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Article THE INEFFABLE WORD. ← Page 5 of 5 Article THE INEFFABLE WORD. Page 5 of 5 Article CLASSICAL THEOLOGY.—XXV. Page 1 of 3 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Ineffable Word.
perpendicular and base are equal to the square of the hypothenuse—that may be saicl to produce it the same way , as Osiris and Isis are equal to , or produce the world . Thus the perpendicular—Osiris , or the active , male principle—being represented by a line Avhose measurement is 3 ; and the base—Isisor the passivefemale princile
, , p —by a line whose measurement is 4- ; then their union , or the addition of the squares of these numbers , will pro-¦ duce a square ivhose root will be the hypothenuse , or a line whose measurement must be 5 . For the square of 3 is 9 , and the square of -1 » is 16 , and the square of 5 is 25 ; but 9 added to 16 is equal to 25 : and thusout of
, the addition , or coming together of the squares of the perpendicular and base , arises the square of the hypothenuse , just as , out of the coming together , in the Egyptian system , of the active and passive principles , . arises , or is generated , the world .
In the medifeval history of the Christian church , the great ignorance of the people , and their inclinations to a sort of materialism , led them to abandon the symbolic representations of the Deity , and to depict the Father with the form and lineaments of an agecl man ; many of which irreverent paintings , as far back as the twelfth century , are to be found in the reliious books and
g edifices of Europe . But , after the period of the renaissance , a better spirit and a purer taste began to pervade the artists of the church , and thenceforth the Supreme Being was represented only by his name—the tetragrammaton—inscribed within an equilateral triangle , and placed within a circle of rays .
But even in the earliest ages , when the Deity was painted or sculptured as a personage , the nimbus , or glory , ivhich surrounded the head of the Father , was often made to assume a triangular form . Didron says , on this subject : — "A nimbus , of a triangular form , is thus seen to be the exclusive attribute of the Deit y , and most frequently restricted to the Father Eternal . " ' The
other persons of the Trinity sometimes wear the triangle , but only in representations of the Trinity , and because the Father is with them . Still , even then , beside the Father , who has a triangle , the Son and the Holy Ghost are often drawn with a circular nimbus only . The triangle has , in all ages and in all reli gions , been ¦ deemed a symbol of Deity .
The _ Egyptians , the Greeks , and the other nations of antiquity , considered this figure , with its three sides , as a symbol _ of the creative energy displayed in the active and passii-e , or male and female , princi ples , and their product , the world ; the Christians referred it to their ¦ dogma of their Trinity as a manifestation of the Supreme God ; and the JBAVS and the primitiA'e Masons to the three periods of existence included in the signification of the tetragrammaton—the past , the present , and the future .
In the higher degrees of Masonry , the triangle is the most important of all symbols , and most generally assumes the name of the Delta , in allusion to the fourth letter of the Greek al phabet , which is of the same form and bears that appellation . The Delta , or mystical triangle , is generally surrounded b
y a circle of rays , called a " glory . " When this glory is distinct from the figure , and surrounds it in the form of a circle , it is an emblem of God ' s eternal glory . "When , as is most usual in the masonic symbol , the rays emanate from the centre of the triangle , and , as it ivere , enshroud it in their brilliancy , it is symbolic of the Divine Light . The perverted ideas of the Pagans referred these rays of light to their Sun-God and their ¦ Sabian worship .
The Ineffable Word.
But the true masonic idea of this glory is , that it symbolizes that Eternal Light of Wisdom which surrounds the Supreme Architect as with a sea- of glory , and from him , as a common centre , emanates to the universe of his creation , and to which the prophet Ezekiel alludes in his eloquent description of Jehovah : "And I saw as the colour of amberas the appearance of
, fire round about within it , from the appearance of his loins , even upward , and from his loins even downward , I saw , as it were , the appearance of fire , and it had bri ghtness round about . "—Ch . 1 , v . 27 . Dante has also beautifully described this circumfused li g ht of Deity :
" There is in heaven a light ivhose goodly shine Makes the Creator visible to all Created , that in seeing him , alone Have peace ; and in a circle spreads so far . That the circumference were too loose a zone To girdle in the sun . " On a recapitulationthenof the views that have been
, , advanced in relation to these three symbols of the Deity which are to be found in the Masonic system , we may say that each one expresses a different attribute . The letter G is the symbol of the self-existent JehoA' . ah .
