[173] As You Like It (act ii, scene ii). Shakespeare makes no reference to any secret society, but some of his allusions suggest that he knew more than he wrote. He describes "The singing Masons building roofs of gold" (Henry V, act i, scene ii), and compares them to a swarm of bees at work. Did he know what the bee hive means in the symbolism of Masonry? (Read an interesting article on "Shakespeare and Freemasonry," American Freemason, January, 1912.) It reminds one of the passage in the Complete Angler, by Isaak Walton, in which the gentle fisherman talks about the meaning of Pillars in language very like that used in the Old Charges. But Hawkins in his edition of the Angler recalls that Walton was a friend of Elias Ashmole, and may have learned of Masonry from him. (A Short Masonic History, by F. Armitage, vol. ii, chap. 3.)
[174] Some Problems of Philosophy, by William James.
[175] In 1877 the Grand Orient of France removed the Bible from its altar and erased from its ritual all reference to Deity; and for so doing it was disfellowshiped by nearly every Grand Lodge in the world. The writer of the article on "Masonry" in the Catholic Encyclopedia recalls this fact with emphasis; but he is much fairer to the Grand Orient than many Masonic writers have been. He understands that this does not mean that the Masons of France are atheistic, as that word is ordinarily used, but that they do not believe that there exist Atheists in the absolute sense of the word; and he quotes the words of Albert Pike: "A man who has a higher conception of God than those about him, and who denies that their conception is God, is very likely to be called an Atheist by men who are really far less believers in God than he" (Morals and Dogma, p. 643). Thus, as Pike goes on to say, the early Christians, who said the heathen idols were no Gods, were accounted Atheists, and accordingly put to death. We need not hold a brief for the Grand Orient, but it behooves us to understand its position and point of view, lest we be found guilty of a petty bigotry in regard to a word when the reality is a common treasure. First, it was felt that France needed the aid of every man who was an enemy of Latin ecclesiasticism, in order to bring about a separation of Church and State; hence the attitude of the Grand Orient. Second, the Masons of France agree with Plutarch that no conception of God at all is better than a dark, distorted superstition which wraps men in terror; and they erased a word which, for many, was associated with an unworthy faith—the better to seek a unity of effort in behalf of liberty of thought and a loftier faith. (The Religion of Plutarch, by Oakesmith; also the Bacon essay on Superstition.) We may deem this unwise, but we ought at least to understand its spirit and purpose.
[176] Theocratic Philosophy of Freemasonry, by Oliver.
[177] "History of the Lost Word," by J.F. Garrison, appendix to Early History and Antiquities of Freemasonry, by G.F. Fort—one of the most brilliant Masonic books, both in scholarship and literary style.
[178] Symbolism of Masonry, by Dr. Mackey (chap. i) and other books too many to name. It need hardly be said that the truth of the trinity, whereof the triangle is an emblem—though with Pythagoras it was a symbol of holiness, of health—was never meant to contradict the unity of God, but to make it more vivid. As too often interpreted, it is little more than a crude tri-theism, but at its best it is not so. "God thrice, not three Gods," was the word of St. Augustine (Essay on the Trinity), meaning three aspects of God—not the mathematics of His nature, but its manifoldness, its variety in unity. The late W.N. Clarke—who put more common sense into theology than any other man of his day—pointed out that, in our time, the old debate about the trinity is as dead as Caesar; the truth of God as a Father having taken up into itself the warmth, color, and tenderness of the truth of the trinity—which, as said on an earlier page, was a vision of God through the family (Christian Doctrine of God).
[179] The Bible, the Great Source of Masonic Secrets and Observances, by Dr. Oliver. No Mason need be told what a large place the Bible has in the symbolism, ritual, and teaching of the Order, and it has an equally large place in its literature.
[180] Read the great argument of Plato in The Republic (book vi). The present writer does not wish to impose upon Masonry any dogma of technical Idealism, subjective, objective, or otherwise. No more than others does he hold to a static universe which unrolls in time a plan made out before, but to a world of wonders where life has the risk and zest of adventure. He rejoices in the New Idealism of Rudolf Eucken, with its gospel of "an independent spiritual life"—independent, that is, of vicissitude—and its insistence upon the fact that the meaning of life depends upon our "building up within ourselves a life that is not of time" (Life's Basis and Life's Ideal). But the intent of these pages is, rather, to emphasize the spiritual view of life and the world as the philosophy underlying Masonry, and upon which it builds—the reality of the ideal, its sovereignty over our fragile human life, and the immutable necessity of loyalty to it, if we are to build for eternity. After all, as Plotinus said, philosophy "serves to point the way and guide the traveller; the vision is for him who will see it." But the direction means much to those who are seeking the truth to know it.
THE SPIRIT OF MASONRY
Life's final star, is Brotherhood;
For it will bring again to Earth
Her long-lost Poesy and Mirth;
Will send new light on every face,
A kingly power upon the race.
And till it comes we men are slaves,
And travel downward to the dust of graves.
Come, clear the way, then, clear the way:
Blind creeds and kings have had their day.
Break the dead branches from the path:
Our hope is in the aftermath—
Our hope is in heroic men,
Star-led to build the world again.
