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Article GRAND LODGE. 1 ← Page 4 of 6 →
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Grand Lodge. 1
The other points m the letter of Bro . Harington . are answered . by the M . W . Gr . M . seriatim : He states , first , that whilst he regrets the resignation of Bro . Harington , he acknowledges the courteous and Masonic feeling with which the announcement is made ; secondly , that upon a review of the circumstances he cannot bring himself to
believe that the events which have taken place would have been prevented had his communication to Grand Lodge been made in September instead of March ; thirdly , that the movement for independence he has reason to believe did not originate with the English Lodges ; fourthl y / that he has read with jpain and regret the proceedings of the Prov . Grand Lodge of Canada "West , in September last , and here his lordship speaks somewhat warmly : —
"I have read with astonishment , not unmingled with indignation , the following words , said to have been uttered by the Prov . G . M . : — ' The Provincial Grand Lodge of Canada West having now declared its independence , I , as the representative of the M . W . G . M . of England , now direct and require that every Master or delegate holding any warrant of a
Lodge from the Grand Lodge of England do now return the same to me , in accordance with the suggestion of the G . M . of England , contained in his address to the Grand Lodge on the 4 th of March last . ' I am bound to say that in thus ( and in my name ) directing and requiring Brethren to surrender their warrants , the Prov . G . M . not only assumed a power which I , as Grand Master , had no authority either to exercise myself or delegate to him , but which is directly opposed to the very essence and spirit of the Constitutions . "
And lastly , the M . W . G . M . says that under present circumstances he cannot acknowledge either of the Canadian Grand Lodges—and therefore cannot accept the offer of Bro . Harington to act as representative of the Grand Lodge of England . His lordship writes that"To do so w ould be inconsistent with the first principles of Masonic Unity . Of the Lodges existing in the Provinces of Canada , and holding
under the Grand Lodge of England , the warrants of seven have been returned by those who have joined the Independent Grand Lodge ; whilst thirty-four have been returned by those who have joined the Ancient Grand Lodge , leaving a large number of Lodges of which some are known to remain firm in their allegiance ; and of the secession of others there is no official record . It is plain that the Grand Lodge of England has no right or title to absolve from their allegiance the Brethren who are anxious
to preserve it ; 4 is equally clear that it is the duty , the sacred duty , of the Grand Master and Grand Lodge to support them in maintaining their allegiance and in preserving inviolate their obligation to their parent Grand Lodge , Bearing in mind that there are already two self-erected Grand Lodges in Canada ; that there are many Lodges which have not joined cither ; that there are others who , having never wavered in their fidelity ,
pray to have a Prov . G . M . appointed in the place of him who has seceded from them , and who desire to remain under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of England , I cannot think that any reasonable Mason will , upon a calm and deliberate review of the facts , come to any other conclusion than that recognition is impossible ; and that , even were it accorded , it would lead only to increased confusion . "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Grand Lodge. 1
The other points m the letter of Bro . Harington . are answered . by the M . W . Gr . M . seriatim : He states , first , that whilst he regrets the resignation of Bro . Harington , he acknowledges the courteous and Masonic feeling with which the announcement is made ; secondly , that upon a review of the circumstances he cannot bring himself to
believe that the events which have taken place would have been prevented had his communication to Grand Lodge been made in September instead of March ; thirdly , that the movement for independence he has reason to believe did not originate with the English Lodges ; fourthl y / that he has read with jpain and regret the proceedings of the Prov . Grand Lodge of Canada "West , in September last , and here his lordship speaks somewhat warmly : —
"I have read with astonishment , not unmingled with indignation , the following words , said to have been uttered by the Prov . G . M . : — ' The Provincial Grand Lodge of Canada West having now declared its independence , I , as the representative of the M . W . G . M . of England , now direct and require that every Master or delegate holding any warrant of a
Lodge from the Grand Lodge of England do now return the same to me , in accordance with the suggestion of the G . M . of England , contained in his address to the Grand Lodge on the 4 th of March last . ' I am bound to say that in thus ( and in my name ) directing and requiring Brethren to surrender their warrants , the Prov . G . M . not only assumed a power which I , as Grand Master , had no authority either to exercise myself or delegate to him , but which is directly opposed to the very essence and spirit of the Constitutions . "
And lastly , the M . W . G . M . says that under present circumstances he cannot acknowledge either of the Canadian Grand Lodges—and therefore cannot accept the offer of Bro . Harington to act as representative of the Grand Lodge of England . His lordship writes that"To do so w ould be inconsistent with the first principles of Masonic Unity . Of the Lodges existing in the Provinces of Canada , and holding
under the Grand Lodge of England , the warrants of seven have been returned by those who have joined the Independent Grand Lodge ; whilst thirty-four have been returned by those who have joined the Ancient Grand Lodge , leaving a large number of Lodges of which some are known to remain firm in their allegiance ; and of the secession of others there is no official record . It is plain that the Grand Lodge of England has no right or title to absolve from their allegiance the Brethren who are anxious
to preserve it ; 4 is equally clear that it is the duty , the sacred duty , of the Grand Master and Grand Lodge to support them in maintaining their allegiance and in preserving inviolate their obligation to their parent Grand Lodge , Bearing in mind that there are already two self-erected Grand Lodges in Canada ; that there are many Lodges which have not joined cither ; that there are others who , having never wavered in their fidelity ,
pray to have a Prov . G . M . appointed in the place of him who has seceded from them , and who desire to remain under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of England , I cannot think that any reasonable Mason will , upon a calm and deliberate review of the facts , come to any other conclusion than that recognition is impossible ; and that , even were it accorded , it would lead only to increased confusion . "