The Ancient Mysteries And Modern Freemasonry-Their Analogies Considered.

This , as I have already shown , is symbolic . The lustration is not a physical , but a spiritual one . It is the lustration of the heart by the influence of purifying doctrines expressed and enforced by symbols . We call it the preparation ; the words are different , but the ideas are identical . Lustration and preparation are in design the same thing .

Then the Fellow Craft ' s degree is analagous to the Lesser Mysteries . The initiation is begun . Even the dramatic form , so necessary in all the Mysteries , is observed . There is an ascent of winding stairs—the overcoming of obstructions—in search of that which is the object of all initiation , typified as the Word or Divine Truth .

And m the Master s degree , as m the Greater Mysteries , the initiation is continued , and is fully completed . Here , more than anywhere else , is the analogy shown between these two systems —the Ancient Mysteries and Modern Freemasonry . Not only is there a drama in both , but the very form , the plot , the scenery ,

the denouement and the moral are precisely the same . Only the persons of the drama differ . But whether it be Osiris or Dionysius , or Mithras or Hiram , it is plainly evident that but one series of thought prevade them all—the thought of life , of death , and of resurrection ; and that but one doctrine is common to all—the doctrine of immortality . It is this common identity of form and

striking analogy ol design m the initiation into both the ancient and the modern systems that has led so many writers to frame the theory that Freemasonry is derived from and is a legitimate successor of the Ancient Mysteries . I confess , although I do not entirely subscribe to it , that many theories have been advanced with less claims to plausibility .

Perfection is the last of these progressive steps which constitute the analogies between the Mysteries and Masonry . It is the ultimate object of both . In the Mysteries it was called the " autopsy , " a word which signifies " a seeing with one's own eyes . " It was the complete and finished communication to the

aspirant of the great secret of the Mysteries ; the secret which , during the whole course of initiation , had been symbolically overshadowed . The communication of this secret , which was , in fact , the explanation of the secret doctrine , for the inculcation of

which the Mysteries had been instituted , was made in the sacellum or most sacred place , analogous to the holy of holies of the Temple and of the Masonic Lodge . The aspirant was thus invested with perfect knowledge—nothing more was left to be imparted , so he had arrived at Perfection .

In Freemasonry precisely the same process takes place . After the Lustration , or Preparation , comes the Initiation , and then the Perfection , or full investment with all that it has been the object of the candidate to attain . In the catechism of the Master ' s degree the question , " What induced you to become a

Master Mason ? " is answered thus : "To perfect myself in Masonry that I might travel into foreign countries , work and receive Master ' s wages . " All of this is symbolic ; but any one can at once see that the receipt of " Master ' s wages , " whatever they may be , is the consequence of Perfection .

In the early part of the last century the Master ' s degree contained within itself another portion which completed it , and which supplied the " True word . " This part was afterwards detached from it , and became what is now known as the '' Royal Arch . " But as late as 1813 the United Grand Lodge of England

recognised the fact of the dislocation , and in its articles of Union declared that Ancient Craft " consists of the three degrees of Entered Apprentice , Fellow Craft and Master Mason , including the Holy Royal Arch . " Accepting this as a historical fact—and no one doubts or denies it—we find Perfection in that part of the

Master ' s degree which , under the title of the Royal Arch , is called the complement of the Master ' s degree . Because , as in the Ancient Mysteries , the degree of Perfection , or the autopsy , was that in which the c . oncealed dogma of the Mysteries relating to the unity of God and the resurrection to eternal life was made

known to the aspirant ; so , in the degree of Perfection of Modern Freemasonry—that part of the Master ' s degree , namely , which is included in the Royal Arch , the Masonic dogma of Divine Truth , symbolised by the True Word—is communicatad to the candidate who has previously passed through the processes of Preparation and Initiation .

Thus , then , we trace the analogies between the Ancient Mysteries and Modern Freemasonry . 1 . The Preparation in the Mysteries , called the lustration : It was the first step in the Mysteries , and the Apprentice ' s degree in Masonry . In both systems the candidate was purified for the reception of truth . In

the Mysteries there was a physical ablution : in Masonry a moral cleansing ; but in both the design was the same . 2 . The Initiation : In the ancient system this was partly in the Lesser Mysteries , but more especially , in the Greater ; in Masonry it is

partly in the Fellow Craft ' s degree , but more , especially in the Master ' s . In both systems the form was dramatic , and the design to pourtray the life and sufferings , the death and resurrection of a victim . 3 . The Perfection : In the Mysteries it was the communication to the aspirant of the true dogma—the great

The Ancient Mysteries And Modern Freemasonry-Their Analogies Considered.

secret symbolised by the initiation . In Masonry it is the same . The dogma communicated is , in fact , not different ; for in both it is God and immortality . This perfection , or autopsy , came in the Mysteries at the end of the Greater Mysteries , and was made in

a holy place . In Masonry it is communicated as the end of the Master ' s degree , and in that complement of it known as the Holy Royal Arch ; and the place where the communication is made represents the holy of holies .

These analogies are very striking . Is modern Freemasonry a lineal and uninterrupted successor of the Ancient Mysteries—' the succession handed down through the Mysteries of Mithras , which existed in the fifth and sixth centuries , or is the fact of

these analogies to be attributed to the coincidence of a natural process of human thought , common to all human minds , and showing its outgrowth in symbolic forms ?

Co-Operative Festival At The Crystal Palace.

CO-OPERATIVE FESTIVAL AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE .

THE fete of the -National Co-operation Society was held very successfully on Saturday , amid brilliant sunshine . These gatherings bid fair to be the largest of the year in the near future . The fete was in every way a success , the fruit , flowers , and particularly the vegetables ; were wonderful , considering the untoward season in the early part of the year , as what with the blight , cold , a * nd vermin , gardening has been a despair to many amateurs .

The concert of 7 , 000 voices was on the whole very creditable ; it would be inviduous to be too critical , but great praise was due for the way in which the choir rendered Mendelssohn ' s " I waited for the Lord . " They were not so happy , however , with Handel's " Lovely Peace . " Many of the more simple numbers went with a swing that showed care had been taken with the rehearsals , and reflected credit on all concerned .

The Palace gardens are just now in their beauty , and we never remember them looking better , the view from the top of the tower is perhaps one of the prettiest in England . The Co-operators , one and all , seemed to enjoy themselves ; and partook of the good things provided , some of which are now sold at a cheaper rate , but the caterers have a good deal yet to do before their department will become as popular as it should be .

The Directors deserve praise for the good entertainment provided , which kept the large number present pleasantly engaged from early morn till late at night . .. .

Birth.

BIRTH .

HILLE . —The wife of Bro . George Hille , of the Mecca Restaurant , 2 Oullum Street , E . G ., of a son .

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