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Article MAS ONIC L E GENDS. ← Page 4 of 6 →
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Mas Onic L E Gends.
this , shor ^ exhortation so often repeated . Lik e the Athenians they wished for something new . When he was informed of this , his answer was , " This is what the Lord commands you , and this if ye do it is sufficient . " As if he had said , " No new commandment give I unto you , but that which you had from the beginning , that ye love one another . " The true test of love to Grod is love to the Brethren . Clement of Alexandria relates , that St . John , while at Ephesus ,
previous to his exile to Patmos , had adopted a young man of much promise . He committed him to the guardianship of a bishop during his absence . On his return to Ephesus , he called on the bishop to deliver up his charge , which he was unable to do , as the young man had , during the absence of St . John , taken to evil courses , and had become the leader of a band of robbers , the terror of the
surrounding country . The sequel of the legend illustrates what moral suasion can effect , - when used by a man who is himself an exemplar of virtue and goodness ; over an erring brother . St . John visited the rendezvous of the robbers , and had a conference with their chief , who at length burst into tears , and asked forgiveness . His blood-stained right hand , which he tried to hide under his robe , St . John seized , kissed , and bathed with his tears . He remained
with him . exhorting and praying , and left him a reconvert , reconciled with himself and heaven . St . John owned a tame partridge , which he played with and fed . " A certain . huntsman passing by with his bow and arrows , was astonished to see the great apostle , so venerable for his age and sanctity , engaged in such an apparently trivial amusement . The
apostle asked him if he always kept his bow bent ? He answered , that would be the way to render it useless . c If , ' replied St . John , c unbend your bow to prevent its becoming useless , so do I unbend my mind for the same reason . ' " A similar lesson is taught in every
well regulated Lodge , by the observance of the time-honoured custom of calling the Craft from labour to refreshment , and remanding them to labour again on all proper occasions . Occasional indulgences in innocent hilarity and temperate refreshments are not only allowable , but necessary for the mind as well , as the body , and are not inconsi stent with , but of use to sustain such a life of industry in his vocation , and of beneficial action as should characterise every " brother of the mystic tie . "
In old works of art , St . John is usually represented as holding a radiant circle in his hand , with an Eagle in the centre , and accompanied with the mottoes , " Quasi aquila ascendit , et avolabit " ( Jer . xlix , 22 ) , and " In primo est verbum" ( John i . 1 ) , and others of a similar nature . "
It would not come within the scope of our design in this article to narrate , ever so briefly , the many Christian legends wo deem to be of Masonic import . Yet our references would not have that completeness we desire , were we to omit an allusion to the legends of St . Geotioe , St . Nicholas and St . Paul . The first has a more immediate connection with the chivalric orders of Masonry , and that of St ,
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Mas Onic L E Gends.
this , shor ^ exhortation so often repeated . Lik e the Athenians they wished for something new . When he was informed of this , his answer was , " This is what the Lord commands you , and this if ye do it is sufficient . " As if he had said , " No new commandment give I unto you , but that which you had from the beginning , that ye love one another . " The true test of love to Grod is love to the Brethren . Clement of Alexandria relates , that St . John , while at Ephesus ,
previous to his exile to Patmos , had adopted a young man of much promise . He committed him to the guardianship of a bishop during his absence . On his return to Ephesus , he called on the bishop to deliver up his charge , which he was unable to do , as the young man had , during the absence of St . John , taken to evil courses , and had become the leader of a band of robbers , the terror of the
surrounding country . The sequel of the legend illustrates what moral suasion can effect , - when used by a man who is himself an exemplar of virtue and goodness ; over an erring brother . St . John visited the rendezvous of the robbers , and had a conference with their chief , who at length burst into tears , and asked forgiveness . His blood-stained right hand , which he tried to hide under his robe , St . John seized , kissed , and bathed with his tears . He remained
with him . exhorting and praying , and left him a reconvert , reconciled with himself and heaven . St . John owned a tame partridge , which he played with and fed . " A certain . huntsman passing by with his bow and arrows , was astonished to see the great apostle , so venerable for his age and sanctity , engaged in such an apparently trivial amusement . The
apostle asked him if he always kept his bow bent ? He answered , that would be the way to render it useless . c If , ' replied St . John , c unbend your bow to prevent its becoming useless , so do I unbend my mind for the same reason . ' " A similar lesson is taught in every
well regulated Lodge , by the observance of the time-honoured custom of calling the Craft from labour to refreshment , and remanding them to labour again on all proper occasions . Occasional indulgences in innocent hilarity and temperate refreshments are not only allowable , but necessary for the mind as well , as the body , and are not inconsi stent with , but of use to sustain such a life of industry in his vocation , and of beneficial action as should characterise every " brother of the mystic tie . "
In old works of art , St . John is usually represented as holding a radiant circle in his hand , with an Eagle in the centre , and accompanied with the mottoes , " Quasi aquila ascendit , et avolabit " ( Jer . xlix , 22 ) , and " In primo est verbum" ( John i . 1 ) , and others of a similar nature . "
It would not come within the scope of our design in this article to narrate , ever so briefly , the many Christian legends wo deem to be of Masonic import . Yet our references would not have that completeness we desire , were we to omit an allusion to the legends of St . Geotioe , St . Nicholas and St . Paul . The first has a more immediate connection with the chivalric orders of Masonry , and that of St ,