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Article MASONET AND HER MISSION; ← Page 3 of 5 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonet And Her Mission;
infused into the human race when the Etern into the nostrils of Adam and transformed the day into- a living soul , and the cultivation of charity , should be to them their guide and s ^ their passage through this dark valley ^ and fit their spiritual senses for the
appreciation and enjoyment of that be disclosed . They might not be able to conquer ^ ircunistances , or by one effort recover that which was lost ; but they might , could , and would be calm and resolute ; and they trusted that patient endurance would in due time reveal to them those sublime truths
long concealed , Sooner or later they felt their deliverance would come speedily and surely , and therefore" they were content to bide their time , not in an idle , listless despair , but in ^^ on the watch to escape , but cheerful and resigned till the time should
arrive * . ;; Throughout the whole range of Masonic teaching there is , if I may so term it , an , intense appreciation ^ the innate goodness of man ? s heart , and therefore it confidently appeals at once to his noblest impulses and highest feelings . Knowing his origin , his endowments , and his destiny , it cannot bring itself to feel that man will be so far forgetful of the first , so prodigal of the second , or so careless of
the last , as to prove hiinself utterly unworthy of the source from whence he sprung , to prostitute ^ very gift to 6 bjecfa of sense and passion ^ and again to forfeit the glorious ihheiitance held out to him in the eterna ^^ ^ Masonry has faith in human nature , and would exclude from her fellowship those who dishonour their position as men , This is exemplified by the care which she recommends in the admission of candidates , requiring them to be just and upright men , of free birth , sound judgment , strict morals , and mature years . With this beginning the whole tenor of her
teaching corresponds . First she grounds her initiated in principles of moral truth and moral duties ; next , she bids him explore the paths of learning and science , and penetrate to the deep things of nature and art ; and , finally , with a mind thus strengthened and refined , she confronts him face to face with death , confident that a well-spent life and a well-taught mind will disarm the grave of its terrors and enable him to look calmly
on his coming dissolution g , s a necessary condition , of existence , a transition state terminating , indeed , his life , as far as regards this lower world , but ushering in the glories and perfections of the great To Be , Such , too , is the tendency of the peculiar lesson of the 3 rd Degree : death before dishonour . In minutely tracing the closing scenes in the life of our great master , we must acknowledge the wisdom of her teaching on this subject . Death is there described as something alien from a living soul and to be
shunned ; but , even in its most appalling form , to be preferred to a life prolonged at the expense of truth , honour , or virtue . And having followed him to his untimely grave in the wilderness , she points him out as an object of imitation to all future times , and expresses the hope that we ( should circumstances ever so try us ) may demean ourselves as well . And that we may learn to do so , we can apply to no better source of information than to the system of which he was one of the brightest ornaments , although he had once been but as the humblest candidate , wandering in
darkness , nakedness , and ignorance , but still trusting in the G . A . O . T . U ., and prepared to dedicate to him the powers of his body , the energies of his mind , and the aspirations of his soul ; and thus he was upborne through the trials of his earlier years , and the successes of his manhood , till Masonry ' s highest honours were conferred upon him . Richly indeed did he deserve them , for he sacrificed his life to preserve our honour and defend our secrets . His memory , embalmed with the spices and perfumes of
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonet And Her Mission;
infused into the human race when the Etern into the nostrils of Adam and transformed the day into- a living soul , and the cultivation of charity , should be to them their guide and s ^ their passage through this dark valley ^ and fit their spiritual senses for the
appreciation and enjoyment of that be disclosed . They might not be able to conquer ^ ircunistances , or by one effort recover that which was lost ; but they might , could , and would be calm and resolute ; and they trusted that patient endurance would in due time reveal to them those sublime truths
long concealed , Sooner or later they felt their deliverance would come speedily and surely , and therefore" they were content to bide their time , not in an idle , listless despair , but in ^^ on the watch to escape , but cheerful and resigned till the time should
arrive * . ;; Throughout the whole range of Masonic teaching there is , if I may so term it , an , intense appreciation ^ the innate goodness of man ? s heart , and therefore it confidently appeals at once to his noblest impulses and highest feelings . Knowing his origin , his endowments , and his destiny , it cannot bring itself to feel that man will be so far forgetful of the first , so prodigal of the second , or so careless of
the last , as to prove hiinself utterly unworthy of the source from whence he sprung , to prostitute ^ very gift to 6 bjecfa of sense and passion ^ and again to forfeit the glorious ihheiitance held out to him in the eterna ^^ ^ Masonry has faith in human nature , and would exclude from her fellowship those who dishonour their position as men , This is exemplified by the care which she recommends in the admission of candidates , requiring them to be just and upright men , of free birth , sound judgment , strict morals , and mature years . With this beginning the whole tenor of her
teaching corresponds . First she grounds her initiated in principles of moral truth and moral duties ; next , she bids him explore the paths of learning and science , and penetrate to the deep things of nature and art ; and , finally , with a mind thus strengthened and refined , she confronts him face to face with death , confident that a well-spent life and a well-taught mind will disarm the grave of its terrors and enable him to look calmly
on his coming dissolution g , s a necessary condition , of existence , a transition state terminating , indeed , his life , as far as regards this lower world , but ushering in the glories and perfections of the great To Be , Such , too , is the tendency of the peculiar lesson of the 3 rd Degree : death before dishonour . In minutely tracing the closing scenes in the life of our great master , we must acknowledge the wisdom of her teaching on this subject . Death is there described as something alien from a living soul and to be
shunned ; but , even in its most appalling form , to be preferred to a life prolonged at the expense of truth , honour , or virtue . And having followed him to his untimely grave in the wilderness , she points him out as an object of imitation to all future times , and expresses the hope that we ( should circumstances ever so try us ) may demean ourselves as well . And that we may learn to do so , we can apply to no better source of information than to the system of which he was one of the brightest ornaments , although he had once been but as the humblest candidate , wandering in
darkness , nakedness , and ignorance , but still trusting in the G . A . O . T . U ., and prepared to dedicate to him the powers of his body , the energies of his mind , and the aspirations of his soul ; and thus he was upborne through the trials of his earlier years , and the successes of his manhood , till Masonry ' s highest honours were conferred upon him . Richly indeed did he deserve them , for he sacrificed his life to preserve our honour and defend our secrets . His memory , embalmed with the spices and perfumes of