-
Articles/Ads
Article REACTION. ← Page 2 of 2 Article THE RISING AND SETTING SUN. Page 1 of 1 Article THE RISING AND SETTING SUN. Page 1 of 1
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Reaction.
has been genuine , and how much of it has been the outcome of actual conspiracy , —for it is by no other name that such proceedings as have taken place can bo described , provided they are not actually the outcome of genuine
agitation ? For ourselves , we are still of opinion that very muoh has been made out of very little ; but in this regard a few years experience of whatever reforms may be decided upon will bo the best , if not tho only method of
deciding whether too ' much or too little blame has been bestowed . If , three or four years hence wo find the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys as ellicienfc and as capable as it was a few months back : if then it is able to provide for
a like number of children as it was benefitting at tho commencement of last year , —and at a greatly reduced outlay , — wo shall agree that the exposure that has taken placo and tho hard language that has been used was in part
justifiable ; bat if , on the other hand , wo find little or no improvement or saving , then we shall know that our opinion on the point was a just one , and we shall be even more ready to
extend sympathy to tho officials and committeemen who have been so indecently , even unmercifully abused , during the last few months .
It is early yet to speak of a reaction setting in in connection with tho unfortunate experiences of the last twelve months , and yet signs are not wanting that something of tho kind is to bo expected . One of the
strongest points in favour of our view that the opposition was not wholly just ia to be found in tho fact that it was not confined to one quarter alone . The Secretary of the ltoyal Masonic Institution for Boys happened to bo also
the Secretary of the Mark Degree , and when he was assailed in one quarter the opportunity was seized of attacking him in the other . The Craft , or at least the members of tho Mark Degree , know the outcome of the
attack : Bro . Binckes resigned his officeas Mark G . Secretary , and has been awarded a well-earned retiring allowance . But how was this brought about ? Was it the outcome of legitimate feeling , or are wo to believe that " intrigue has had more to do with the retirement than ' free will and
accord . '" This question is just now agitating the minds of a large section of the Craft , and if it should be necessary , wo believe there is sufficient evidence capable of being brought forward to prove , not only "intrigue , " but the
existence of a deep conspiracy . Tho secret history of this agitation has yet to be written—that it will see the light of day at an early date we cannot promise , but we are assured it will eventually be made public ; then things will
appear under a very different light to that now apparent . What at present seems very black may wear a different aspect if looked at with a knowledge of men and manners just now denied the ordinary observer .
The Rising And Setting Sun.
THE RISING AND SETTING SUN .
E REEMASONRY was born and spent its early life in the East , but now in its manhood inhabits mainly the West , and its course has ever been from tho rising towards' tho setting sun . It reminds ono of Bishop Berkeley ' s prophetic lino :
" Westward the conrso of empire takes its way . " Tho Craft probably had its origin in Egypt , whence it was carried to Phoenicia , and Palestine , but in none of these countries is it any longer native , but exists only as
an olishoot from a western stock ; while in Great Britain and the United States of America , especially , and also in some portions of tho continent of Europe , tho great centres of Masonic Light now exist , whence its lays proceed to all
portions of tho civilized world . Egypt to-day receives its Masonic Light from England . Strange revolution of history ! But greatest of all countries in tho future , if not in the picsent , is tho American Union , and hero Freemasonry
is thriving to a wonderfnl , nay even to an alarming extent . Grand Lodges are rapidly multiplying in this land of tho setting sun , und they already include in their several jurisdictions over six hundred thousand affiliated Masons .
bo great a multiple of jurisdictions and initiates must , in the nature of things , produce a multitude of counsels , a vai'iety of administrations , decisions aud usages . This is to he deprecated , bnt cannot bo altogether prevented .
Tho East of Freemasonry was . 1 diminutive land , ai compared with tho West . What are Egypt , Phoenicia , Palestine and India , as compared with Great Britain and
The Rising And Setting Sun.
America ? And what is tho America of to-day , as compared with tho America to be , a hundred or a thousand years hence ? The various past is entitled to our respect
and homage , for out of it has come all that we most prize , but the more various future , big with promise , will reveal the wonder-land of Freemasonry , as it will that of civilisation .
Tho rising snn is a matchless emblem of the Architect of the Universe , as it comes forth from tho tents of night , aud passing through the golden gate of the Orient , rises in tho heavens with the statoliness of an oriental Pharaoh
" monarch of all ho surveys ; but after it attains tho zenith of its conrso , at High Twelve , and then royally salaams to the West , and v . ith resplendent grace and
beauty enters tho blushing portals of tho Occident , there is a charm about tho setting which overmatches even the splendour of tho rising . Gaze on tho western sky at tho decline of day , and say whether you cannot see there tho
Isles of the Blest , the Garden of Hesperides , tho Happy Hunting Grounds of the nations of all ages ? All of theso they located in the West . The East is the land of origins , but the West is the land of consummations . The seed is planted in tho East , the fruit is gathered in tho West .
and in our land , are more powerful still , because thoy rule over a far greater constituency of Freemasons , who aro privileged each to know the entirety of the Mystery , and each is eligible to election to sit in the Oriental Chair .
