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Article PROVINCIAL ← Page 7 of 23 →
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Provincial
the laws by which that society submits to be governed . But higher still , by faith in the G . A . O . T . U ., who is justice itself , we are ourselves justified ; by means , also , of that faith , we are drawn nearer to Him ; by it we refer everything to Him ; we become wholly subject to Him , and His might becomes our might to withstand whatever temptations may assail us . If such faith be sincere and lasting , and thus form the evidence of things not seen , the substance of those hoped
for , we shall be accepted , and finally received into that Grand Lodge where the world ' s Great Architect lives and reigns for ever . Nearly allied to faith is the next great Masonic step—Hope . By means of faith we have hope in the promises contained in the volume of the sacred law . Well , indeed , has hope been called the anchor of the soul ; for in every period , and under all circumstances , it is a ready comforter . It is our flatterer and comforter in boyhood ; it is our flatterer and comforter in years which need still more to be flattered and
comforted . The tale which it tells at different years will be different , it is true , in those different years , but it comes with the same gentle kindness , with the same soft persuasion in them all , animating our endeavours , alluring us ever onwards through the anxieties of life , and , when these are waning with waning existence , directs the failing vision to higher scenes which are opening on us , and bids us lookforward to the time when our character " shall approach nearer to that
ideal perfection to which nature teaches us to aspire when the sunshine of the soul shall be no longer liable to be overcast by the gloom of the imagination or the storms of the passions ; and when , in the society of those whom we loved on earth , freed with us from the weaknesses of mortality , we shall enjoy the intercourse of minds unobscured by earthly prejudices , and indulge the kind affections of the heart unalloyed by the possibility of change or of separation . " Last of all , we come to charity , the brightest , purest gem in the circlet of Masonic duties ,
the full possession of which completes the Masonic character : — - Fairest and foremost of the train that wait On man ' s most dignified and happy state , Whether we name thee Charity or Love , Chief grace below , and all in all above .
—As love , we regard it closely allied to faith ; for if we had no love for tbe G . A . O . T . U ., how could we have faith in his promises—if we had no love for our fellow-creatures , what faith could we possibly have in them ? All faith which does not look up to love as its end , and does not regard love as its root and mainspring , is a contradiction . To love our neighbour , to refrain on that account from uttering or listening to slander of him ; to shun malice ; to flee from revenge ; to forgive injuries , and , if possible , to erase the very recollection from our
mindsis a chief Masonic duty . To view every son of Adam as subject to passions such as we are ourselves conscious of , and liable to err as we do ourselves , will soften our feelings , and dispose our hearts towards him so as to protect , to relieve , aud to sustain him . In a society constituted like that of Masonry , there are many who need such assistance , who appeal to our active benevolence , and thus test the purity and sincerity of that love which , as Masons , we profess for all mankind as well as our Brethren . To give liberally , to . give freely and without grudging , is
a true characteristic of a sincere Brother of the Craft . Indiscriminate charity the Craft discountenances—it promotes imposture , it destroys self-reliance . It also discountenances that miscalled charity which would make itself a cloak for injury , or a protection from proper punishment . Let us , then , remember that we are Brethren , not in word only , but in deed also ; let us be ever ready to listen to him that craveth assistance , and from him that is in want let us not withhold a liberal hand . The appointed blessing will not fail to follow .
" All mankind's concern is charity : All must be false that thwarts this one great end ; And all of God that bless mankind and mend , — Thus God and nature link'd the general frame , And bade self-love and social be the same . " In the management of a Lodge , the Brethren must put implicit trust in their
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Provincial
the laws by which that society submits to be governed . But higher still , by faith in the G . A . O . T . U ., who is justice itself , we are ourselves justified ; by means , also , of that faith , we are drawn nearer to Him ; by it we refer everything to Him ; we become wholly subject to Him , and His might becomes our might to withstand whatever temptations may assail us . If such faith be sincere and lasting , and thus form the evidence of things not seen , the substance of those hoped
for , we shall be accepted , and finally received into that Grand Lodge where the world ' s Great Architect lives and reigns for ever . Nearly allied to faith is the next great Masonic step—Hope . By means of faith we have hope in the promises contained in the volume of the sacred law . Well , indeed , has hope been called the anchor of the soul ; for in every period , and under all circumstances , it is a ready comforter . It is our flatterer and comforter in boyhood ; it is our flatterer and comforter in years which need still more to be flattered and
comforted . The tale which it tells at different years will be different , it is true , in those different years , but it comes with the same gentle kindness , with the same soft persuasion in them all , animating our endeavours , alluring us ever onwards through the anxieties of life , and , when these are waning with waning existence , directs the failing vision to higher scenes which are opening on us , and bids us lookforward to the time when our character " shall approach nearer to that
ideal perfection to which nature teaches us to aspire when the sunshine of the soul shall be no longer liable to be overcast by the gloom of the imagination or the storms of the passions ; and when , in the society of those whom we loved on earth , freed with us from the weaknesses of mortality , we shall enjoy the intercourse of minds unobscured by earthly prejudices , and indulge the kind affections of the heart unalloyed by the possibility of change or of separation . " Last of all , we come to charity , the brightest , purest gem in the circlet of Masonic duties ,
the full possession of which completes the Masonic character : — - Fairest and foremost of the train that wait On man ' s most dignified and happy state , Whether we name thee Charity or Love , Chief grace below , and all in all above .
—As love , we regard it closely allied to faith ; for if we had no love for tbe G . A . O . T . U ., how could we have faith in his promises—if we had no love for our fellow-creatures , what faith could we possibly have in them ? All faith which does not look up to love as its end , and does not regard love as its root and mainspring , is a contradiction . To love our neighbour , to refrain on that account from uttering or listening to slander of him ; to shun malice ; to flee from revenge ; to forgive injuries , and , if possible , to erase the very recollection from our
mindsis a chief Masonic duty . To view every son of Adam as subject to passions such as we are ourselves conscious of , and liable to err as we do ourselves , will soften our feelings , and dispose our hearts towards him so as to protect , to relieve , aud to sustain him . In a society constituted like that of Masonry , there are many who need such assistance , who appeal to our active benevolence , and thus test the purity and sincerity of that love which , as Masons , we profess for all mankind as well as our Brethren . To give liberally , to . give freely and without grudging , is
a true characteristic of a sincere Brother of the Craft . Indiscriminate charity the Craft discountenances—it promotes imposture , it destroys self-reliance . It also discountenances that miscalled charity which would make itself a cloak for injury , or a protection from proper punishment . Let us , then , remember that we are Brethren , not in word only , but in deed also ; let us be ever ready to listen to him that craveth assistance , and from him that is in want let us not withhold a liberal hand . The appointed blessing will not fail to follow .
" All mankind's concern is charity : All must be false that thwarts this one great end ; And all of God that bless mankind and mend , — Thus God and nature link'd the general frame , And bade self-love and social be the same . " In the management of a Lodge , the Brethren must put implicit trust in their