Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Modern Order Of "Knights Templar" In The British Dominions.
The impetus given of late years to the Templar Order in the United States , and the popularity it has acquired there , is to be attributed to the attractive form it has assumed , by the adoption of a quasi military uniform , Knight errant excursions aud picnics , stirring orations , parading with bands of music , and intricate formations in imitation of military evolutions , all of ivhich are both enjoyable and harmless recreations , and very pleasing spectacles , but certainly are neither Masonic nor chivalric ,
and do not convey a very accurate idea of the Great Order of the Temple , or Avhat it is intended to represent , Aiz ., the stern , mail-clad warrior monks of the crusades , surrounded by their men-at-arms and numerous retinue of retainers , the Knights distinguished by then- flowing white mantles adorned with the blood-red Cross of Martyrdom , the rest in sombre habits of russet brown . In thus alluding to the customs of the United States TemplarsI must not be
, misunderstood as wishing to interfere with their system or draw invidious comparisons , but merely to point out the totally different views entertained of the Order by the two jurisdictions , ancl to explain what these are to members of the Order in Canada who , attracted by the magnificence of the displays they have witnessed , have expressed a wish to imitate them .
In our Templar costume we follow that of the Ancient Knights , which is intended to symbolize the principles of the Order , but never meant to be paraded before the eyes of the public . Such exhibitions are not the custom of the country , all public Masonic displays being looked upon as most objectionable , and a Templar procession with us woidd appear as ridiculous to the common observer as if the Knights of the " Garter " and the " Bath " in theirstate robes or gentlemen in court dress were to parade
, the streets for the admiration of the multitude . Show and parade are sometimes necessary , but in matters connected with Freemasonry the less so the better ; like Christianity , it is more appreciated in its unobtrusive character than by public demonstrations , and the unnecessary expense incurred better applied in promoting the object and aim of all Masonic systems .
I have taken considerable pains to ascertain from the highest Masonic authorities in the United States the origin of the Templar Order there , and find that mention is made of it as an honorary degree , practised in a Royal Arch Chapter at Boston , so far back as 1769 , where it was given by members of Craft Lodges attached to British regiments quartered there at the time , who were in possession of the degree and visited the Chapter ; but the earliest distinct body or Encampment of Templars was not formed until the middle of the decade of the last century , in Pennsjivania , it is said , by Irish
Craft Masons ; but no one seems to know by what authority or where they first , obtained the degree ; it died out after a short existence—then it started in New England , and a ritual wholly made there , ivhich is of itself sufficient proof that the persons who set it on foot never had the correct degree at all ; if they had it they would'have retained the ritual by which they received it , without ivhich they cotdd have no connection with the degree elsewhere . The New York Grand Encampment was chartered by the " Cerneau " spurious Grand Consistory . United States Templary is ,
therefore , essentially a modern American degree , framed to suit their Masonic system , ancl , according to their own idea of the supposed forms and practices of the Ancient Knights as Masons , with but little attention paid to the usages of the old Orders of Chivalry which ive are endeavouring to follow ; therefore , how can the Templar Order in the two systems be considered as one , when the rituals and customs in no respect resemble each other ? The O . B . are unlike—ours is a Trinitarian Order , whilst the other is decidedly not , ancl might be wholly Unitarian , and be just as much Templary as it is
noiv ; Avithout Trinitarianism there is no Templary , and it is necessarily so distinctive a characteristic of the Order that it is difficult to understand how any system without it can be entitled to style itself Templary . This , then , is where the great difference exists between the two systems , and the difficulty in the way of forming a "treaty of alliance " so desirable ancl so strongly advocated . I woidd still join in doing much to bring about a union of the English speaking Templars , but let it be done in moderation , fairness , and charity to all . The recent assumption of superiority by the Grand
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Modern Order Of "Knights Templar" In The British Dominions.
The impetus given of late years to the Templar Order in the United States , and the popularity it has acquired there , is to be attributed to the attractive form it has assumed , by the adoption of a quasi military uniform , Knight errant excursions aud picnics , stirring orations , parading with bands of music , and intricate formations in imitation of military evolutions , all of ivhich are both enjoyable and harmless recreations , and very pleasing spectacles , but certainly are neither Masonic nor chivalric ,
and do not convey a very accurate idea of the Great Order of the Temple , or Avhat it is intended to represent , Aiz ., the stern , mail-clad warrior monks of the crusades , surrounded by their men-at-arms and numerous retinue of retainers , the Knights distinguished by then- flowing white mantles adorned with the blood-red Cross of Martyrdom , the rest in sombre habits of russet brown . In thus alluding to the customs of the United States TemplarsI must not be
, misunderstood as wishing to interfere with their system or draw invidious comparisons , but merely to point out the totally different views entertained of the Order by the two jurisdictions , ancl to explain what these are to members of the Order in Canada who , attracted by the magnificence of the displays they have witnessed , have expressed a wish to imitate them .
In our Templar costume we follow that of the Ancient Knights , which is intended to symbolize the principles of the Order , but never meant to be paraded before the eyes of the public . Such exhibitions are not the custom of the country , all public Masonic displays being looked upon as most objectionable , and a Templar procession with us woidd appear as ridiculous to the common observer as if the Knights of the " Garter " and the " Bath " in theirstate robes or gentlemen in court dress were to parade
, the streets for the admiration of the multitude . Show and parade are sometimes necessary , but in matters connected with Freemasonry the less so the better ; like Christianity , it is more appreciated in its unobtrusive character than by public demonstrations , and the unnecessary expense incurred better applied in promoting the object and aim of all Masonic systems .
I have taken considerable pains to ascertain from the highest Masonic authorities in the United States the origin of the Templar Order there , and find that mention is made of it as an honorary degree , practised in a Royal Arch Chapter at Boston , so far back as 1769 , where it was given by members of Craft Lodges attached to British regiments quartered there at the time , who were in possession of the degree and visited the Chapter ; but the earliest distinct body or Encampment of Templars was not formed until the middle of the decade of the last century , in Pennsjivania , it is said , by Irish
Craft Masons ; but no one seems to know by what authority or where they first , obtained the degree ; it died out after a short existence—then it started in New England , and a ritual wholly made there , ivhich is of itself sufficient proof that the persons who set it on foot never had the correct degree at all ; if they had it they would'have retained the ritual by which they received it , without ivhich they cotdd have no connection with the degree elsewhere . The New York Grand Encampment was chartered by the " Cerneau " spurious Grand Consistory . United States Templary is ,
therefore , essentially a modern American degree , framed to suit their Masonic system , ancl , according to their own idea of the supposed forms and practices of the Ancient Knights as Masons , with but little attention paid to the usages of the old Orders of Chivalry which ive are endeavouring to follow ; therefore , how can the Templar Order in the two systems be considered as one , when the rituals and customs in no respect resemble each other ? The O . B . are unlike—ours is a Trinitarian Order , whilst the other is decidedly not , ancl might be wholly Unitarian , and be just as much Templary as it is
noiv ; Avithout Trinitarianism there is no Templary , and it is necessarily so distinctive a characteristic of the Order that it is difficult to understand how any system without it can be entitled to style itself Templary . This , then , is where the great difference exists between the two systems , and the difficulty in the way of forming a "treaty of alliance " so desirable ancl so strongly advocated . I woidd still join in doing much to bring about a union of the English speaking Templars , but let it be done in moderation , fairness , and charity to all . The recent assumption of superiority by the Grand