To this event the ages ran:
Make way for Brotherhood—make way for Man.
—Edwin Markham, Poems
CHAPTER IIIToC
The Spirit of Masonry
I
Outside of the home and the house of God there is nothing in this world more beautiful than the Spirit of Masonry. Gentle, gracious, and wise, its mission is to form mankind into a great redemptive brotherhood, a league of noble and free men enlisted in the radiant enterprise of working out in time the love and will of the Eternal. Who is sufficient to describe a spirit so benign? With what words may one ever hope to capture and detain that which belongs of right to the genius of poetry and song, by whose magic those elusive and impalpable realities find embodiment and voice?
With picture, parable, and stately drama, Masonry appeals to lovers of beauty, bringing poetry and symbol to the aid of philosophy, and art to the service of character. Broad and tolerant in its teaching, it appeals to men of intellect, equally by the depth of its faith and its plea for liberty of thought—helping them to think things through to a more satisfying and hopeful vision of the meaning of life and the mystery of the world. But its profoundest appeal, more eloquent than all others, is to the deep heart of man, out of which are the issues of life and destiny. When all is said, it is as a man thinketh in his heart whether life be worth while or not, and whether he is a help or a curse to his race.
Not that men are poor;
All men know something of poverty.
Not that men are wicked;
Who can claim to be good?
Not that men are ignorant;
Who can boast that he is wise?
But that men are strangers!
Masonry is Friendship—friendship, first, with the great Companion, of whom our own hearts tell us, who is always nearer to us than we are to ourselves, and whose inspiration and help is the greatest fact of human experience. To be in harmony with His purposes, to be open to His suggestions, to be conscious of fellowship with Him—this is Masonry on its Godward side. Then, turning manward, friendship sums it all up. To be friends with all men, however they may differ from us in creed, color, or condition; to fill every human relation with the spirit of friendship; is there anything more or better than this that the wisest, and best of men can hope to do?[181] Such is the spirit of Masonry; such is its ideal, and if to realize it all at once is denied us, surely it means much to see it, love it, and labor to make it come true.
Nor is this Spirit of Friendship a mere sentiment held by a sympathetic, and therefore unstable, fraternity, which would dissolve the concrete features of humanity into a vague blur of misty emotion. No; it has its roots in a profound philosophy which sees that the universe is friendly, and that men must learn to be friends if they would live as befits the world in which they live, as well as their own origin and destiny. For, since God is the life of all that was, is, and is to be; and since we are all born into the world by one high wisdom and one vast love, we are brothers to the last man of us, forever! For better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, and even after death us do part, all men are held together by ties of spiritual kinship, sons of one eternal Friend. Upon this fact human fraternity rests, and it is the basis of the plea of Masonry, not only for freedom, but for friendship among men.
Thus friendship, so far from being a mush of concessions, is in fact the constructive genius of the universe. Love is ever the Builder, and those who have done most to establish the City of God on earth have been the men who loved their fellow men. Once let this spirit prevail, and the wrangling sects will be lost in a great league of those who love in the service of those who suffer. No man will then revile the faith in which his neighbor finds help for today and hope for the morrow; pity will smite him mute, and love will teach him that God is found in many ways, by those who seek him with honest hearts. Once let this spirit rule in the realm of trade, and the law of the jungle will cease, and men will strive to build a social order in which all men may have opportunity "to live, and to live well," as Aristotle defined the purpose of society. Here is the basis of that magical stability aimed at by the earliest artists when they sought to build for eternity, by imitating on earth the House of God.
II
Our human history, saturated with blood and blistered with tears, is the story of man making friends with man. Society has evolved from a feud into a friendship by the slow growth of love and the welding of man, first to his kin, and then to his kind.[182] The first men who walked in the red dawn of time lived every man for himself, his heart a sanctuary of suspicions, every man feeling that every other man was his foe, and therefore his prey. So there were war, strife, and bloodshed. Slowly there came to the savage a gleam of the truth that it is better to help than to hurt, and he organized clans and tribes. But tribes were divided by rivers and mountains, and the men on one side of the river felt that the men on the other side were their enemies. Again there were war, pillage, and sorrow. Great empires arose and met in the shock of conflict, leaving trails of skeletons across the earth. Then came the great roads, reaching out with their stony clutch and bringing the ends of the earth together. Men met, mingled, passed and repassed, and learned that human nature is much the same everywhere, with hopes and fears in common. Still there were many things to divide and estrange men from each other, and the earth was full of bitterness. Not satisfied with natural barriers, men erected high walls of sect and caste, to exclude their fellows, and the men of one sect were sure that the men of all other sects were wrong—and doomed to be lost. Thus, when real mountains no longer separated man from man, mountains were made out of molehills—mountains of immemorial misunderstanding not yet moved into the sea!