The All-Seeing fEye is the symbol of the omnipresent God . The Triangle is the symbol of the" Supreme Architect of the Universe—the Creator—rand , when surrounded by rays of glory , it becomes a symbol of the Architect and bestoAver of light . And noivafter allis there not in this whole
preva-, , lence of the name of God , in so many different symbols , throughout the Masonic system , something more than a mere eA'idence of the religious j > roclivities of the institution ? Is there not behind this a more profound symbolism , which constitutes , in fact , the very essence of Freemasonry ? " The names of God , " saicl a learned
theologian at the beginning of this century , " were intended to communicate the knowledge of God himself . By these , men were enabled to receive some scanty ideas of his essential majesty , goodness , and power , and to know both whom we are to believe , and what we are to believeof Him . "
, And this train of thought is eminently applicable to the admission of the name into the system of Masonry . With us , the name of God , hoAi'ei'er expressed , is a symbol of DIVINE TRUTH , which it should be the . incessant labour of a Mason to seek . But the development of this sybolism of the Ineffable
Name is so intimately connected with that of the last word , that they cannot be considered separately . The discussion of this latter topic must , however , be reserved for a future occasion .
Classical Theology.—Xxv.
CLASSICAL THEOLOGY . —XXV .
MABS AND OCTOBER . THE ancient judges of Athens , at the early period of the existence of the Areopagus , held their sittings , like the elders of the ancient JBAVS , in the open air , for which similar reasons have been assigned . It was a custom in those olden days for all courts taking cognizance of
murder or irreligion to guard against the innocent being polluted , as it was thought mi ght possibly happen , from breathing the same air with the criminal . It was therefore ordained that they should not be brought together under the same roof . The orator JEsehines , celebrated as the enemy of Demosthenes , in one of his speeches alludes to another prudent injunction , ivhich prevented the senators of the
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Ineffable Word.
perpendicular and base are equal to the square of the hypothenuse—that may be saicl to produce it the same way , as Osiris and Isis are equal to , or produce the world . Thus the perpendicular—Osiris , or the active , male principle—being represented by a line Avhose measurement is 3 ; and the base—Isisor the passivefemale princile
, , p —by a line whose measurement is 4- ; then their union , or the addition of the squares of these numbers , will pro-¦ duce a square ivhose root will be the hypothenuse , or a line whose measurement must be 5 . For the square of 3 is 9 , and the square of -1 » is 16 , and the square of 5 is 25 ; but 9 added to 16 is equal to 25 : and thusout of
, the addition , or coming together of the squares of the perpendicular and base , arises the square of the hypothenuse , just as , out of the coming together , in the Egyptian system , of the active and passive principles , . arises , or is generated , the world .
In the medifeval history of the Christian church , the great ignorance of the people , and their inclinations to a sort of materialism , led them to abandon the symbolic representations of the Deity , and to depict the Father with the form and lineaments of an agecl man ; many of which irreverent paintings , as far back as the twelfth century , are to be found in the reliious books and
g edifices of Europe . But , after the period of the renaissance , a better spirit and a purer taste began to pervade the artists of the church , and thenceforth the Supreme Being was represented only by his name—the tetragrammaton—inscribed within an equilateral triangle , and placed within a circle of rays .
But even in the earliest ages , when the Deity was painted or sculptured as a personage , the nimbus , or glory , ivhich surrounded the head of the Father , was often made to assume a triangular form . Didron says , on this subject : — "A nimbus , of a triangular form , is thus seen to be the exclusive attribute of the Deit y , and most frequently restricted to the Father Eternal . " ' The
other persons of the Trinity sometimes wear the triangle , but only in representations of the Trinity , and because the Father is with them . Still , even then , beside the Father , who has a triangle , the Son and the Holy Ghost are often drawn with a circular nimbus only . The triangle has , in all ages and in all reli gions , been ¦ deemed a symbol of Deity .
