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Article "DESECRATION," OR SACRILEGE? ← Page 3 of 3 Article MASONRY'S ASPIRATION. Page 1 of 3 Article MASONRY'S ASPIRATION. Page 1 of 3 →
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"Desecration," Or Sacrilege?
of the Church itself ) the name was engraven of a brother who bad taken the most active part in the erection of a " stately and snperb edifice . " Thafc name has been " ruthlessly removed , and the name of some unknown
brother substituted . " Well might our astonished correspondent ask the reason why , or by what reason , such a wanton act of spoliation can be justified . We unhesitatingly and emphatically answer none ; and it is now incumbent
upon those who have had any hand in the shady transaction to clear themselves of the imputation which has been cast upon them . We should like to know what would be said by the Craft were any sacrilegious finger laid upon
any of the honoured names inscribed on the memorial stone afc Freemasons' Hall . " And the same principle applies to every building in the land dedicated to the same " sacred and solemn purpose . " This is not a merely
personal question , bufc one which affects the Craft , and indeed society at large . There is no justification for the defacement of any foundation stone , however humble may be the structure , or to what purpose it is dedicated , and we
regard this instance as the most flagrant one—the only one in fact—which has ever been brought under the notice of an indignant public . It will not be sufficient that this act of some Goth , prompted no doubt by private pique ,
should be exposed ; it must be explained and atoned for in order to prevent a scandal on the Craffc . Even the restoration of the stone to its original condition would nofc relieve the culprit who perpetrated such a sacrilege from
the contempt of honourable men and Masons . We have no idea who the " evil disposed person or persons " may have been , but it is the duty of fchose who are most deeply interested in the Surrey Masonic Hall , and in the Craft
generally , to take care that no such a blot as this should longer remain upon their escutcheon . We shall expect to hear considerably more of this unpleasant matter , unless some explanation is afc once forthcoming , which we
sincerely hope may be the case , for the satisfaction of all concerned , and especially for the sake of the individual who has the greatest reason to feel insulted and aggrieved .
Masonry's Aspiration.
MASONRY'S ASPIRATION .
An Oration by Rev . Bro . George McGldlan Fiske at the Dedication of the New Masonic Temple in Providence , Rhode Island . 3 rd February 1886 .
( Continued from page 371 ) .
AND then , as in the course of time the true religion dawned and lighted up the world , the workmen found that its teachings , its sympathy , its hope , its faith , its charity , its glorification of labour in divine injunction
and by divine example , its common bond of life , could embellish and intensify their fellowships , so fchafc religion came to lend tone and colour and sacredness to their
. Under the consecration of the world-wide faith , we came into that almost weird and shrouded history of the mediasval builders , knit together in societies wherein
prayer and labour went hand in hand , and faifch wrought with their works , ancl devotion breathing on all they did , made all their fabrics acts of worship and belief . The spirit of the Masonic Order , as it lives and speaks to-day ,
m grave and reverential ritual , in offices and precepts , is hereditary from thafc era . Let Masons all remember this , for it is the glory of our Orrler . A distinguished writer says that the founding of
Freemasons Lodges introduced a distinct style of architecture , the Italian-Gothic . Ifc is nofc faultless . What human work is such or can be so ? But listen to his description of the exceeding glory of thafc style . " The characteristic
defects ancl excellencies of the style might be fairly illustrated , if any one had the heart to stand in the square at Milan and lecture on that glorious marvel , unawed by the four thousand glorious sentinels thafc keep their eternal
watch upon the roof , through the haze of summer ' s sun , and the wavering gleams of the full nightly moon , whicli seems to multiply the shadowy figures , with her unsteady illumination . But Milan in the moonlight disarms
criticism . When the moon ' s full splendour streams on Milan ' s roofs , and overflows upon its lofty buttresses ; when the liquid radiance trickles down from the glory-cinctured heads of the marble saints , like the oil from Aaron ' s beard ,
Masonry's Aspiration.
and every fretted pinnacle , and every sculptured spout ran with light as they might run with rain in a thundershower , who could dare to say there was a fault in thafc affecting miracle of Christian art ?"
Remember , my brothers , the spirit which inspired a work like that is the spirit which by just inheritance ought to reign in this Masonic Temple ; nay , more , in every Mason ' s heart to-day . Let us not repudiate such a past ,
nor trifle with it , as if it were but a painted piece of histrionic scenery that forms a becoming background to our acting . Let us not do despite and dishonour to such
a glorious past . Let us make something more of Masonry than a mere masquerade , which only looks like and talks about the past , while it really disowns the spirit which left in thafc past much thafc was glorious and divine .
Thus , the Cathedral at Milan , is but one instance out of the many trophies which our progenitors have leffc . They adorned the world , and brought succeeding ages as pilgrims to behold , to wonder , to believe , to adore , and to be taught by their mighty works .
Masonry was the brotherhood of scientific labour reformed and inspired by the power of the revealed truth of Almighty God .