Pharaoh , and tho kings of Israel and of Tyre , were notable and powerful rulers of the Craft of Freemasons in their day , but their successors in Solomon ' s Chair in our day ,
No one has estimated , or can estimate , the far-reaching character of the influence of Freemasonry in the world ft by no means is limited to the bodies of the Craft . Every initiate is a light-bearer , a centre of light .
Freemasonry is itself akin to light in this , that it is among tho imponderables . Scientists tell us that so-called material light is immaterial , and but a mode of motion , and to bo
classed with heat , electricity and magnetism . Possibl y , as some one has eloquently said , light is God ' s natural expression , manifestation , vestment . King David said of Him :
Thou coverest Thyself with Light aa with a garment . " In Job , tho Almighty , speaking to tho Emir of Arabia out of the whirlwind , says :
" Tho way—where is it to Light's dwelling place ? And darkness—where the place of its abode ?" While Milton sang : " Hail , holy Light ! Offspring of Heaven , first-born . "
What was the Shekinah of tho Old Testament but the Light of the living God ? And in the New Testament , wo are told , respecting the New Jerusalem which shall como
down from God , that "tho Lamb will bo tho Light thereof . " If so , the Son of the Highest will thenceforth eternally shine .
Freemasonry is nothing if it bo not Light . Imitating the all-Father , at such distance as man must imitate Deity , the founders of Freemasonry , in a past so remote that wo cannot now specify it , said : " Let there be Light ! " That
is , let truth prevail , let knowledge increase , let brotherly love continue , let charity be all-embracing . Tho result is the Craft of to-day—which aims to give its initiates tho best enjoyment , tho purest lessons of morality , and to
inspire high aims for tho here and the hereafter . Freemasonry is a system of moral and intellectual Light . It comes to us From the Orient , and is therefore like unto the light of tho rising sun , and it streams upon us in the
Occident , and hence is akin to the light of tho sotting sun . Freemasonry possesses one hundred and eighty degrees of light , all crowded into its own three degrees , which are conferred in all lands , from the vising to the setting sun . —Keystone
Tho memorial stone of a new Masonic Hall at Stromnesp , will bo laid , with Masonio honours , on the 11 th inst . It ia expected that a number of the brethren from Kirkwall , Lerwick , Wick , and Thurso will be present , along with the members of the Provincial Lod ^ e . o
NO MORE DEAF . — -Nicholson ' s Patented Artificial Ear Drums cure Deafness and NOI ' in the Head in all stages . 132 pan-e illustrated Hook , with full description free . Address J . H . NiciMr . sofr , 21 Bedordsqnnrc , Loudon , W . C .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Reaction.
has been genuine , and how much of it has been the outcome of actual conspiracy , —for it is by no other name that such proceedings as have taken place can bo described , provided they are not actually the outcome of genuine
agitation ? For ourselves , we are still of opinion that very muoh has been made out of very little ; but in this regard a few years experience of whatever reforms may be decided upon will bo the best , if not tho only method of
deciding whether too ' much or too little blame has been bestowed . If , three or four years hence wo find the Royal Masonic Institution for Boys as ellicienfc and as capable as it was a few months back : if then it is able to provide for
a like number of children as it was benefitting at tho commencement of last year , —and at a greatly reduced outlay , — wo shall agree that the exposure that has taken placo and tho hard language that has been used was in part
justifiable ; bat if , on the other hand , wo find little or no improvement or saving , then we shall know that our opinion on the point was a just one , and we shall be even more ready to
extend sympathy to tho officials and committeemen who have been so indecently , even unmercifully abused , during the last few months .
It is early yet to speak of a reaction setting in in connection with tho unfortunate experiences of the last twelve months , and yet signs are not wanting that something of tho kind is to bo expected . One of the
strongest points in favour of our view that the opposition was not wholly just ia to be found in tho fact that it was not confined to one quarter alone . The Secretary of the ltoyal Masonic Institution for Boys happened to bo also
the Secretary of the Mark Degree , and when he was assailed in one quarter the opportunity was seized of attacking him in the other . The Craft , or at least the members of tho Mark Degree , know the outcome of the
attack : Bro . Binckes resigned his officeas Mark G . Secretary , and has been awarded a well-earned retiring allowance . But how was this brought about ? Was it the outcome of legitimate feeling , or are wo to believe that " intrigue has had more to do with the retirement than ' free will and
accord . '" This question is just now agitating the minds of a large section of the Craft , and if it should be necessary , wo believe there is sufficient evidence capable of being brought forward to prove , not only "intrigue , " but the
existence of a deep conspiracy . Tho secret history of this agitation has yet to be written—that it will see the light of day at an early date we cannot promise , but we are assured it will eventually be made public ; then things will
appear under a very different light to that now apparent . What at present seems very black may wear a different aspect if looked at with a knowledge of men and manners just now denied the ordinary observer .
The Rising And Setting Sun.
THE RISING AND SETTING SUN .