Barriers of race, of creed, of caste, of habit, of training and interest separate men today, as if some malign genius were bent on keeping man from his fellows, begetting suspicion, uncharitableness, and hate. Still there are war, waste, and woe! Yet all the while men have been unfriendly, and, therefore, unjust and cruel, only because they are unacquainted. Amidst feud, faction, and folly, Masonry, the oldest and most widely spread order, toils in behalf of friendship, uniting men upon the only basis upon which they can ever meet with dignity. Each lodge is an oasis of equality and goodwill in a desert of strife, working to weld mankind into a great league of sympathy and service, which, by the terms of our definition, it seeks to exhibit even now on a small scale. At its altar men meet as man to man, without vanity and without pretense, without fear and without reproach, as tourists crossing the Alps tie themselves together, so that if one slip all may hold him up. No tongue can tell the meaning of such a ministry, no pen can trace its influence in melting the hardness of the world into pity and gladness.
The Spirit of Masonry! He who would describe that spirit must be a poet, a musician, and a seer—a master of melodies, echoes, and long, far-sounding cadences. Now, as always, it toils to make man better, to refine his thought and purify his sympathy, to broaden his outlook, to lift his altitude, to establish in amplitude and resoluteness his life in all its relations. All its great history, its vast accumulations of tradition, its simple faith and its solemn rites, its freedom and its friendship are dedicated to a high moral ideal, seeking to tame the tiger in man, and bring his wild passions into obedience to the will of God. It has no other mission than to exalt and ennoble humanity, to bring light out of darkness, beauty out of angularity; to make every hard-won inheritance more secure, every sanctuary more sacred, every hope more radiant![183]
The Spirit of Masonry! Ay, when that spirit has its way upon earth, as at last it surely will, society will be a vast communion of kindness and justice, business a system of human service, law a rule of beneficence; the home will be more holy, the laughter of childhood more joyous, and the temple of prayer mortised and tenoned in simple faith. Evil, injustice, bigotry, greed, and every vile and slimy thing that defiles and defames humanity will skulk into the dark, unable to bear the light of a juster, wiser, more merciful order. Industry will be upright, education prophetic, and religion not a shadow, but a Real Presence, when man has become acquainted with man and has learned to worship God by serving his fellows. When Masonry is victorious every tyranny will fall, every bastile crumble, and man will be not only unfettered in mind and hand, but free of heart to walk erect in the light and liberty of the truth.
Toward a great friendship, long foreseen by Masonic faith, the world is slowly moving, amid difficulties and delays, reactions and reconstructions. Though long deferred, of that day, which will surely arrive, when nations will be reverent in the use of freedom, just in the exercise of power, humane in the practice of wisdom; when no man will ride over the rights of his fellows; when no woman will be made forlorn, no little child wretched by bigotry or greed, Masonry has ever been a prophet. Nor will she ever be content until all the threads of human fellowship are woven into one mystic cord of friendship, encircling the earth and holding the race in unity of spirit and the bonds of peace, as in the will of God it is one in the origin and end. Having outlived empires and philosophies, having seen generations appear and vanish, it will yet live to see the travail of its soul, and be satisfied—
And the battle flags are furled;
In the parliament of man,
The federation of the world.
III
Manifestly, since love is the law of life, if men are to be won from hate to love, if those who doubt and deny are to be wooed to faith, if the race is ever to be led and lifted into a life of service, it must be by the fine art of Friendship. Inasmuch as this is the purpose of Masonry, its mission determines the method not less than the spirit of its labor. Earnestly it endeavors to bring men—first the individual man, and then, so far as possible, those who are united with him—to love one another, while holding aloft, in picture and dream, that temple of character which is the noblest labor of life to build in the midst of the years, and which will outlast time and death. Thus it seeks to reach the lonely inner life of man where the real battles are fought, and where the issues of destiny are decided, now with shouts of victory, now with sobs of defeat. What a ministry to a young man who enters its temple in the morning of life, when the dew of heaven is upon his days and the birds are singing in his heart![184]
From the wise lore of the East Max Müller translated a parable which tells how the gods, having stolen from man his divinity, met in council to discuss where they should hide it. One suggested that it be carried to the other side of the earth and buried; but it was pointed out that man is a great wanderer, and that he might find the lost treasure on the other side of the earth. Another proposed that it be dropped into the depths of the sea; but the same fear was expressed—that man, in his insatiable curiosity, might dive deep enough to find it even there. Finally, after a space of silence, the oldest and wisest of the gods said: "Hide it in man himself, as that is the last place he will ever think to look for it!" And it was so agreed, all seeing at once the subtle and wise strategy. Man did wander over the earth, for ages, seeking in all places high and low, far and near, before he thought to look within himself for the divinity he sought. At last, slowly, dimly, he began to realize that what he thought was far off, hidden in "the pathos of distance," is nearer than the breath he breathes, even in his own heart.
Here lies the great secret of Masonry—that it makes a man aware of that divinity within him, wherefrom his whole life takes its beauty and meaning, and inspires him to follow and obey it. Once a man learns this deep secret, life is new, and the old world is a valley all dewy to the dawn with a lark-song over it. There never was a truer saying than that the religion of a man is the chief fact concerning him.[185] By religion is meant not the creed to which a man will subscribe, or otherwise give his assent; not that necessarily; often not that at all—since we see men of all degrees of worth and worthlessness signing all kinds of creeds. No; the religion of a man is that which he practically believes, lays to heart, acts upon, and thereby knows concerning this mysterious universe and his duty and destiny in it. That is in all cases the primary thing in him, and creatively determines all the rest; that is his religion. It is, then, of vital importance what faith, what vision, what conception of life a man lays to heart, and acts upon.
