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Article CGREE8P0NDENGE. ← Page 3 of 4 →
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Cgree8p0ndenge.
still more wrongly , no doubt ; but not unnaturally . But when after 1662 , there were recognized differences in modes of Christian belief—when freedom of expression and liberty of conscience led gradually to differing sects of professing Christians—when by degrees these sects 'multiplied and
established themselves firmly , and all claimed to be professing Christians ; then it was undoubtedly proper and right to clear away Masonry from the additions which peculiar circumstances had entailed upon it , and to eliminate the special bonds which attached to any specific form of Christianity . And when , later , it was found that Christianity included some pious and good men , who accepted Christ as the Redeemer and the Saviour , but as man merely , or as a superhuman being , not God—when it was seen to be manifestly unjust to exclude them , any more than " other professing
Christians , from the bounds of the Craft— -the Lodge of 1818 well and wisely left out from the lectures and ceremonies all phrases which such Christians might conscientiously object to . The then Grand Master of England could feel for and appreciate their difficulties , and it was to his honour , and that of the Grand Lodge , that they brought back Freemasonry to its oldest universality- —a universality not contrary to the landmarks of the Order , but which it had lost for a time , owing to the overweening influence of the Church .
I am loth , after thus maintaining the universally Christian spirit of Masonry ( I might go further , but this suffices for my purpose ) , to appear even to enter upon theological questions ; but your correspondent has forced me to some observations on this topic . "Sit Lux , " not satisfied with restricting Freemasonry to Christianity , takes upon himself to define Christianity dogmatically . He says , in p , 548 , Masonry does acknowledge a religious creed , in its frequent invocations of the Redeemer , under the name of the G . A . O . T . U . " Pray where does ' Masonry teach that the
Redeemer is the G . A . OT . U ? To those who think so , well ; but Masonry does not teach it . I , for instance , do not at all understand that I invoke the Redeemer under the name of the G . A . O . T . U ., and I have as much right to my own opinion on the matter as your correspondent . In the next paragraph he says , very naively , that any man may unite with us as Masons , arid " may , or may not , declare himself & c . " That is , he may become a Mason under false pretences , and by leading his brethren to believe he is something which he is not , Is this the light our iightbringer would cast on the Masonic virtue of truth ? Ex tmo . disce omnes .
And incidentally , Sir and Brother , I must protest against the manner in which "Sit Lux" defends his theological opinions . See for example p . 551 , " In . all these passages of Scripture , & c . " Pray who is Bishop Pearson , that he is to settle all matters in dispute so completely ? I never heard of him before , and find on inquiry , that he Wrote a work on the Creed some hundred years ago . I presume that though a bishop he was a man—and therefore not infallible—and I venture to say that no man of learning , who has studied the matter , will be found to endorse his opinions
011 these points now . I Hatter mvself from hnvino- in ; ute such matters niv on these points now . 1 Hatter myself , from having made such matters my peculiar study , that I know as " much on these special points as Bishop Pearson , and I maintain that these titles arc not attributed to Christ , unless indeed Christ alone is the One only and true God , beside whom there is none other . " Sit Lux" may designate ( supported by Bishop Pearson ) by the
name Jehovah any being he pleases : but he has no right to assume that his opinions on these pojnts are infallible , and that every one else must necessarily accept them . It is greatly to be lamented that Sit Lux " did not begin his letter at the end . After writing the Masonic expressions about love and charity , which occur in the last half page , he would have hardly made use of the unbrotherly or unmasonic language wliich we ( i n 4
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Cgree8p0ndenge.
still more wrongly , no doubt ; but not unnaturally . But when after 1662 , there were recognized differences in modes of Christian belief—when freedom of expression and liberty of conscience led gradually to differing sects of professing Christians—when by degrees these sects 'multiplied and
established themselves firmly , and all claimed to be professing Christians ; then it was undoubtedly proper and right to clear away Masonry from the additions which peculiar circumstances had entailed upon it , and to eliminate the special bonds which attached to any specific form of Christianity . And when , later , it was found that Christianity included some pious and good men , who accepted Christ as the Redeemer and the Saviour , but as man merely , or as a superhuman being , not God—when it was seen to be manifestly unjust to exclude them , any more than " other professing
Christians , from the bounds of the Craft— -the Lodge of 1818 well and wisely left out from the lectures and ceremonies all phrases which such Christians might conscientiously object to . The then Grand Master of England could feel for and appreciate their difficulties , and it was to his honour , and that of the Grand Lodge , that they brought back Freemasonry to its oldest universality- —a universality not contrary to the landmarks of the Order , but which it had lost for a time , owing to the overweening influence of the Church .
I am loth , after thus maintaining the universally Christian spirit of Masonry ( I might go further , but this suffices for my purpose ) , to appear even to enter upon theological questions ; but your correspondent has forced me to some observations on this topic . "Sit Lux , " not satisfied with restricting Freemasonry to Christianity , takes upon himself to define Christianity dogmatically . He says , in p , 548 , Masonry does acknowledge a religious creed , in its frequent invocations of the Redeemer , under the name of the G . A . O . T . U . " Pray where does ' Masonry teach that the
Redeemer is the G . A . OT . U ? To those who think so , well ; but Masonry does not teach it . I , for instance , do not at all understand that I invoke the Redeemer under the name of the G . A . O . T . U ., and I have as much right to my own opinion on the matter as your correspondent . In the next paragraph he says , very naively , that any man may unite with us as Masons , arid " may , or may not , declare himself & c . " That is , he may become a Mason under false pretences , and by leading his brethren to believe he is something which he is not , Is this the light our iightbringer would cast on the Masonic virtue of truth ? Ex tmo . disce omnes .
And incidentally , Sir and Brother , I must protest against the manner in which "Sit Lux" defends his theological opinions . See for example p . 551 , " In . all these passages of Scripture , & c . " Pray who is Bishop Pearson , that he is to settle all matters in dispute so completely ? I never heard of him before , and find on inquiry , that he Wrote a work on the Creed some hundred years ago . I presume that though a bishop he was a man—and therefore not infallible—and I venture to say that no man of learning , who has studied the matter , will be found to endorse his opinions
011 these points now . I Hatter mvself from hnvino- in ; ute such matters niv on these points now . 1 Hatter myself , from having made such matters my peculiar study , that I know as " much on these special points as Bishop Pearson , and I maintain that these titles arc not attributed to Christ , unless indeed Christ alone is the One only and true God , beside whom there is none other . " Sit Lux" may designate ( supported by Bishop Pearson ) by the
name Jehovah any being he pleases : but he has no right to assume that his opinions on these pojnts are infallible , and that every one else must necessarily accept them . It is greatly to be lamented that Sit Lux " did not begin his letter at the end . After writing the Masonic expressions about love and charity , which occur in the last half page , he would have hardly made use of the unbrotherly or unmasonic language wliich we ( i n 4