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Article M^SOKBS: 4^ TO ← Page 2 of 8 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
M^Sokbs: 4^ To
that the example I have set will be M ^ ilustratih ^ On the threshold of the inquiry let u Masonry ?* ' and I think ho better answer can be given herself puts into ^ morality , veiled in allegory , and illustrated by sym ^
her what she rea ^ the standard an ^ may i ^ ally ; th ^ faint-hearted and w eary ; the w mass of society : but a ^ own strict and logical definition of herself w ^
^ ^ claimingy therefore , atte ^ that she is veiled in allegory , that men m over her ^ and ^ n be lightly wooed and won with ease , mtist devote fo ^ illustrated by symbols ^ that the outward a tioiis of industry and art may e ^^
its intrinsic nobility and eternity , and that almost every object which meets our gaze shouM remind us of those laws which ^ us taliefor our guided whilst passlhg through thi ^ waiting carefully and hopefully till we b ^ admitted within the entrance of theiiE ^ k ^ - ^ > M to collect together a few scattered thoughts on the " glory and the vanity of Masonry , " to show you that its
glory is essentially its own , belonging to it , and part of it , on account of its antiquity , its origin , its principles , and its teaching ; that its vanity is merely an overgrowth of hitman passion and weakness , which has been suffered , like a consuming fungus , to eat into the healthy structure , and so to infect the whole body with a sore , but not an incurable malady ; that is , if prompt and energetic measures be employed to extirpate the growing evil ,
If we direct our thoughts through the long vista of bygone years , and with a straining gaze strive to discover the first origin of Masonry , we shall be compelled to abandon the attempt , and be content , on that point at least , to remain in ignorance ; but the traditions of Masonry carry us back to those early patriarchal times when the earth was peopled by nomadic races , when the spirit of prophecy was bestowed upon the descendants of Adam , and the Most High held comrnunion
with His chosen ones in visions . Those who have penetrated to the higher mysteries , and the deeper knowledge of the Royal Arch , will understand to what I allude ; but in a craft Lodge the seal of silence is on my lips . In such a condition of society , it was natural that , such an institution should have been formed , that the shepherds previously wandering over the vast plains of that Eastern land should gladly unite themselves in some bond of brotherhood , and in the interchange of
kindly offices , which circumstances like theirs would so peculiarly require . And the whole system and formulary of Masonry is a most lifelike expression and exposition of the characteristics of that phase of civilization . That Masonry , founded in such a remote antiquity , should have endured so many thousand years unaltered amid the rise and fall of empires , that the flow of civilization should not have dispersed her , nor the ebbing of its tide overwhelmed her ; that she has survived alike in the refinement ,
grandeur , and intelligence of a capital , and in the solitude and barbarism of a desert ; that she has been preserved dear as the memory of home and fatherland in the desolation of captivity ; and that , after a lapse of fifty
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
M^Sokbs: 4^ To
that the example I have set will be M ^ ilustratih ^ On the threshold of the inquiry let u Masonry ?* ' and I think ho better answer can be given herself puts into ^ morality , veiled in allegory , and illustrated by sym ^
her what she rea ^ the standard an ^ may i ^ ally ; th ^ faint-hearted and w eary ; the w mass of society : but a ^ own strict and logical definition of herself w ^
^ ^ claimingy therefore , atte ^ that she is veiled in allegory , that men m over her ^ and ^ n be lightly wooed and won with ease , mtist devote fo ^ illustrated by symbols ^ that the outward a tioiis of industry and art may e ^^
its intrinsic nobility and eternity , and that almost every object which meets our gaze shouM remind us of those laws which ^ us taliefor our guided whilst passlhg through thi ^ waiting carefully and hopefully till we b ^ admitted within the entrance of theiiE ^ k ^ - ^ > M to collect together a few scattered thoughts on the " glory and the vanity of Masonry , " to show you that its
glory is essentially its own , belonging to it , and part of it , on account of its antiquity , its origin , its principles , and its teaching ; that its vanity is merely an overgrowth of hitman passion and weakness , which has been suffered , like a consuming fungus , to eat into the healthy structure , and so to infect the whole body with a sore , but not an incurable malady ; that is , if prompt and energetic measures be employed to extirpate the growing evil ,
If we direct our thoughts through the long vista of bygone years , and with a straining gaze strive to discover the first origin of Masonry , we shall be compelled to abandon the attempt , and be content , on that point at least , to remain in ignorance ; but the traditions of Masonry carry us back to those early patriarchal times when the earth was peopled by nomadic races , when the spirit of prophecy was bestowed upon the descendants of Adam , and the Most High held comrnunion
with His chosen ones in visions . Those who have penetrated to the higher mysteries , and the deeper knowledge of the Royal Arch , will understand to what I allude ; but in a craft Lodge the seal of silence is on my lips . In such a condition of society , it was natural that , such an institution should have been formed , that the shepherds previously wandering over the vast plains of that Eastern land should gladly unite themselves in some bond of brotherhood , and in the interchange of
kindly offices , which circumstances like theirs would so peculiarly require . And the whole system and formulary of Masonry is a most lifelike expression and exposition of the characteristics of that phase of civilization . That Masonry , founded in such a remote antiquity , should have endured so many thousand years unaltered amid the rise and fall of empires , that the flow of civilization should not have dispersed her , nor the ebbing of its tide overwhelmed her ; that she has survived alike in the refinement ,
grandeur , and intelligence of a capital , and in the solitude and barbarism of a desert ; that she has been preserved dear as the memory of home and fatherland in the desolation of captivity ; and that , after a lapse of fifty