At bottom, a man is what his thinking is, thoughts being the artists who give color to our days. Optimists and pessimists live in the same world, walk under the same sky, and observe the same facts. Sceptics and believers look up at the same great stars—the stars that shone in Eden and will flash again in Paradise. Clearly the difference between them is a difference not of fact, but of faith—of insight, outlook, and point of view—a difference of inner attitude and habit of thought with regard to the worth and use of life. By the same token, any influence which reaches and alters that inner habit and bias of mind, and changes it from doubt to faith, from fear to courage, from despair to sunburst hope, has wrought the most benign ministry which a mortal may enjoy. Every man has a train of thought on which he rides when he is alone; and the worth of his life to himself and others, as well as its happiness, depend upon the direction in which that train is going, the baggage it carries, and the country through which it travels. If, then, Masonry can put that inner train of thought on the right track, freight it with precious treasure, and start it on the way to the City of God, what other or higher ministry can it render to a man? And that is what it does for any man who will listen to it, love it, and lay its truth to heart.
High, fine, ineffably rich and beautiful are the faith and vision which Masonry gives to those who foregather at its altar, bringing to them in picture, parable, and symbol the lofty and pure truth wrought out through ages of experience, tested by time, and found to be valid for the conduct of life. By such teaching, if they have the heart to heed it, men become wise, learning how to be both brave and gentle, faithful and free; how to renounce superstition and yet retain faith; how to keep a fine poise of reason between the falsehood of extremes; how to accept the joys of life with glee, and endure its ills with patient valor; how to look upon the folly of man and not forget his nobility—in short, how to live cleanly, kindly, calmly, open-eyed and unafraid in a sane world, sweet of heart and full of hope. Whoso lays this lucid and profound wisdom to heart, and lives by it, will have little to regret, and nothing to fear, when the evening shadows fall. Happy the young man who in the morning of his years makes it his guide, philosopher, and friend.[186]
Such is the ideal of Masonry, and fidelity to all that is holy demands that we give ourselves to it, trusting the power of truth, the reality of love, and the sovereign worth of character. For only as we incarnate that ideal in actual life and activity does it become real, tangible, and effective. God works for man through man and seldom, if at all, in any other way. He asks for our voices to speak His truth, for our hands to do His work here below—sweet voices and clean hands to make liberty and love prevail over injustice and hate. Not all of us can be learned or famous, but each of us can be loyal and true of heart, undefiled by evil, undaunted by error, faithful and helpful to our fellow souls. Life is a capacity for the highest things. Let us make it a pursuit of the highest—an eager, incessant quest of truth; a noble utility, a lofty honor, a wise freedom, a genuine service—that through us the Spirit of Masonry may grow and be glorified.
When is a man a Mason? When he can look out over the rivers, the hills, and the far horizon with a profound sense of his own littleness in the vast scheme of things, and yet have faith, hope, and courage—which is the root of every virtue. When he knows that down in his heart every man is as noble, as vile, as divine, as diabolic, and as lonely as himself, and seeks to know, to forgive, and to love his fellow man. When he knows how to sympathize with men in their sorrows, yea, even in their sins—knowing that each man fights a hard fight against many odds. When he has learned how to make friends and to keep them, and above all how to keep friends with himself. When he loves flowers, can hunt the birds without a gun, and feels the thrill of an old forgotten joy when he hears the laugh of a little child. When he can be happy and high-minded amid the meaner drudgeries of life. When star-crowned trees, and the glint of sunlight on flowing waters, subdue him like the thought of one much loved and long dead. When no voice of distress reaches his ears in vain, and no hand seeks his aid without response. When he finds good in every faith that helps any man to lay hold of divine things and sees majestic meanings in life, whatever the name of that faith may be. When he can look into a wayside puddle and see something beyond mud, and into the face of the most forlorn fellow mortal and see something beyond sin. When he knows how to pray, how to love, how to hope. When he has kept faith with himself, with his fellow man, with his God; in his hand a sword for evil, in his heart a bit of a song—glad to live, but not afraid to die! Such a man has found the only real secret of Masonry, and the one which it is trying to give to all the world.
FOOTNOTES:
[181] Suggested by a noble passage in the Recollections of Washington Gladden; and the great preacher goes on to say: "If the church could accept this truth—that Religion is Friendship—and build its own life upon it, and make it central and organic in all its teachings, should we not have a great revival of religion?" Indeed, yes; and of the right kind of religion, too! Walt Whitman found the basis of all philosophy, all religion, in "the dear love of man for his comrade, the attraction of friend to friend" (The Base of all Metaphysics). As for Masonic literature, it is one perpetual pæan in praise of the practice of friendship, from earliest time to our own day. Take, for example, the Illustrations of Masonry, by Preston (first book, sect, i-x); and Arnold, as we have seen, defined Masonry as Friendship, as did Hutchinson (The Spirit of Masonry, lectures xi, xii). These are but two notes of a mighty anthem whose chorus is never hushed in the temple of Masonry! Of course, there are those who say that the finer forces of life are frail and foolish, but the influence of the cynic in the advance of the race is—nothing!
