Multum In Parbo, Or Masonic Notes And Queries.

Multum in Parbo , or Masonic Notes and Queries .

—¦»—RESULTS OF NONCONFORMANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE LAND . The constitution of any Grand Lodge not complying with the laws of the land would

be vitiated , and members holding under its jurisdiction would be entitled to protest and withdraw . Lodges holding of it would also be released from their obligation to it ; for there is a mutual obligation , and the

obedience of these lodges to the Grand Lodge can only be required whilst the Grand Lodge itself maintains and acts in accordance with the princip les and laws of Freemasonry , one of the first of which is compliance with

the laws of the land . A disruption of the Masonic Order would thus take place , and a new Grand Lodge would be constituted—or , rather , a Grand Lodge claiming to represent the Grand

Lodge which had hitherto existed , but which by violation of the laws of Freemasonry in transgressing the law of thc land , and by the vitiation of its own constitution in the admission of brethren having no right to take

their places amongst its members , would be held to have destroyed , and to be no longer worthy of thc name to which it would probably continue to lay claim , or of the obedience from lodges and members of the

brotherhood which it would probably still demand . Such a result would be much to be deplored , but tlie blame would rest with

those who refused to conform to the law , and not with those who showed themselves desirous to uphold it in its integrity , CHALMERS L . PATON .

FREEMASONRY AND JUDAISM . Bro . " J . W . C , 228 " ( p . 587 ) is rathci angry at thc propositions I advanced in a late number , but he has not attempted to

disprove them . I can feel for " J . W . C ., for I have experienced the same agitation in my mind on the same subjects ; but I did not " forbear , however , to enter upon thc discussion of the important subject , " but

went into it with fear and trembling certainly , yet with a determination to canvass well the subject and to be resolved , and I am perfectly satisfied with thc result . " J . W . C . " says , " I venture to believe that

if he docs so "—that is , runnning while you read— " the result will be that he will discover thc Garden of Eden and the fall of man to be no allegory ; " and he says , " The doctrine of thc Trinity has been

taught , with more or less distinctness , from thc earliest times . " This I have disproved from orthodox history , and he has not even attempted to answer my proofs . Has he

attempted to give any proof that the Garden of Eden and the fall of man was not taught as an allegory during tlie earliest time of thc Church ? Has he even read

Church history ? If so , I will refer him to the time of " Origcn , " who flourished full a ccntiuy before the Niccnc squabbles were commenced . He is described as being a most learned , pious , and industrious

member of the Church , and died , I think , about A . D . 237 . He did more to disseminate thc truths of Christianity than any man of his time , and the body of Christians named Quakers owe some of their doctrines to the

learned and p ious Origcn . Celsus , thc learned Pagan author , attacked Chr i stianity , ridiculing the account of Eve and tlie serpent . Origcn replied to him , and it is

acknowledged that lie succeeded in refuting him . Origen said , " Celsus has not been honest in his attack , for he knew that the Christian Church only put that forth as an

Multum In Parbo, Or Masonic Notes And Queries.

allegory , leading to Divine and spiritual teaching , and not as a literal fact . I will also refer our brother to Ezekiel xxviii ., verse 13 , and will he p lease to tell me Avhere the King of Tyrus had been , as

well as the date of his visit ? He again says that " St . Paul had g loried in the cross of our Lord ; " but what did he mean ? The whole of his writings prove that he understood it in the precise manner that Our

Lord and Master has commanded all : " Take up thy cross , " and bear that cross as I am bearing mine , with patience and meekness ; bear your own cross , and if ye endure unto the end , ye shall be saved .

" Take up thy cross , and follow me ; but Christ nowhere said : Leave your own cross , your own " battle of life , " and lean upon mine , but follow me as your exemplar . W . B ., 742 .

A SCOTTISH CHARTER . Many lodges in Scotland work most prosperously under the following charter . OBSERVER .

CHARTER OF THE IMPERIAL SCOTCH MASONIC SUPREME GRAND LODGE , & c .

Freemasonry Constituted by Royal Authority since Time Immemorial according to the Laws , Customs and Ordinances , Rights , Ceremonies , and Mysteries of Free and Accepted Masonry .

To all whom this doth or may concern : WHEREAS , WC , the Most Worshipful the Grand Master , the Right Worshipful the Deputy Grand Master , Substitute Grand Master , Wardens and Remnant Office-bearers and Members of the Most Ancient and Honourable Fraternity of Free and

Accepted Masons , in full Grand Lodge assembled , in due and ancient form , in thc city of Glasgow , county of Lanark , and kingdom of Scotland , do hereby solemnly sanction , impower , and authorise the Brethren belonging to this Charter of Constitution and Erection , to meet as a Regular Lodge of Master Masons , and likewise to hold meetings solely

for Masonic purposes , at , under the name and title ol thc , and there to discharge thc duties of Masonry in a Constitutional manner , according to thc forms of the Order and laws of Grand Lodge ; as w . e do not practise nor recognise no Degrees of Masonry but those of Apprentice , Fellow-Craft , and Master Mason , denominated Blue or St . John ' s Masonry .

