What Does Freemasonry Teach Usp

WHAT DOES FREEMASONRY TEACH USP

AN interestine address was delivered by Bro . Henry T . Smith P . M . St . Andrew Lodge , No . 16 , Toronto , at the last regular meeting of Rehoboam Lodge , No . 65 , on the subject of " What Does Freemasonry Leach us ? " of which the following is a synopsis .

We know that the records of the past are full of instruction . That the pages of bygone history are laden with the rich treasures of other days , which have come down to us along the ages , and it is only necessary that we open the book and read for ourselves what has been accomplished .

What is Freemasonry ? is naturally the first question that arises in one ' s mind when speaking of its teachings . What are its claims to popular approval ? What right has it to exist as an Institution or as a system ? As a matter of fact , despite the calumnies ; of its enemies , and the

exaggerated claims of its friends , it has in the moral world a held , as an educating force , and serenely , silently and non-ostentatiously it holds the even tenor of its way by its teaching ' s . Permit me , in the first place , to point out that Freemasonry is not primarily an alms-giving society , nor a death

benefit association . Many outside , and not a few within the Fraternity , appear to entertain the idea that these are its principal functions . It is true we are taught to contribute to the relief of the distressed , so far as our ability will permit , without material injury to ourselves or to our families ,

but this is not the principal aim or the purpose of the Institution . An examination of the Ancient Charges of a Freemason makes it appear that anciently the giving of alms was a personal matter purely , which addressed itself to the

judgment and conscience of the individual Brother , and it was not the custom to vote appropriations of the common funds of the Lodge for the relief of the destitute and indigent .

I desire also to point out that Freemasonry is not a co-operative benefit association . Many organisations have been formed in which from a certain tribute laid upon all the members of the Order , regardless of individual ability to pay , a common fund is raised to be paid as benefits , as a

matter of right in certain contingencies , whether the parties to whom the payments are made are in need of financial succour or not . To relieve the distressed is a duty incumbent on all men , but particularly on Masons , who are linked together by an indissoluble chain of sincere affection . I o

soothe the unhappy , to sympathise with their misfortune , to compassionate their miseries , and to restore peace to their troubled minds , is the great aim we have in view . On this basis we form our friendships and establish our connections . Then Freemasonry is not a religion . It is , to my mind ,

a grave mistake to regard it as a religion , and nothing can result therefrom but harm . But Freemasonry regards truth as a divine attribute and the foundation of every virtue . To be good and true is the first lesson we are taught in Freemasonry . On this theme we contemplate , and by its dictates

endeavour to regulate our conduct . Hence , so long as we are influenced by this principle , hypocrisy and deceit are unknown among us ; sincerity and plain dealing distinguish us , and the heart and the tongue join in promoting one another ' s welfare and rejoicing in one another ' s prosperity .

We find nothing in the teachings of Freemasonry opposed to any Church . What they ought to do , is to lead us into the acceptance of the broader and more comprehensive truths of religion , or , in other words , to respect the good to be found among all classes of people , all civilised races of

men , and in all religious creeds . Permit me to interject here that one of the greatest factors , in my opinion , during the past hundred years in the civilisation of the world has been the dissemination of the teachings of Freemasonry . For Brethren , on the threshhold of the Lodge every Brother should

lay down and even forget every vain titie of worldly pomp and sectarianism by which he may be distinguished in the outer world , for the teachings of Freemasonry are comprised in the words , " Liberty , Equality , and Fraternity , " as well as " Knowledge , Morality , and Labour . "

Now the teachings of Freemasonry do not contemplate anything political in character . A Mason is taught to conform to the law of the land under the protection of which he lives , and to never lose sight of the allegiance due to his

country , but so far from teaching anything political in a partisan sense , it is in accordance with the scheme and plan of Freemasonry that it should constitute a middle state or common rallying ground for men of every shade of political

What Does Freemasonry Teach Usp

opinion , and make friends of those who might otherwise have remained at a perpetual distance from each other . Then in Freemasonry we are taught patriotism , that holy love of country which is inherent in all races and keeps the world moving , which thrills the pulse and fires the heart

and nerves the arm . What man in the whole land is a more ardent patriot than the Mason ? He is taught to be true to his God , his country , his neighbour and himself . Patriotism is one of the landmarks of the Craftsman . Thus in everything which goes to make up the true man , the Mason finds

its counterpart in the Lodge room . The things which make for peace are diligently pursued by him in the Lodge room-But should the country call her sons to arms to fight for God and right , none responds to that cry for sacrifice more promptly than the Mason . We have recently witnessed

that , for when our sons and Brothers were contending on battlefields red with their blood did they not display patriotism ? And when in all appearance the Empire , of which we form a part , may find herself in worse straits than the South African difficulty has proved to be , do we need to defend

our noble Order in its teachings of patriotism ? I answer that interrogation by saying : No , not when we had such noble men and Masons in the past as Bros , the Duke . of Wellington and Lord Nelson , and in the present day as

Bros . Lord Roberts , General Kitchener , the hero of Ladysmith , General White , the hero of Mafeking , General Baden-Powell , Colonel Otter , Captain Barker , and hosts of others ready to sacrifice life , if need be , to lead our brave British or Colonial soldiers to victory .

Freemasonry does not purport to give its members either social or financial standing in the community , and its teachings are strongly against such a view . What motive , my Brethren , actuated each one of you to become a Mason ? Was it its teachings ? The motives

that actuate men in uniting with the Fraternity are various . Some are attracted by its great age , and the halo of antiquity that surrounds it . They imagine that from its mystical past there comes a troop of wonderful , weird and solemn mysticisms which are calculated to strike terror to

the timid . Their curiosity is aroused , and they seek the darkened chambers of the unrevealed , only to be disappointed . Some look upon the extent of the Brotherhood , encircling as it does the very globe , as affording a means of extensive acquaintance , and they are proud of the distinction of being

members of the most widely diffused organisation in the world . They imagine they can find " a friend in need " in any quarter of the globe ; for , like the possessions of Great Britain , the sun never sets upon Freemasonry . It has , perhaps , the only universal language among men ; for

whether in Europe , Asia , or Africa , in America , India , or the far-away islands of the sea , under the frigid skies of the arctic , or the burning sun of the equator , its peculiar tongue is spoken and its teachings promulgated for the benefit of the human race . It is certainly commendable in a man to

desire to be one of such an universal Brotherhood , but he should seek to become a member of the Fraternity " uninfluenced by mercenary or other unworthy motives , " and then he is able to grasp intelligently the very spirit of its teachings . Then Freemasonry has never pretended to be , nor is

it , as a matter of fact , an asylum for wrong doers or transgressors of law . Those who imagine that the members of the Institution are taught under any circumstances to condone his transgressions or whitewash his unlawful conduct are mistaken . If a man calling himself a Mason chooses to do

wrong , to persist m error and to violate law , he does what he can find no warrant for in the teachings of Masonry , and he will be disappointed if he expects the members of the Institution to apologise for his wrong doing , or uphold him in his errors .

What is Freemasonry tnen ? It is a system of education . It appeals to the intellect and the conscience . It develops man intellectuall y and morally and is calculated to give him a higher conception of his duty to God , his fellowman and himself . It is a course of hierogyphic moral instruction

taught agreeably to ancient usages , by types , emblems and allegorical figures . In other words it is an ancient system of object teaching . " Tools and implements of architecture have been selected by the Fraternity to imprint on the

memory wise and serious truths and thus through a succession of ages are transmitted unimpaired the most excellent tenets of our Institution . " The Mason is taught that it is his duty as well as his privilege to cultivate a knowledge of the liberal arts and sciences .