[182] The Neighbor, by N.S. Shaler.
[183] If Masons often fall far below their high ideal, it is because they share in their degree the infirmity of mankind. He is a poor craftsman who glibly recites the teachings of the Order and quickly forgets the lessons they convey; who wears its honorable dress to conceal a self-seeking spirit; or to whom its great and simple symbols bring only an outward thrill, and no inward urge toward the highest of all good. Apart from what they symbolize, all symbols are empty; they speak only to such as have ears to hear. At the same time, we have always to remember—what has been so often and so sadly forgotten—that the most sacred shrine on earth is the soul of man; and that the temple and its offices are not ends in themselves, but only beautiful means to the end that every human heart may be a temple of peace, of purity, of power, of pity, and of hope!
[184] Read the noble words of Arnold on the value of Masonry to the young as a restraint, a refinement, and a conservator of virtue, throwing about youth the mantle of a great friendship and the consecration of a great ideal (History and Philosophy of Masonry, chap. xix).
[185] Heroes and Hero-worship, by Thomas Carlyle, lecture i.
[186] If the influence of Masonry upon youth is here emphasized, it is not to forget that the most dangerous period of life is not youth, with its turmoil of storm and stress, but between forty and sixty. When the enthusiasms of youth have cooled, and its rosy glamour has faded into the light of common day, there is apt to be a letting down of ideals, a hardening of heart, when cynicism takes the place of idealism. If the judgments of the young are austere and need to be softened by charity, the middle years of life need still more the reënforcement of spiritual influence and the inspiration of a holy atmosphere. Also, Albert Pike used to urge upon old men the study of Masonry, the better to help them gather up the scattered thoughts about life and build them into a firm faith; and because Masonry offers to every man a great hope and consolation. Indeed, its ministry to every period of life is benign. Studying Masonry is like looking at a sunset; each man who looks is filled with the beauty and wonder of it, but the glory is not diminished.
BIBLIOGRAPHYToC
(The literature of Masonry is very large, and the following is only a small selection of such books as the writer has found particularly helpful in the course of this study. The notes and text of the foregoing pages mention many books, sometimes with brief characterizations, and that fact renders a longer list unnecessary here.)
Anderson, Book of Constitutions.
Armitage, Short Masonic History, 2 vols.
Arnold, History and Philosophy of Masonry.
Ashmole, Diary.
Aynsley, Symbolism East and West.
Bacon, New Atlantis.
Bayley, Lost Language of Symbolism.
Breasted, Religion and Thought in Egypt.
Budge, The Gods of Egypt.
Callahan, Washington, the Man and the Mason.
Capart, Primitive Art in Egypt.
Carr, The Swastika.
Catholic Encyclopedia, art. "Masonry."
Churchward, Signs and Symbols of Primordial Man.
Conder, Hole Craft and Fellowship of Masonry.
Crowe, Things a Freemason Ought to Know.
Cumont, Mysteries of Mithra.
Da Costa, Dionysian Artificers.
De Clifford, Egypt the Cradle of Masonry.
Dill, Roman Life.
Encyclopedia Britannica, art. "Freemasonry."
Fergusson, History of Architecture.
Findel, History of Masonry.
Finlayson, Symbols of Freemasonry.
Fort, Early History and Antiquities of Masonry.
Gorringe, Egyptian Obelisks.
Gould, Atholl Lodges.
Gould, Concise History of Masonry.
Gould, History of Masonry, 4 vols.
Gould, Military Lodges.
Haige, Symbolism.
Hastings, Encyclopedia of Religion, art. "Freemasonry."
Hayden, Washington and his Masonic Compeers.
Holland, Freemasonry and the Great Pyramid.
Hope, Historical Essay on Architecture.
Hughan, History of the English Rite.
Hughan, Masonic Sketches and Reprints.
Hughan and Stillson, History of Masonry and Concordant Orders.
Hutchinson, The Spirit of Masonry.
Jewish Encyclopedia, art. "Freemasonry."
Kennedy, St. Paul and the Mystery-Religions.
Lawrence, Practical Masonic Lectures.
Leicester Lodge of Research, Transactions.
Lethaby, Architecture.
Lockyear, Dawn of Astronomy.
Mackey, Encyclopedia of Freemasonry.
Mackey, Symbolism of Masonry.
Manchester Lodge of Research, Transactions.
Marshall, Nature a Book of Symbols.
Maspero, Dawn of Civilization.
Mead, Quests New and Old.
Moehler, Symbolism.
Moret, Kings and Gods of Egypt.
Morris, Lights and Shadows of Masonry.
Morris, The Poetry of Masonry.
Oliver, Masonic Antiquities.
Oliver, Masonic Sermons.
Oliver, Revelations of the Square.
Oliver, Theocratic Philosophy of Masonry.
Pike, Morals and Dogma.
Plutarch, De Iside et Osiride.
Preston, Illustrations of Masonry.
Quatuor Coronati Lodge, Transactions, 24 vols.
Ravenscroft, The Comacines.
Reade, The Veil of Isis.
Rogers, History of Prices in England.
Ruskin, Seven Lamps of Architecture.
Sachse, Franklin as a Mason.