E REEMASONRY was born and spent its early life in the East , but now in its manhood inhabits mainly the West , and its course has ever been from tho rising towards' tho setting sun . It reminds ono of Bishop Berkeley ' s prophetic lino :
" Westward the conrso of empire takes its way . " Tho Craft probably had its origin in Egypt , whence it was carried to Phoenicia , and Palestine , but in none of these countries is it any longer native , but exists only as
an olishoot from a western stock ; while in Great Britain and the United States of America , especially , and also in some portions of tho continent of Europe , tho great centres of Masonic Light now exist , whence its lays proceed to all
portions of tho civilized world . Egypt to-day receives its Masonic Light from England . Strange revolution of history ! But greatest of all countries in tho future , if not in the picsent , is tho American Union , and hero Freemasonry
is thriving to a wonderfnl , nay even to an alarming extent . Grand Lodges are rapidly multiplying in this land of tho setting sun , und they already include in their several jurisdictions over six hundred thousand affiliated Masons .
bo great a multiple of jurisdictions and initiates must , in the nature of things , produce a multitude of counsels , a vai'iety of administrations , decisions aud usages . This is to he deprecated , bnt cannot bo altogether prevented .
Tho East of Freemasonry was . 1 diminutive land , ai compared with tho West . What are Egypt , Phoenicia , Palestine and India , as compared with Great Britain and
The Rising And Setting Sun.
America ? And what is tho America of to-day , as compared with tho America to be , a hundred or a thousand years hence ? The various past is entitled to our respect
and homage , for out of it has come all that we most prize , but the more various future , big with promise , will reveal the wonder-land of Freemasonry , as it will that of civilisation .
Tho rising snn is a matchless emblem of the Architect of the Universe , as it comes forth from tho tents of night , aud passing through the golden gate of the Orient , rises in tho heavens with the statoliness of an oriental Pharaoh
" monarch of all ho surveys ; but after it attains tho zenith of its conrso , at High Twelve , and then royally salaams to the West , and v . ith resplendent grace and
beauty enters tho blushing portals of tho Occident , there is a charm about tho setting which overmatches even the splendour of tho rising . Gaze on tho western sky at tho decline of day , and say whether you cannot see there tho
Isles of the Blest , the Garden of Hesperides , tho Happy Hunting Grounds of the nations of all ages ? All of theso they located in the West . The East is the land of origins , but the West is the land of consummations . The seed is planted in tho East , the fruit is gathered in tho West .
and in our land , are more powerful still , because thoy rule over a far greater constituency of Freemasons , who aro privileged each to know the entirety of the Mystery , and each is eligible to election to sit in the Oriental Chair .
Pharaoh , and tho kings of Israel and of Tyre , were notable and powerful rulers of the Craft of Freemasons in their day , but their successors in Solomon ' s Chair in our day ,
No one has estimated , or can estimate , the far-reaching character of the influence of Freemasonry in the world ft by no means is limited to the bodies of the Craft . Every initiate is a light-bearer , a centre of light .
Freemasonry is itself akin to light in this , that it is among tho imponderables . Scientists tell us that so-called material light is immaterial , and but a mode of motion , and to bo
classed with heat , electricity and magnetism . Possibl y , as some one has eloquently said , light is God ' s natural expression , manifestation , vestment . King David said of Him :
Thou coverest Thyself with Light aa with a garment . " In Job , tho Almighty , speaking to tho Emir of Arabia out of the whirlwind , says :
" Tho way—where is it to Light's dwelling place ? And darkness—where the place of its abode ?" While Milton sang : " Hail , holy Light ! Offspring of Heaven , first-born . "
What was the Shekinah of tho Old Testament but the Light of the living God ? And in the New Testament , wo are told , respecting the New Jerusalem which shall como
down from God , that "tho Lamb will bo tho Light thereof . " If so , the Son of the Highest will thenceforth eternally shine .
Freemasonry is nothing if it bo not Light . Imitating the all-Father , at such distance as man must imitate Deity , the founders of Freemasonry , in a past so remote that wo cannot now specify it , said : " Let there be Light ! " That
is , let truth prevail , let knowledge increase , let brotherly love continue , let charity be all-embracing . Tho result is the Craft of to-day—which aims to give its initiates tho best enjoyment , tho purest lessons of morality , and to
inspire high aims for tho here and the hereafter . Freemasonry is a system of moral and intellectual Light . It comes to us From the Orient , and is therefore like unto the light of tho rising sun , and it streams upon us in the
Occident , and hence is akin to the light of tho sotting sun . Freemasonry possesses one hundred and eighty degrees of light , all crowded into its own three degrees , which are conferred in all lands , from the vising to the setting sun . —Keystone
Tho memorial stone of a new Masonic Hall at Stromnesp , will bo laid , with Masonio honours , on the 11 th inst . It ia expected that a number of the brethren from Kirkwall , Lerwick , Wick , and Thurso will be present , along with the members of the Provincial Lod ^ e . o
NO MORE DEAF . — -Nicholson ' s Patented Artificial Ear Drums cure Deafness and NOI ' in the Head in all stages . 132 pan-e illustrated Hook , with full description free . Address J . H . NiciMr . sofr , 21 Bedordsqnnrc , Loudon , W . C .