To these traditions have been added the reminiscence of the lofty exploits of the Crusaders' warfare , connecting with the arts of peace the heroism , the self-sacrifice and burning love of the Christian soldier . Those wars
subsided . The palmer , with sandals , staff and scallop shell , was seen no more along the highways leading to the Holy Sepulchre . Tho Templar , with legs crossed and the crosshilted sword by his side , lay down in his last sleep . Masonry
ceased to be a society of literal masons . But the order passed into another and sublimer stage . The spirit of Mason and . Templar lived and still lives , and gathering together the golden threads of memory , the Order takes up
the legend of craftsmen and of warrior , and retaining implement , weapon , habit , insignia and language , relates the parable of human life phrased in . these outward symbols of the inner and imperishable truth .
These are the antecedents of Masonry—this Prophet which has so many followers in the swift current of our prosy modern life . It stands among men freighted with all this wealth of men ' s best deeds for man and God . Its mantle
is thafc of piety and its heart is a house of prayer . It is alive in this new world—on these western borders of the earth—still living because its creed of faith in God and of
dependence on His aid and grace is the same now as when Masonry was operative—the same now as when its tools , the gavel , the trowel and the square were in literal use on material substances of stone and marble .
The occupancy of a temple of this magnifcude is an evidence that Masonry is a force—a progressive force , keeping pace with other forces that surround it . It is a power—a growing power . It is no antiquated or obsolete
institution , which new thought or fresh activities have supersede or made useless . We are nofc compelled to seek for laboured eulogies of the Masonic Order . The uninitiated may smile or sneer as if Masonry were some solemn
child ' s play , some sombre farce , enacted with over-much varied ceremony . Such know little whereof they affirm . Masonry is nofc pastime , mere spectacle , or scenery , nor is ifc a society existing for the shallow reason of mere society .
Masonry exists and flourishes in the vigour and the grace of an immortal youth because it has to do with eternal things . It does not treat of time entirely , nor does it bind its sons together to enjoy and use things temporal . It is ever
pointing stedfasfly toward the realities unseen , bufc for that reason all the more truly realities , because they are eternal . As the world grows in security , in comfort , in culture , in refinement , we do not find the Masonic Order
retiring to the background or diminishing in interest or in numbers . It has and holds its place among the choicest buildings , wherein men garner carefully their material treasures and the jewels of their affections . Among the
massive piles where commerce buys and sells and gams and loses ; among the academic groves and porches where Art and Science calmly meditate in learned leisure ; among the consecrated aisles where religion seeks and finds , and bends
the knee before its God ; among the costly mansions where men bestow their household gods and find the reposeful sweetness of domestic life ; among all these are found , conspicuous for size and elegance , the fanes of Masonry . The exchange , fche cathedral , the college , the mansion—as
features in the grouping of the picture of a great townare now incomplete without the Masonic temple . This
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
"Desecration," Or Sacrilege?
of the Church itself ) the name was engraven of a brother who bad taken the most active part in the erection of a " stately and snperb edifice . " Thafc name has been " ruthlessly removed , and the name of some unknown
brother substituted . " Well might our astonished correspondent ask the reason why , or by what reason , such a wanton act of spoliation can be justified . We unhesitatingly and emphatically answer none ; and it is now incumbent
upon those who have had any hand in the shady transaction to clear themselves of the imputation which has been cast upon them . We should like to know what would be said by the Craft were any sacrilegious finger laid upon
any of the honoured names inscribed on the memorial stone afc Freemasons' Hall . " And the same principle applies to every building in the land dedicated to the same " sacred and solemn purpose . " This is not a merely
personal question , bufc one which affects the Craft , and indeed society at large . There is no justification for the defacement of any foundation stone , however humble may be the structure , or to what purpose it is dedicated , and we
regard this instance as the most flagrant one—the only one in fact—which has ever been brought under the notice of an indignant public . It will not be sufficient that this act of some Goth , prompted no doubt by private pique ,
should be exposed ; it must be explained and atoned for in order to prevent a scandal on the Craffc . Even the restoration of the stone to its original condition would nofc relieve the culprit who perpetrated such a sacrilege from
the contempt of honourable men and Masons . We have no idea who the " evil disposed person or persons " may have been , but it is the duty of fchose who are most deeply interested in the Surrey Masonic Hall , and in the Craft
generally , to take care that no such a blot as this should longer remain upon their escutcheon . We shall expect to hear considerably more of this unpleasant matter , unless some explanation is afc once forthcoming , which we
sincerely hope may be the case , for the satisfaction of all concerned , and especially for the sake of the individual who has the greatest reason to feel insulted and aggrieved .
Masonry's Aspiration.
MASONRY'S ASPIRATION .
An Oration by Rev . Bro . George McGldlan Fiske at the Dedication of the New Masonic Temple in Providence , Rhode Island . 3 rd February 1886 .
( Continued from page 371 ) .