Sadler, Masonic Facts and Fictions.
St. Andrew's Lodge, Centennial Memorial.
Schure, Hermes and Plato.
Schure, Pythagoras.
Scott, The Cathedral Builders.
Smith, English Guilds.
Stevens, Cyclopedia of Fraternities.
Steinbrenner, History of Masonry.
Tyler, Oaths, Their Origin, Nature, and History.
Waite, Real History of Rosicrucians.
Waite, Secret Tradition in Masonry.
Waite, Studies in Mysticism.
Watts, The Word in the Pattern.
Wright, Indian Masonry.
INDEXToC
- Aberdeen: lodge of, 161
- Acadamie Armory: 166
- Accepted Masons: 147;
- Æneas: referred to, 44 note
- Ahiman Rezon: 216
- Alban, St: in Old Charges, 116;
- America: advent of Masonry in, 206;
- "Ancients, The": and Moderns, 212;
- Anderson, James: his account of Grand Lodge of England, 180;
- Andreae, J.V.: quoted, 157;
- his Rosicrucian romance, 163
- Anti-Masonic political party, 228
- Apprentice, Entered: requirements of, 129;
- Architects: early, 14;
- Architecture: matrix of civilization, 5;
- spiritual basis of, 6;
- Seven Lamps of, 7;
- moral laws of, 8;
- mysticism of, 9;
- and astronomy, 77;
- gaps in history of, 86;
- Italian, 87;
- and the Comacines, 88;
- new light on, 89;
- churchmen learn from Masons, 114;
- Gothic, 120;
- essay on, 136;
- influence of Solomon's Temple on, 191;
- no older than history, 241
- Ashmole, Elias: Diary of, 162;
- Assembly of Masons: at York, 117;
- Atheist: does not exist, 261 note;
- would be an orphan, 267
- Athelstan: and Masons, 116
- Atholl Masons: Grand Lodge of, 216;
- Aubrey, John: 166;
- on convention of Masons, 167
- Augustine, St: and Masons, 116
- Babel, Tower of: 7
- Bacon, Francis: 110;
- Benevolence: Board of, 188
- Bible: Masonic symbols in, 32;
- and Masonry, 265
- Book of Constitutions: 187
- Book of the Dead: 40
- Booth, Edwin: on Third degree, 197;
- a Mason, 232
- Boston Tea Party: 224
- Brotherhood: in Old Charges, 133;
- Builders: early ideals of, 12;
- Building: spiritual meaning of, 6, 7, 8;
- Burns, Robert: 226;
- Cantu, Cesare: on Comacines, 142
- Capart: quoted, 6
- Carlyle, Thomas: quoted, 4
- Cathedral Builders: 87;
- Cathedrals: when built, 121
- Charity: and Masons, 134;
- a doctrine of Masonry, 172
- China: Masonry in, 30
- Christianity: and the Mysteries, 50, 51 note;
- Churchward: on Triangle, 13 note;
- on symbols, 20 note
- Circle: meaning of, 27
- Clay, Henry: 228
- Cleopatra's Needle: 33
- Collegia, the: 73;
- Column: Wren on, 9;
- Comacine Masters: 87;
- Companionage: of France, 118 note;
- and legend of Hiram, 149
- Conder: historian of Masons' Company, 165
- Confucius: 30
- Cooke MS: 106;
- higher criticism of, 107
- Cowan: meaning of, 138 note
- Coxe, Daniel: 207
- Craft-masonry: morality of, 134;
- Cromwell, Oliver: and Masonry, 179 note
- Cross: antiquity of, 24;
- of Egypt, 25
- Cube: meaning of, 27
- Culdees: 189
- Da Costa: quoted, 72;
- on Dionysian Artificers, 77 note
- Deacon: office of, 217
- Death: old protest against, 40;
- Declaration of Independence, signed by Masons, 225
- Defence of Masonry: quoted 152
- Degrees in Masonry: 141;
- De Molai: 101
- De Quincey on Masonry, 179 note
- Dermott, Lawrence: and Ancient Grand Lodge, 216;
- Desaguliers, Dr. J.T.: "co-fabricator of Masonry," 195;
- sketch of, 195 note
- Diocletian: fury of against Masons, 85
- Dionysian Artificers: 72;
- Dissensions in Masonry: bitter, 213;
- Doctrine: the Secret, 57;
- Drama of Faith: 39;
- Druids: Mysteries of, 49
- Druses: and Masonry, 78 note
- Dugdale: on formality in Masonry, 143
- Eavesdroppers: their punishment, 138 note
- Egypt: earliest artists of, 9;
- Elizabeth, Queen: and Masons, 123 note
- Emerson, R.W.: 39, 57
- Euclid: mentioned in Regius MS, 105;
- in Cooke MS, 107
- Evans: on sacred stones, 9
- Exposures of Masonry, 210
- Faerie Queene: quoted, 155
- Faith: Drama of, 39;
- philosophy of, 270
- Fellowcraft: points of, 128;
- Fichte: a Mason, 232
- Findel: list of cartoons, 99 note;
- on Apprentice degree, 145
- Francis of Assist: quoted, 173
- Franklin, B.: on Masonic grips, 200;
- Frederick the Great: and Masonry, 205 note
- Free-masons: 87;
- Friendship: Masonry defined as, 240;
- Fergusson, James: 90;
