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Article NOTES ON AMERICAN FREEMASONRY. ← Page 3 of 4 →
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Notes On American Freemasonry.
tous emotions of his appreciating heart . I have frequently observed that the testimonial tide sets toward those who are in office or who have patronage to dispense . * * * * I once knew of a testimonial , much talked of in Masonic circles , where
the recipient was himself a large subscriber to the token . Other instances there are where the token was borrowed or hired for the occasion- Let these things never occur among us . Let our truly worthy brothers who merit ' testimonials' decline
them , and thus save the credit of our Fraternity , and assist in promoting the purity and usefulness of our honoured institution '"
The following decision of the Committee on Jurisprudence is also Avorthy of notice : — " Question . —Does speaking disrespectfully of the Holy Bible constitute a Masonic offence ; if so , what should be the penalty ?
" Answer . —Yes ; the Holy Bible is one of the the great Lights of Masonry ; and any Mason who speaks disrespectfully of it shows a disregard of one of the first lessons taught him at his initiation . The punishment should be in accordance
with the gravity of the offence . ' In the jurisdiction were initiated during the year , 145 ; passed , 135 ; raised , 137 ; admitted , 144 ; Master Masons , 921 .
NEW JERSEY . M . W . Henry R . Cannon , Grand Master , read his annual address . In the course of it he says : — " Having received and accepted a fraternal invitation from M . W . Grand Master Vaux of
Pennsylvania , a portion of the Grand Officers were present at the laying of the corner stone of the New Masonic Temple , noAv in process of erection at the cify of Philadelphia , and they will always recall with unalloyed pleasure the fraternal
courtesies extended to them upon that occasion . The interests of Masonry in the State of Pennsylvania and New Jersey having been originally entrusted to the superintending care of one Provincial Grand Master , the organization of our respective Grand
Lodges occurring simultaneously , and having together passed through the fiery ordeal of persecution during the anti-Masonic crusade ; the most cordial and fraternal relations having ever existed betAveen the brethren of the two
jurisdictions , it seemed most appropriate that Ave should be present with the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania upon such an occassion , and tender to them our
heartfelt congratulations at the commencement of this great undertaking . " Among his decisions are the following : —¦ 4 . " A slight impediment of speech , not sufficient to prevent a person from repeating the work intelligibly , is . not sufficient cause for the rejection of a candidate .
6 . " Residents of this jurisdiction , made Masons in another , without consent , should not be held responsible for the irregularity of their making , nor deprived of the right of visitation for that reason solely . "
In the peroration , among other beautiful things , he says : " Masonry is not a society founded , as we fear too many suppose , for the advancement of social pleasure , or entertainment , of an evening in each week . It has a higher , nobler aim .. It seeks the good and Avell-being of mankind everywhere , and under all circumstances . It seeks to relieve
the distressed , to cheer the downcast , to elevate the human race , and to inculcate those sound moral principles upon Avhich , in a great degree , is based- ; all human happiness . " Number of Lodges , 98 ; Members , 7 , 729 .
NEW YOKK . The Grand Master delivered the annual address .. We note several of the subjects he touched upon ,, and make some extracts , as worthy of perusal by the Craft generally .
He states that application was made to him for a dispensation " To open a Lodge for the admission of a particular sect , as those only who believed in a certain form of religion . " He denied the application . In so doing he was certainly
right . A belief in the existence of God is the only religious test Masonry requires of its members . To grant a dispensation for the opening of a Lodge with a denominational creed as apre-requisite for membership , would be demanding a new
qualification , and thus infringing a well-known landmark . If granted to one denomination , no valid reason could be given Avhy the favour should not be granted to another . Then we might have Presbyterian Lodges , Episcopal Lodges , Baptist
Lodges , Methodist Lodges , Hebrew Lodges , and as many others as there are creeds in the Avorld . Then , let us ask , if granted , Avhat will become of Masonic unity ? What of universal brotherhood ? Truly the proposition appears too absurd to admit
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Notes On American Freemasonry.
