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Article THE BENEFITS OF FREEMASONRY. Page 1 of 6 →
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The Benefits Of Freemasonry.
THE BENEFITS OF FREEMASONRY .
LONDON , SATURDAY , SEPTEMBER 21 , 1861 .
There are two classes of correspondents , of whom as a rule we decline to take any notice—those who ask us what are the benefits derivable from Freemasonry , and those who do not favour , us with , their name and address —confidentially of course--as an evidence of the iond ¦ / Ides of their communications . To the first class we clo
not reply , because we are not recruiting sergeants on behalf of Ereemasonry , every candidate for our mysteries —and we must be here considered as addressing the uninitiated—being called upon as a preliminary to his admission to declare , upon his honour , that he seeks those
mysteries unbiassed by mercenary or other unworthy motives ; actuated only by a desire of knowledge , and a wish to render himself useful to his fellow creatures ; to tbe second class we do not as a rule reply or give their communications a place in our columns as , though every
brother may not wish to see his name appended to letters forwarded for publication , we have at least a right to expect that our correspondents should give us the means of verifying their statements , should we desire to do so . "We are , however , on the present occasion ,
about to depart from both these rules . We are going to endeavour to show in reply to the question , first , what are some of the benefits derived from being a Ereemason ? and we are about to publish , and—as far as lies in empower—reply to an anonymous communication , and we
are induced to do so because it comes from a lady—lady correspondentsare rare with the EEBEMASOS " S'MA & AZIS B ¦ —not that we have any hopes of convincing her that there are any benefits derivable from Ereemasonry , as it will be seen from her letter , which we publish in extenso , that she has already formed
hexopinion upon that point , though she now asks for information on the subject . In fact she has constituted herself the judge , and having arraigned Ereemasonry before her—found the defendant guilty , and having had him hanged and buried without the benefit of clergy , she
would now seek for evidence to justify the cause she has taken—not that it will do any good to the unfortunate wight whom she has executed , but that it may relieve her oivn conscience from liaving done an injustice . As she has so condemned and executed the defendant , we
do not hope , by any arguments or eloquence of ours , to set aside her judgment—for when did a lady ever admit that she had been in the wrong—but we may at least be allowed to endeavour to clear the memory of our departed friend from some of the odium attempted to be east
upon it . To drop metaphor , we will at once lay before our readers the letter of our fair correspondent , ancl then endeavour to reply to her questions , if not to her denunciations . Here it is : — SIR , —Will you kindly inform me , through the medium of your MASOJJIC MIHBOH . what are some of the benefits of
becoming a Freemason ? I bear and read a great deal about its " sublime orders , " ancl a vast amount of like trash , but when I come to ask the plain question , what good is it ? not one can tell me . I come in contact with a good many who are Masons , and again , and again , have I sought for an answer to my question , ancl the only reply I have yet gained is that it is " a pleasant pastime . % The pastime , I suppose , consists in dinner monthand
having a good every , paying about three times the amount a good dinner for a familywould cost at home . Surely , if Masonry were a good thing , one must be able ( considering tbe large numbers who aro Masons ) to see some good resulting , but I was candidly told , by ono of your Craft , that he hne-w it had been the ruin of 3 IANY , and 1 may add that I have seen much of the barm
and misery it has caused . I bave seen a once happy home made miserable .- tbe husband estranged from the wife , and tbe wife from tbe husband , and Freemasonry the whole and sole cause . I believe it be a CURSE to every house it enters . Truly their motto ought to be "We love darkness rather than light , because our deeds are evil . " Ton see I write strongly on the subjectbecause I feelas an old Mason said the
, , day , " so disgusted with the whole affair . " My lot is unhappily cast in the midst of Freemasons , and I would thankfully and gratefully receive any remarks that would enable me to believe it is really a good and respectable thing to be a Mason .
Trusting you will pardon me for thus trespassing upou your time , believe me to remain , yours truly , A FREEMASONS' WIFE . A Ereemason ' s " Wife would appear to have fallen into the company of a very low order of Masons , if , as she tells us , that none of them can inform her of any benefits
derivable from the Order—and if they only regard it as a " pleasant pastime , " a pastime which our correspondent jiresumes to be " having a good dinner once a month , and paying about three times tbe amount a good dinner for a family would cost at home . " If the lady ' s friends are nothing but kmfe-and-fork Masons—men who are a
disgrace to tbe Order—and come in only at the close of business to partake of the banquet , we can understand their describing Masonry only as a pastime . But is it so to the true Mason ? We answer boldly , " No !" The true Mason—he that abides b y bis Masonic obligations—is one who seeks far higher objects than that of gratifying himself ivith an idle pastime ; he endeavours "
to perform his duty to God with reverence and humility , to assist his friends and nei ghbours in the hour of misfortune , not only with his purse , but hy kindly advice and sympathy , and to perform his duties to his family hy using every exertion to elevate himself in the social circle , shedding a hallowed zone around bis home and all
by whom he shall be surrounded . The true Ereemason would scorn to do . a mean or dishonourable act , whatever tbe temptation ; wliilst be would be found always ready to forgive and assist an erring brother , in order to render him a good and useful member of society . But he does not wish to clo this ostentatiotisly—he does not care to
show to the outer world , other than can be judged of by his acts , bow his conduct is guided—feeling assured that there is no reward on earth of so great a value as that of a self-approving conscience . We do not deny that there are many Masons who do not act up to their professions ,
who do not carry out the precepts which they have solemnly sworn to observe . But can a Ereemason ' s "Wife inform us of any body of men in which there are not to
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Benefits Of Freemasonry.