- on temple of Solomon, 191
- on temple of Solomon, 191
- G: the letter, 159
- Garibaldi: 230
- Geometry: in Old Charges, 108;
- Gladden, Washington: quoted, 285
- Gloves: use and meaning of, 137 note
- God: ideas of, 22;
- Goethe: 232
- Golden Rule: law of Master Mason, 133;
- creed of, 256
- Gormogons: order of, parody on Masonry, 209;
- swallows itself, 211
- Gothic architecture: 120;
- decline of, 185
- Gould, R.F.: on Regius MS, 106;
- Grand Lodge of all England, 218
- Grand Lodge of England: 173;
- meaning of organization, 174;
- background of, 176;
- its attitude toward religion, 177;
- organization of, 180;
- Lodges of, 181;
- facts about, 182;
- usages of, 183;
- regalia of, 183 note;
- a London movement, 184;
- leaders of, 185;
- charity of, 188;
- growth of, 202;
- prolific mother, 204;
- article on politics, 208;
- rivals of, 213
- Grand Lodge South of Trent, 218
- Grand Master: office of, 182;
- power of, 202
- Green Dragon Tavern: 223;
- a Masonic Lodge, 224
- Gregory, Pope: and Masons, 113
- Grips: in the Mysteries, 47;
- Guild-masonry: 98;
- Hallam: on Freemasonry, 96;
- on Guilds, 118
- Halliwell, James: and Regius MS: 104
- Hamilton, Alexander: 225
- Hammer, House of: 28
- Handbuch, German: on Masonry, 241
- Harleian MS: quoted, 126;
- in Holme's handwriting, 166
- Hermes: named in Cooke MS, 108;
- Herodotus: on Egypt, 10;
- referred to in Cooke MS, 107
- Hiram Abif: 77 note;
- Hiram I, of Tyre: 75
- History: Book of in China, 30;
- Holme, Randle: 166
- Horus: story of, 42;
- heroism of, 45
- Hutchinson, William: on Geometry, 154 note;
- Idealism: soul of Masonry, 269;
- Ikhnaton: city of, 12;
- poet and idealist, 14
- Immortality: faith in old, 39;
- Instructions of a Parish Priest: 106
- Invocations: Masonic, 108 note
- Isis: story of, 42;
- Jackson, Andrew: 228
- Jesuits: and Masons, 210 note;
- attempt to expose Masonry, 211
- attempt to expose Masonry, 211
- Kabbalah: muddle of, 67
- Kabbalists: used Masonic symbols, 156, 157
- Kennedy, C.R.: quoted, 238
- Kipling, Rudyard: 232
- Krause: on Collegia, 79
- Legend: of Solomon, 75;
- Lessing, G.E.: quoted, 56;
- Lethaby: on discovery of Square, 10
- Liberty: and law, 7;
- Litchfield, Bishop of: 175
- Locke, John: 232
- Lodge: of Roman architects, 82;
- Longfellow: quoted, 260
- Lost Word: 67;
- Masonic search of, 263
- Lowell: on liberty, 272
- Mackey, Dr: on Craft-masonry, 251 note;
- definition of Masonry, 240
- Magnus, Albertus: 156
- Man: the builder, 6;
- Markham, Edwin: quoted, 282
- Marshall, John: 225
- Martyrs, the Four Crowned: 86;
- Masonry Dissected: 212
- Masonry: foundations of, 15;
- symbolism its soul, 18;
- in China, 30;
- symbols of in obelisk, 33;
- and the Mysteries, 53;
- secret tradition in, 66;
- and the Quest, 69;
- and Solomon's temple, 79;
- persecution of by Diocletian, 85;
- and the Comacines, 90;
- not new in Middle Ages, 97;
- and tolerance, 100;
- and the church, 102;
- antiquity of emphasized, 110;
- legend of, 111;
- and Pythagoras, 112;
- in England, 116;
- in Scotland, 123;
- decline of, 124;
- moral teaching of, 128-134;
- creed of, 134;
- degrees in, 142-4;
- not a patch-work, 149 note;
- an evolution, 150;
- defence of, 153;
- symbols of in language, 155;
- and Rosicrucianism, 164 note;
- parable of, 173;
- transformation of, 176;
- and religion, 177;
- theories about, 179 note;
- democracy of, 183;
- more than a trade, 185;
- mysticism of, 189 note;
- and Hermetic teaching, 194;
- universal, 201;
- rapid spread of, 204;
- early in America, 206;
- not a political party, 208;
- parody on, 209;
- attempted exposures of, 210-13;
- growth of despite dissensions, 219-20;
- unsectarian, 221 note;
- in America, 223;
- and the War of Revolution, 225;
- and Morgan, 227-8;
- and Civil War, 228;
- in literature, 232 note;
- defined, 239-40;
- as friendship, 240;
- best definition of, 241;
- description of, 242;
- has no secret, 244;
- misunderstood, 245;
- more than a church, 250;
- crypt, 253;
- temple of, 260;
- philosophy of, 262;
- and unity of God, 273;
- its appeal, 283;
- and friendship, 288;
- spirit of, 289;
- wisdom of, 295;
- ideal of, 297.