tous emotions of his appreciating heart . I have frequently observed that the testimonial tide sets toward those who are in office or who have patronage to dispense . * * * * I once knew of a testimonial , much talked of in Masonic circles , where
the recipient was himself a large subscriber to the token . Other instances there are where the token was borrowed or hired for the occasion- Let these things never occur among us . Let our truly worthy brothers who merit ' testimonials' decline
them , and thus save the credit of our Fraternity , and assist in promoting the purity and usefulness of our honoured institution '"
The following decision of the Committee on Jurisprudence is also Avorthy of notice : — " Question . —Does speaking disrespectfully of the Holy Bible constitute a Masonic offence ; if so , what should be the penalty ?
" Answer . —Yes ; the Holy Bible is one of the the great Lights of Masonry ; and any Mason who speaks disrespectfully of it shows a disregard of one of the first lessons taught him at his initiation . The punishment should be in accordance
with the gravity of the offence . ' In the jurisdiction were initiated during the year , 145 ; passed , 135 ; raised , 137 ; admitted , 144 ; Master Masons , 921 .
NEW JERSEY . M . W . Henry R . Cannon , Grand Master , read his annual address . In the course of it he says : — " Having received and accepted a fraternal invitation from M . W . Grand Master Vaux of
Pennsylvania , a portion of the Grand Officers were present at the laying of the corner stone of the New Masonic Temple , noAv in process of erection at the cify of Philadelphia , and they will always recall with unalloyed pleasure the fraternal
courtesies extended to them upon that occasion . The interests of Masonry in the State of Pennsylvania and New Jersey having been originally entrusted to the superintending care of one Provincial Grand Master , the organization of our respective Grand
Lodges occurring simultaneously , and having together passed through the fiery ordeal of persecution during the anti-Masonic crusade ; the most cordial and fraternal relations having ever existed betAveen the brethren of the two
jurisdictions , it seemed most appropriate that Ave should be present with the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania upon such an occassion , and tender to them our
heartfelt congratulations at the commencement of this great undertaking . " Among his decisions are the following : —¦ 4 . " A slight impediment of speech , not sufficient to prevent a person from repeating the work intelligibly , is . not sufficient cause for the rejection of a candidate .
6 . " Residents of this jurisdiction , made Masons in another , without consent , should not be held responsible for the irregularity of their making , nor deprived of the right of visitation for that reason solely . "
In the peroration , among other beautiful things , he says : " Masonry is not a society founded , as we fear too many suppose , for the advancement of social pleasure , or entertainment , of an evening in each week . It has a higher , nobler aim .. It seeks the good and Avell-being of mankind everywhere , and under all circumstances . It seeks to relieve
the distressed , to cheer the downcast , to elevate the human race , and to inculcate those sound moral principles upon Avhich , in a great degree , is based- ; all human happiness . " Number of Lodges , 98 ; Members , 7 , 729 .
NEW YOKK . The Grand Master delivered the annual address .. We note several of the subjects he touched upon ,, and make some extracts , as worthy of perusal by the Craft generally .
He states that application was made to him for a dispensation " To open a Lodge for the admission of a particular sect , as those only who believed in a certain form of religion . " He denied the application . In so doing he was certainly
right . A belief in the existence of God is the only religious test Masonry requires of its members . To grant a dispensation for the opening of a Lodge with a denominational creed as apre-requisite for membership , would be demanding a new
qualification , and thus infringing a well-known landmark . If granted to one denomination , no valid reason could be given Avhy the favour should not be granted to another . Then we might have Presbyterian Lodges , Episcopal Lodges , Baptist
Lodges , Methodist Lodges , Hebrew Lodges , and as many others as there are creeds in the Avorld . Then , let us ask , if granted , Avhat will become of Masonic unity ? What of universal brotherhood ? Truly the proposition appears too absurd to admit