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Article THE HISTORICAL DEGREES; ← Page 4 of 12 →
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The Historical Degrees;
the construction of the ark of . the covenant ; and also , in later years , for building Solomon ' s temple ; and lastly , that JZerubbabel employed labourers of the same people in cutting cedars of Lebanon for the use of the second temple . The tradition adds that the Sidonians formed colleges on Mount Libanus , and ahvajjs adored the G . A . O . T . U . Sidon was one of the most ancient cities of . the world , and even in the
time of Homer the . Sidonians .. were celebrated for their trade and commerce , their wealth and prosperity . But their worship was not that of the true and living God , for medals are in existence bearing the inscription "to the Sidonian goddess , " and this agrees with the appellation in 1 Kings xi . " Ashtoreth ,. goddess of the Sidonians . " The allusion to the " colleges" on Mount Libanus may have some reference to the secret sect of the Druses , who still exist in that country , and whose mysterious ceremonies , travellers affirm , ' have
considerable ' affinity to Freemasonry . * The badge belonging to this degree is white , lined and bordered with purple : on it i $ . represented a table , upon ¦ which are laid several architectural plans : the flap is embroidered Avith a triple-headed serpent . The jewel is a golden axe ...
Chief of the Tabernacle is the name given to the twenty-third degree , which commemorates the institution of the order of priesthood in Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar ; and the ceremonial was in some degree founded on the instruction delivered to Moses in Exodus xxix . and xl . In many rites the degree of High Priest is to be found ; in the old ritual of the Holy Boyal Arch , the High Priest was the chief officer , and we still retain in that portion of English
Masonry , as well as in the Master Mason ' s degree , reference to him who only had the privilege of entering the sanctuary once in the year , on the day of solemn expiation , to make atonement for the sins of the Avhole people ; so that doubtless this was a genuine Masonic degree , and not unworthy of practice at the present day . The installation of the third Principal of a Royal Arch Chapter has undoubtedly been , derived from this or some similar ceremonial . In the United States
the order of High Priest , conferred on the immediate past first Principal , somewhat resembles that of Past Master of a Lodge ; the ceremony , when duly performed , is exceedingly impressive—when celebrated in ample form , the presence of at least nine Hi gh Priests is required . In A merica , as was formerly tlie case in England , High Priest is the title given to the first Principal .
In this decree there are throe chief officers , viz . : —a Sovereign Hacrificer and two High Priests , and tlie members of the " hierarchy , " as the Lodge is styled , are called Levites . They Avear a white badge lined with scarlet and bordered with a triooloured ribbon—red , purple , and blue : in . the centre is embroidered a . representation of tlie
" candlestick of pure gold , with three braiich . es on . the one side and three branches on the other side / ' and on the flap a violet coloured myrtle . The jewel which is a thurible , or censer , is suspended from a ' * » Scc our remarks on this . subject , at p . % 7 > of the last volume .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Historical Degrees;
the construction of the ark of . the covenant ; and also , in later years , for building Solomon ' s temple ; and lastly , that JZerubbabel employed labourers of the same people in cutting cedars of Lebanon for the use of the second temple . The tradition adds that the Sidonians formed colleges on Mount Libanus , and ahvajjs adored the G . A . O . T . U . Sidon was one of the most ancient cities of . the world , and even in the
time of Homer the . Sidonians .. were celebrated for their trade and commerce , their wealth and prosperity . But their worship was not that of the true and living God , for medals are in existence bearing the inscription "to the Sidonian goddess , " and this agrees with the appellation in 1 Kings xi . " Ashtoreth ,. goddess of the Sidonians . " The allusion to the " colleges" on Mount Libanus may have some reference to the secret sect of the Druses , who still exist in that country , and whose mysterious ceremonies , travellers affirm , ' have
considerable ' affinity to Freemasonry . * The badge belonging to this degree is white , lined and bordered with purple : on it i $ . represented a table , upon ¦ which are laid several architectural plans : the flap is embroidered Avith a triple-headed serpent . The jewel is a golden axe ...
Chief of the Tabernacle is the name given to the twenty-third degree , which commemorates the institution of the order of priesthood in Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar ; and the ceremonial was in some degree founded on the instruction delivered to Moses in Exodus xxix . and xl . In many rites the degree of High Priest is to be found ; in the old ritual of the Holy Boyal Arch , the High Priest was the chief officer , and we still retain in that portion of English
Masonry , as well as in the Master Mason ' s degree , reference to him who only had the privilege of entering the sanctuary once in the year , on the day of solemn expiation , to make atonement for the sins of the Avhole people ; so that doubtless this was a genuine Masonic degree , and not unworthy of practice at the present day . The installation of the third Principal of a Royal Arch Chapter has undoubtedly been , derived from this or some similar ceremonial . In the United States
the order of High Priest , conferred on the immediate past first Principal , somewhat resembles that of Past Master of a Lodge ; the ceremony , when duly performed , is exceedingly impressive—when celebrated in ample form , the presence of at least nine Hi gh Priests is required . In A merica , as was formerly tlie case in England , High Priest is the title given to the first Principal .
In this decree there are throe chief officers , viz . : —a Sovereign Hacrificer and two High Priests , and tlie members of the " hierarchy , " as the Lodge is styled , are called Levites . They Avear a white badge lined with scarlet and bordered with a triooloured ribbon—red , purple , and blue : in . the centre is embroidered a . representation of tlie
" candlestick of pure gold , with three braiich . es on . the one side and three branches on the other side / ' and on the flap a violet coloured myrtle . The jewel which is a thurible , or censer , is suspended from a ' * » Scc our remarks on this . subject , at p . % 7 > of the last volume .