The Origin And References Of The Hermesian Spurious Freemasonry.

THE ORIGIN AND REFERENCES OF THE HERMESIAN SPURIOUS FREEMASONRY .

BY REV . GEO . OLIVET ., D . D . CHAPTER I . " Thammuz came next behind , AVhose annual wound in Lebanon allured

The Assyrian damsels to lament his fate , In amorous ditties all a summer ' s day ; "While smooth Adonis from his native rock , Ran purple to the sea , suppos'd with blood Of Thammuz , yearly wounded . The love tale Infected Siou ' s daughters with like heat , AVh » se wanton passions in the sacred porch Ezekiel saw , when by the vision led , His eye survey'd the dark idolatries Of alienated Judah . " MIMOX .

The result of all our researches into the antiquities of Masonry will , I am persuaded , substantiate the fact , that although the true ancl the spurious Freemasonry are parallel institutions , they cannot by any process of reasoning , be identified with each

other , or prove that the former is an emanation from those splendid and imposing institutions , Avhich , at a remote period , pervaded the Avhole world , and still , it is to be feared , are regarded Avith reverence by some of those Eastern nations where

they Avere formerly practised in all their solemn magnificence , as an appendage to a system of Avorship Avhich , unfortunately , has never been rescinded . It may be considered a fruitless attempt to endeavour to point out the origin of these remarkable institutions , or the

circumstances under which they became blinded with the reli gion of eA'ery nation upon earth ; as the existence of any authentic records referring to those early times may be justly questioned , and the only remaining evidence for our guide in this difficult enquiry isreason combined

, Avith analogy . It is presumed that they originated in the world before the flood ; for Ave find it related in the sacred writings , that mankind were divided in two distinct races ; the one proceeding from Seth , called " the

Sons of God ; " ancl consequentl y pious , religious , and obedient to the divine commands ; the other—the progeny of Cain , were termed " Giants , " being full of Avickedness , violence , and every evil work ; and , like their progenitor , destitute of faith iu the promised Mediator .

Now , from Jewish tradition we learn that the pious race , who were also den . urinated the "Sons of Light , " separated themselves from the profligate descendants of Cain , and took up their residence on the summit of Mount Moriah , a happy region , to Avhich the rival race were never suffered

to penetrate . Brom this exalted position , according to the tradition before ns they Avere favoured Avith visions ancl revelations of the holy angels of God . They lived for many centuries in great privity ancl holiness ; observing the utmost regularity in offering up their devotions to the Most

High ; or , as Ave are explicitly told by Moses * to '' the NAME of JehoA \ ih . " And " while the Cainites totall y disbelieved the revelation touching the Name , or Voice , or Word of Jehovah , about ( to become the Seed of the Woman ); the Sethitesas

, God ' s hereditary witnesses in the place of Abel , Avere openly to profess their belief in it through the standing ; use of a regular form of prayer , characterised by a direct invocation of the personal Name of Jehovah . "j They preserved the utmost

kindness and brotherly love towards each other ; and the only assentation or oath which they eA ^ er made , was " hj the Blood of Abel , " The question then is , what mysterious rites were practised by the race of Seth

upon this holy mountain ' ] To solve this enquiry correctly , it Avill be necessary to consider whether any great natural event distinguished the antediluvian Avorld , Avhich the inhabitants might think Avorthy of being perpetuated ancl transmitted to posterity as a means of stimulating the faith ancl holiness of their descendants

and preserving them from the contamination of impurities which might be presented to their notice during occasional intercourse with the rival race of men who occupied the vail ies , and had already made some progress in the refinements of social life . The most prominent circumstance Avliich

distinguishes the history of the antediluvian world , is the marked division of the inhabitants into two separate castes . And this separation was so rigidly enforced as to prevent all communication Avith each other , either by marriage or other permanent association , during the continuance of man ) ' centuries .