Given under our hands and seal , at the Supreme Grand League of Scotland , in thc city of Glasgow , this . . . day of . . . . , in the year of our Lord iS . . , and of Masonry 58 . . , No .,. . on the G . L . Register .

Senior Grand Warden . Junior Grand Warden . Grand Secretary .

WE have authority for stating that no successor has yet been appointed to the late Bro . Colonel Bowyer , in the office of Provincial Grand Master for Oxfordshire . For the present , as is usually the case under

similar circumstances , the province has been placed in charge of thc Grand Registrar of the Order , Brother / Eneas J . Mclntyre , and notice thereof has been officially communicated by the Grand Secretary to the Master

of each lodge in thc province . We may state that he has notified to Bro . Alderman R . J . Spiers , of Oxford , his desire that that gentleman should continue in thc office of Deputy Provincial Grand Master . He has

also desired him to inform the officers appointed at thc Provincial Grand Lodge meeting , in May last , that they are requested to retain their respective offices until another Provincial Grand Lodge meeting be held .

THE Fifteen Sections will be worked in thc Fidelity Lodge of Instruction , held at the "Goat and Compasses , " Eust _ n-road , on Thursday evening next , October 5 th , at seven o ' clock . Bro . T . A . Adams , P . M ., P . Z ., ancl P . G . P ., in the chair .

Supreme Grand Master Mason . Depute Grand Master . Substitute Grand Master . Grand Clerk .

Original Correspondence.

Original Correspondence .

Thc Editor is not responsible for the opinions expressed by Correspondents . "FREEMASONRY AND JUDAISM . " ( To the Editor of The Freemason . ) SIR , —According to annual custom at this season of the year , I ceased from labour and went to refreshment , and on resuming labour I found in a back number of THE FREEMASON ' two letters touching myself—one from Bro .

Carpenter , and another from a "R . A . Comp ., 30 ° K . H . " I do not know what the last title means , not finding it in the " Book of Constitutions . " P . Z . I lay claim to , which is the neplus ultra of English Freemasonry , nothing beyond that being acknowledged by the Grand Lodge of England .

Lro . Carpenter begins by " greatly respecting my motives and appeciating my intentions , " but how he can respect motives and appreciate intentions which he immediately afterwards condemns , requires a process of ratiocination which my limited reasoning powers cannot cope with .

He then says : " He has exhibited a great lack of judgment in publishing it in THE FREEMASON . " Well , be it so ; but why did he begin it ? He is the aggressor * for , if he supposes that the pre-Messiah history of the Jews is nothing more than a part of profane history , I think he is

ignorant of his subject , though I admit that he has written with much neatness and painstaking upon the posterior history of the Jews . Subsequent to the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus , A . D . 70 , just suppose an individual fresh from reviewing the excavations of " Layard , "

and forming his own theory from what he saw , he would say : " Why , the Assyrians of old were a wonderful people ¦ what a pity that they are - not alive now . They not onl y had wings themselves , but they had bulls with wings , and the men actually had faces like the face of an eagle ,

with other monstrosities ! " But he is told that these figures not real but representative—that these monstrosities , as you suppose and term them , correspond to the attributes of their gods , their heroes , their religious and social polity . Just imagine that individual replying with

contempt , " No such thing ; they are literally what they are made to be . But , for certain reasons , I have made up my mind not to discuss subjects of religion , or I would soon convince you how wrong you are ; but , I have no time to do so . " Such is the logic of our Bro . Carpenter . Not to

attempt infallibility , but to rest my assertions upon infallible proof , I will refer you to the 78 th Psalm , which opens thus : " Give ear , O my people , to my law : incline your ears to the words of my mouth . I will open my mouth in a parable , I will utter dark sayings of old , & c .,

& c , & c . " And after this sublime exordium , what follows ? The history of the children of Israel , from Moses down to thc time of David , the facts of which are known to almost every Sunday school scholar better than the history of his own race , or the times in which he lives : but

these Jewish episodes are declared by the Almighty to be His law uttered in a parable in dark sayings . Your space and my time will not allow mc to allude to more than one of these dark sayings , and that is contained in the 25 th verse : " Man did eat angels' food . " This evidently alludes to the supply of manna in the

wilderness ; but that could not have been " angels' food , " but only a correspondence to it . Our Lord said : " Your fathers did eat manna in tlie wilderness and are dead , " but " I am the bread of life , " and going on to explain in what way and many , said , " This is a hard saying , who can hear it ?"

But Bro . Carpenter says further : " I know of no writer who has more strangely mistaken the facts of history than " \ V . B . " has done , and he makes his perverted facts the ground upon which he runs a-niuck against all forms of religious belief . " Let me tell Bro . Carpenter that

there is no body of men calling themselves Swcdcnborgians ; there are thousands of men ^ both in the old world and the new , who read and study his works who would scorn to use his name as a party cry , but would glory in proclaiming the great truths which he endeavoured