- Masons: and Comacines, 90;
- Masons' Company: 104;
- Mason's Marks: 131 note
- Maspero: on Egyptian temples, 11
- Master Mason;
- Masterpiece of Apprentice: 131
- Master's Part: 148;
- in Third Degree, 193
- Materialism: and Masonry, 268
- Mazzini: 230
- Mencius: 30
- Merzaria, Giuseppe: on Comacine Masters: 114
- Metamorphoses, by Apuleius: 51
- Montague, Duke of: elected Grand Master, 185
- Morgan, William: and Masonry, 227;
- excitement about, 292 note
- Mysteries, The: origin of, 46;
- Mystery-mongers: 60;
- fancies of, 164
- Mystery of Masonry Discovered: 210
- Mysticism: 60 note;
- Müller, Max: quoted, 253;
- parable of, 292
- parable of, 292
- Nathan the Wise: quoted, 56
- Numbers: use of by Pythagoras, 48 note;
- Oath: in the Mysteries, 48;
- Obelisks: meaning of, 13;
- Masonic symbols in, 33
- Occultism: 60 note;
- and Masonry, 164
- Old Charges: 102;
- Oldest Mason honored: 181
- Operative Masons: degrees of, 142;
- Oracles: Cessation of, 28
- Orient, Grand of France: not atheistic, 261
- Osiris: in trinity of Egypt, 23;
- Paine, Thomas: 225 note
- Payne, George: Grand Master, 187
- Philosophy: "blend of poetry, science and religion," 259;
- Pike, Albert: on symbolism of Masonry, 18;
- Pillars: origin of, 28;
- Plott, Dr: on Masonic customs, 166
- Plutarch: on Square, 28;
- Pole Star: cult of, 24
- Politics: and Masons, 179;
- Pompeii: collegium in, 83
- Pope, Alexander: Moral Essays quoted, 210;
- a Mason, 263
- Popes, the: and Masonry, 113, 122;
- bull of against Masonry, 211
- Prayer: in Masonry, 179, 244
- Preston, William: 182;
- defeated, 218
- "Protestant Jesuits": Masons called, 210 note
- Pyramids: wonder of, 13;
- loneliness of, 28
- Pyramid Texts: quoted, 40
- Quest, The: aspects of, 65;
- Reade, Winwood: quoted, 172
- Reconciliation, Lodge of: 221
- Regius MS: oldest Masonic MS, 104;
- Religion: of light, 14;
- Ritual: Old Charges part of, 128;
- Rome: secret orders in, 81;
- college of architects in, 86
- Rosicrucians: use Masonic symbols, 156, 157;
- Royal Arch Masonry: 220 note
- Ruskin, John: quoted, 7, 8;
- St. John's Day: 181;
- origin of, 183, note
- Sayer, Anthony: first Grand Master, 182
- Schaw Statutes: 123
- Sciences;
- Scott, Leader: quoted, 72;
- Scott, Sir Walter: on the word cowan, 138 note;
- a Mason, 232
- Secrecy: of the Mysteries, 48;
- Secret Doctrine: 57;
- Secret Sermon on the Mount: 47
- Sectarianism: Masonry against, 254
- Seven Lamps of Architecture: quoted, 7
- Shakespeare: 155;
- and Masons, 259 note
- Shelley: 14
- Signs: in the Mysteries, 47;
- Socrates: on unity of mind, 21;
- and the Mysteries, 46
- Solomon: and Hiram, 75;
- Solomon: Temple of, 75;
- Speculative Masonry: in Regius MS, 106;
- Spenser, Edmund: Masonic symbols in, 155
- Square: discovery of, 10;
- Staffordshire; Natural History of, quoted: 166
- Steinmetzen, of Germany: 118 note;
- degree of, 145
- Stones: sanctity of, 28
- Stuckely: Diary of, 203
- Swastika: antiquity of, 23;
- Symbolism: Carlyle on, 4;
- Taylor, Jeremy: 175 note
- Third Degree: legend of, 149;
- Tiler: 135;
- origin of name, 138 note
- Tolstoi: 232
- Tools of Masons: 26;
- Tradition: of Solomon, 75;
- Triangle: probable meaning of, 13 note;
- used by Spenser, 155
- Trinity: idea of old, 22;
- Unity: of human mind, 21;
- Universal Prayer: quoted, 263
- Unsectarian: the genius of Masonry, 221, 250, 252, 253, 258
- Waite, A.E.: 38;
- War: and Masonry, 225;
- Warren, Joseph: ardent Mason, 224
- Washington, George: a Mason, 225;
- sworn into office by Mason, 226
- Watts, G.F.: 174
- Webster, Daniel: on Green Tavern, 224
- Weed, Thurlow: and Masonry, 227 note;
- dirty trickster, 228
- Wellington: a Mason, 232
- Wesley, John: 175
- Wharton, Duke of: traitor, 224
- Wiltshire, Natural History of: quoted, 166
- Wren, Christopher: on columns, 9;
- York: Bishop of, 113;
- Zoroaster: faith of, 22