The _ Egyptians , the Greeks , and the other nations of antiquity , considered this figure , with its three sides , as a symbol _ of the creative energy displayed in the active and passii-e , or male and female , princi ples , and their product , the world ; the Christians referred it to their ¦ dogma of their Trinity as a manifestation of the Supreme God ; and the JBAVS and the primitiA'e Masons to the three periods of existence included in the signification of the tetragrammaton—the past , the present , and the future .
In the higher degrees of Masonry , the triangle is the most important of all symbols , and most generally assumes the name of the Delta , in allusion to the fourth letter of the Greek al phabet , which is of the same form and bears that appellation . The Delta , or mystical triangle , is generally surrounded b
y a circle of rays , called a " glory . " When this glory is distinct from the figure , and surrounds it in the form of a circle , it is an emblem of God ' s eternal glory . "When , as is most usual in the masonic symbol , the rays emanate from the centre of the triangle , and , as it ivere , enshroud it in their brilliancy , it is symbolic of the Divine Light . The perverted ideas of the Pagans referred these rays of light to their Sun-God and their ¦ Sabian worship .
The Ineffable Word.
But the true masonic idea of this glory is , that it symbolizes that Eternal Light of Wisdom which surrounds the Supreme Architect as with a sea- of glory , and from him , as a common centre , emanates to the universe of his creation , and to which the prophet Ezekiel alludes in his eloquent description of Jehovah : "And I saw as the colour of amberas the appearance of
, fire round about within it , from the appearance of his loins , even upward , and from his loins even downward , I saw , as it were , the appearance of fire , and it had bri ghtness round about . "—Ch . 1 , v . 27 . Dante has also beautifully described this circumfused li g ht of Deity :
" There is in heaven a light ivhose goodly shine Makes the Creator visible to all Created , that in seeing him , alone Have peace ; and in a circle spreads so far . That the circumference were too loose a zone To girdle in the sun . " On a recapitulationthenof the views that have been
, , advanced in relation to these three symbols of the Deity which are to be found in the Masonic system , we may say that each one expresses a different attribute . The letter G is the symbol of the self-existent JehoA' . ah .
The All-Seeing fEye is the symbol of the omnipresent God . The Triangle is the symbol of the" Supreme Architect of the Universe—the Creator—rand , when surrounded by rays of glory , it becomes a symbol of the Architect and bestoAver of light . And noivafter allis there not in this whole
preva-, , lence of the name of God , in so many different symbols , throughout the Masonic system , something more than a mere eA'idence of the religious j > roclivities of the institution ? Is there not behind this a more profound symbolism , which constitutes , in fact , the very essence of Freemasonry ? " The names of God , " saicl a learned
theologian at the beginning of this century , " were intended to communicate the knowledge of God himself . By these , men were enabled to receive some scanty ideas of his essential majesty , goodness , and power , and to know both whom we are to believe , and what we are to believeof Him . "
, And this train of thought is eminently applicable to the admission of the name into the system of Masonry . With us , the name of God , hoAi'ei'er expressed , is a symbol of DIVINE TRUTH , which it should be the . incessant labour of a Mason to seek . But the development of this sybolism of the Ineffable
Name is so intimately connected with that of the last word , that they cannot be considered separately . The discussion of this latter topic must , however , be reserved for a future occasion .
Classical Theology.—Xxv.
CLASSICAL THEOLOGY . —XXV .
MABS AND OCTOBER . THE ancient judges of Athens , at the early period of the existence of the Areopagus , held their sittings , like the elders of the ancient JBAVS , in the open air , for which similar reasons have been assigned . It was a custom in those olden days for all courts taking cognizance of
murder or irreligion to guard against the innocent being polluted , as it was thought mi ght possibly happen , from breathing the same air with the criminal . It was therefore ordained that they should not be brought together under the same roof . The orator JEsehines , celebrated as the enemy of Demosthenes , in one of his speeches alludes to another prudent injunction , ivhich prevented the senators of the