AND then , as in the course of time the true religion dawned and lighted up the world , the workmen found that its teachings , its sympathy , its hope , its faith , its charity , its glorification of labour in divine injunction
and by divine example , its common bond of life , could embellish and intensify their fellowships , so fchafc religion came to lend tone and colour and sacredness to their
. Under the consecration of the world-wide faith , we came into that almost weird and shrouded history of the mediasval builders , knit together in societies wherein
prayer and labour went hand in hand , and faifch wrought with their works , ancl devotion breathing on all they did , made all their fabrics acts of worship and belief . The spirit of the Masonic Order , as it lives and speaks to-day ,
m grave and reverential ritual , in offices and precepts , is hereditary from thafc era . Let Masons all remember this , for it is the glory of our Orrler . A distinguished writer says that the founding of
Freemasons Lodges introduced a distinct style of architecture , the Italian-Gothic . Ifc is nofc faultless . What human work is such or can be so ? But listen to his description of the exceeding glory of thafc style . " The characteristic
defects ancl excellencies of the style might be fairly illustrated , if any one had the heart to stand in the square at Milan and lecture on that glorious marvel , unawed by the four thousand glorious sentinels thafc keep their eternal
watch upon the roof , through the haze of summer ' s sun , and the wavering gleams of the full nightly moon , whicli seems to multiply the shadowy figures , with her unsteady illumination . But Milan in the moonlight disarms
criticism . When the moon ' s full splendour streams on Milan ' s roofs , and overflows upon its lofty buttresses ; when the liquid radiance trickles down from the glory-cinctured heads of the marble saints , like the oil from Aaron ' s beard ,
Masonry's Aspiration.
and every fretted pinnacle , and every sculptured spout ran with light as they might run with rain in a thundershower , who could dare to say there was a fault in thafc affecting miracle of Christian art ?"
Remember , my brothers , the spirit which inspired a work like that is the spirit which by just inheritance ought to reign in this Masonic Temple ; nay , more , in every Mason ' s heart to-day . Let us not repudiate such a past ,
nor trifle with it , as if it were but a painted piece of histrionic scenery that forms a becoming background to our acting . Let us not do despite and dishonour to such
a glorious past . Let us make something more of Masonry than a mere masquerade , which only looks like and talks about the past , while it really disowns the spirit which left in thafc past much thafc was glorious and divine .
Thus , the Cathedral at Milan , is but one instance out of the many trophies which our progenitors have leffc . They adorned the world , and brought succeeding ages as pilgrims to behold , to wonder , to believe , to adore , and to be taught by their mighty works .
Masonry was the brotherhood of scientific labour reformed and inspired by the power of the revealed truth of Almighty God .
To these traditions have been added the reminiscence of the lofty exploits of the Crusaders' warfare , connecting with the arts of peace the heroism , the self-sacrifice and burning love of the Christian soldier . Those wars
subsided . The palmer , with sandals , staff and scallop shell , was seen no more along the highways leading to the Holy Sepulchre . Tho Templar , with legs crossed and the crosshilted sword by his side , lay down in his last sleep . Masonry
ceased to be a society of literal masons . But the order passed into another and sublimer stage . The spirit of Mason and . Templar lived and still lives , and gathering together the golden threads of memory , the Order takes up
the legend of craftsmen and of warrior , and retaining implement , weapon , habit , insignia and language , relates the parable of human life phrased in . these outward symbols of the inner and imperishable truth .
These are the antecedents of Masonry—this Prophet which has so many followers in the swift current of our prosy modern life . It stands among men freighted with all this wealth of men ' s best deeds for man and God . Its mantle
is thafc of piety and its heart is a house of prayer . It is alive in this new world—on these western borders of the earth—still living because its creed of faith in God and of
dependence on His aid and grace is the same now as when Masonry was operative—the same now as when its tools , the gavel , the trowel and the square were in literal use on material substances of stone and marble .
The occupancy of a temple of this magnifcude is an evidence that Masonry is a force—a progressive force , keeping pace with other forces that surround it . It is a power—a growing power . It is no antiquated or obsolete
institution , which new thought or fresh activities have supersede or made useless . We are nofc compelled to seek for laboured eulogies of the Masonic Order . The uninitiated may smile or sneer as if Masonry were some solemn
child ' s play , some sombre farce , enacted with over-much varied ceremony . Such know little whereof they affirm . Masonry is nofc pastime , mere spectacle , or scenery , nor is ifc a society existing for the shallow reason of mere society .
Masonry exists and flourishes in the vigour and the grace of an immortal youth because it has to do with eternal things . It does not treat of time entirely , nor does it bind its sons together to enjoy and use things temporal . It is ever
pointing stedfasfly toward the realities unseen , bufc for that reason all the more truly realities , because they are eternal . As the world grows in security , in comfort , in culture , in refinement , we do not find the Masonic Order
retiring to the background or diminishing in interest or in numbers . It has and holds its place among the choicest buildings , wherein men garner carefully their material treasures and the jewels of their affections . Among the
massive piles where commerce buys and sells and gams and loses ; among the academic groves and porches where Art and Science calmly meditate in learned leisure ; among the consecrated aisles where religion seeks and finds , and bends
the knee before its God ; among the costly mansions where men bestow their household gods and find the reposeful sweetness of domestic life ; among all these are found , conspicuous for size and elegance , the fanes of Masonry . The exchange , fche cathedral , the college , the mansion—as
features in the grouping of the picture of a great townare now incomplete without the Masonic temple . This