preceptor of a Preceptory , registered under the Convent General shall , so long as he