THE BENEFITS OF FREEMASONRY .
LONDON , SATURDAY , SEPTEMBER 21 , 1861 .
There are two classes of correspondents , of whom as a rule we decline to take any notice—those who ask us what are the benefits derivable from Freemasonry , and those who do not favour , us with , their name and address —confidentially of course--as an evidence of the iond ¦ / Ides of their communications . To the first class we clo
not reply , because we are not recruiting sergeants on behalf of Ereemasonry , every candidate for our mysteries —and we must be here considered as addressing the uninitiated—being called upon as a preliminary to his admission to declare , upon his honour , that he seeks those
mysteries unbiassed by mercenary or other unworthy motives ; actuated only by a desire of knowledge , and a wish to render himself useful to his fellow creatures ; to tbe second class we do not as a rule reply or give their communications a place in our columns as , though every
brother may not wish to see his name appended to letters forwarded for publication , we have at least a right to expect that our correspondents should give us the means of verifying their statements , should we desire to do so . "We are , however , on the present occasion ,
about to depart from both these rules . We are going to endeavour to show in reply to the question , first , what are some of the benefits derived from being a Ereemason ? and we are about to publish , and—as far as lies in empower—reply to an anonymous communication , and we
are induced to do so because it comes from a lady—lady correspondentsare rare with the EEBEMASOS " S'MA & AZIS B ¦ —not that we have any hopes of convincing her that there are any benefits derivable from Ereemasonry , as it will be seen from her letter , which we publish in extenso , that she has already formed
hexopinion upon that point , though she now asks for information on the subject . In fact she has constituted herself the judge , and having arraigned Ereemasonry before her—found the defendant guilty , and having had him hanged and buried without the benefit of clergy , she
would now seek for evidence to justify the cause she has taken—not that it will do any good to the unfortunate wight whom she has executed , but that it may relieve her oivn conscience from liaving done an injustice . As she has so condemned and executed the defendant , we
do not hope , by any arguments or eloquence of ours , to set aside her judgment—for when did a lady ever admit that she had been in the wrong—but we may at least be allowed to endeavour to clear the memory of our departed friend from some of the odium attempted to be east
upon it . To drop metaphor , we will at once lay before our readers the letter of our fair correspondent , ancl then endeavour to reply to her questions , if not to her denunciations . Here it is : — SIR , —Will you kindly inform me , through the medium of your MASOJJIC MIHBOH . what are some of the benefits of
becoming a Freemason ? I bear and read a great deal about its " sublime orders , " ancl a vast amount of like trash , but when I come to ask the plain question , what good is it ? not one can tell me . I come in contact with a good many who are Masons , and again , and again , have I sought for an answer to my question , ancl the only reply I have yet gained is that it is " a pleasant pastime . % The pastime , I suppose , consists in dinner monthand
having a good every , paying about three times the amount a good dinner for a familywould cost at home . Surely , if Masonry were a good thing , one must be able ( considering tbe large numbers who aro Masons ) to see some good resulting , but I was candidly told , by ono of your Craft , that he hne-w it had been the ruin of 3 IANY , and 1 may add that I have seen much of the barm
and misery it has caused . I bave seen a once happy home made miserable .- tbe husband estranged from the wife , and tbe wife from tbe husband , and Freemasonry the whole and sole cause . I believe it be a CURSE to every house it enters . Truly their motto ought to be "We love darkness rather than light , because our deeds are evil . " Ton see I write strongly on the subjectbecause I feelas an old Mason said the
, , day , " so disgusted with the whole affair . " My lot is unhappily cast in the midst of Freemasons , and I would thankfully and gratefully receive any remarks that would enable me to believe it is really a good and respectable thing to be a Mason .
Trusting you will pardon me for thus trespassing upou your time , believe me to remain , yours truly , A FREEMASONS' WIFE . A Ereemason ' s " Wife would appear to have fallen into the company of a very low order of Masons , if , as she tells us , that none of them can inform her of any benefits
derivable from the Order—and if they only regard it as a " pleasant pastime , " a pastime which our correspondent jiresumes to be " having a good dinner once a month , and paying about three times tbe amount a good dinner for a family would cost at home . " If the lady ' s friends are nothing but kmfe-and-fork Masons—men who are a
disgrace to tbe Order—and come in only at the close of business to partake of the banquet , we can understand their describing Masonry only as a pastime . But is it so to the true Mason ? We answer boldly , " No !" The true Mason—he that abides b y bis Masonic obligations—is one who seeks far higher objects than that of gratifying himself ivith an idle pastime ; he endeavours "
to perform his duty to God with reverence and humility , to assist his friends and nei ghbours in the hour of misfortune , not only with his purse , but hy kindly advice and sympathy , and to perform his duties to his family hy using every exertion to elevate himself in the social circle , shedding a hallowed zone around bis home and all
by whom he shall be surrounded . The true Ereemason would scorn to do . a mean or dishonourable act , whatever tbe temptation ; wliilst be would be found always ready to forgive and assist an erring brother , in order to render him a good and useful member of society . But he does not wish to clo this ostentatiotisly—he does not care to
show to the outer world , other than can be judged of by his acts , bow his conduct is guided—feeling assured that there is no reward on earth of so great a value as that of a self-approving conscience . We do not deny that there are many Masons who do not act up to their professions ,
who do not carry out the precepts which they have solemnly sworn to observe . But can a Ereemason ' s "Wife inform us of any body of men in which there are not to