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Article ISRAELITES AND EGYPTIANS. ← Page 2 of 2 Article PHILOSOPHY OF MASONRY. Page 1 of 1 Article SIGHTS WHICH THE POET LOVES. Page 1 of 2 →
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Israelites And Egyptians.
Abraham , but we are expressly told in sacred story that Joseph was considered by Pharaoh himself the wisest man in the whole empire of Egypt : — "And Pharaoh said unto his servants , ' Can AVC find such a one as this is , a man in whom the Spirit of God is' ? ' And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' Forasmuch as God has showed thee all this , there is none so discreet and wise as thou art . Thou slialt be over my house , and according to thy word
shall all my people he ruled . Only in the throne will I be greater than thou . ' And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' See , I have set thee over all the land of Egypt . ' And Pharaoh took off bis ring from his hand , and put it upon Joseph's hand , and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen , and put a gold chain about his neck ; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had , and they cried before him , ' Bow the knee , ' and he made him ruler all
over the land of Egypt . And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' I am Pharaoh , and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt . ' And Pharaoh called Joseph ' s name Zaphnath-paaucah , and he gave him to wife Asenath , the daughter of Poti-phorah , priest of On . And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt . " Joseph and his brethren had doubtless taught the wise men of Egypt many
important secrets respecting the principles of Masonry , and whilst theywerc alive , and in high favour with those savans , every communication which tho Hebrews made was deposited in the archives of the court . Joseph and his brethren made no secret of God ' s revelation to Abraham , which spoke to him after this manner : — " Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirsand shall serve themand they shall afflict
, ; them four hundred years ; and also that nation , whom they shall serve , will I judge , and afterward shall they come out with great substance . " This supposition is confirmed by Joseph ' s orders respecting his remains : — " I die , and God will surely visit you , and bring you out of this land into the land which he swarc to Abraham , to Isaac , and to Jacob . And Joseph took an oath of
the children of Israel , saying , ' God will surely visit you , and ye shall carry up my bones from hence . ' " Iu fact , we may hazard the conjecture that the golden age of Masonry in Egypt was during the period of Joseph ' s glory ; and we may go farther , and assert that the chronicles of Egypt were never more adorned with divine wisdom than during that period . Now there arose up a new king over Egypt which knew not hAnd he said
Josep . unto his people , "Behold , the people of the children of Israel are more and mi ghtier than we . Come on , let us deal wisely with them , lest they multiply , and it come to pass that , when there falleth out any war , they join also unto our enemies , and fight against us , and so get them up out of the land . " This king- must have become acquainted with tho revelations made bJoseph and his brethrenandnot being child of IHit
y , , a , was determined to defeat the design of the Great Architect of the universe . He laboured , therefore , to obliterate , by oppression and degradation , all the glorious predictions respecting the tribes of Israel from the poor children of the patriarchs . But all Pharaoh ' s plans were overruled . His daughter introduces a Hebrew child mto the court of the tyrant oppressor , and the king himself takes care that the poor foundling should be "learned in all the wisdom of the
Egyptians , and become mighty in words and deeds . " So that Moses regained the mysteries of Masonry , which were , we may safely say , buried in the temples of ]<> ypt since the death of Joseph . This Moses we know ultimately triumphed , though for a time lie lived a voluntary exile from Egypt , yet his wisdom never forpook lum and when the Great Architect of the universe mani
; - fested himself to the future Grand Master of the tabernacle his Masonic information stood him in good stead . The triumph of the children of Israel and the destruction of the Egyptians was another scenic representation of that which is yet to come respecting the final conflicts and conquests between the sons of li"ht and those of darkness . —Iter , Bro . Moses Maraoliovih . °
1 < minxes is CHINA . —In walking- along the banks we came upon a man fishing m a- most peculiar way . He was perched on a low bridge leaniu " over a stream that joined the canal . At first I thought he had hooked an enornious fish , but on closer inspection found it was merely a live decoy Its dorsal fin was laced to two small sticks , one on each fidefrom these it was tethered to what I first took to bo his rod . The poor lish sported about in the water its best to attract
, apparently doing the attention of its finny fellows . The man held a small arrow-pointed triilent , ivith which lie dexterously struck any large fish that came wondering at the antics of the tethered deeoy . The whole apparatus was so SrT % vl ™ udei- . ° P ™ astern is not applied elsewhero .-*™ i " ¦ Tmlxe Irars m China .
Philosophy Of Masonry.
PHILOSOPHY OF MASONRY .
Tin : philosophy of Masonry is moral and spiritual . Its object is the improvement of man morally and spiritually . Those who view Masonry only as a social institution ( aud , alas ! too many Freemasons only regard it as such ) , are like those who value a book for its binding , and not for its contents . The entire ritual of Masonry , its ceremonials , symbolisms , and teachings , is but the outward expression , the body , which enshrines the soul or
spirit of Masonry . The Masonic degrees arc allegorical of youth , manhood , and age—the three stages of life ' s probation . In these several degrees , the duties of man , as a moral and spiritual being , are inculcated , having a reference to his progression in this and the future life . The entering and passing are preliminary to the raising , and man is only finally raised after the earthly body has ceased to be animated by the irit . There is an interior irit in
sp sp all the symbols and teachings of Masonry . The plumb level and square are the visible representations of the moral lessons they teach . AVe might with as much propriety understand that the working tools wore intended for operative uses by Freemasons , as for us to believe that Masonry is only a social institution . These tools arc necessary for illustration , and they are the best that could be adopted for that purpose . They can be seeii by the
exterior vision , and handled with the fingers . The lessons they teach arc the soul or spirit of which they form the body , and as each has a different form , so does each convey a different lesson , and the various illustrations of Masonry taken together as a whole , constitute one perfect system of man ' s duties to God , his neighbour , and himself;—a system embracing every duty of life , written with the finger of God in nature ' s illustrated world , in the volume of inspiration , and in the heart and consciences of the beings created in his image . The ultimate of these teachings is the finite perfection of the finite man . The philosophy of
Masonry teaches that man is immortal , and as the life on earth is only probationary , and he therefore cannot attain the ultimate ol perfection in this sphere , it will be his privilege in the spirit world to progress onward and upward to the highest perfection his nature is capable of . The teachings of Masonry have this object in view . The work of progress must commence here . Hence the teachings of Masonry are not merely speculative .
They contemplate the progress of man in this sphere and a continued progression throughout an endless eternity . To the true Freemason the philosophy of Freemasonry is no idle speculation , no vain theory , no visionary problem . It is to him a living reality , and in comparison to which all things else are as nothing . It is therefore of paramount importance that the true philosophy of Masonry be understood by every disciple of the Order is as the hi
ghest interest of man , embraced in its principles and the duties which it enjoins . Progress is stamped upon all the works of the Creator . There is no cessation , and there can be none in God ' s world . Man is continually progressing in his physical development , and through the stages of youth , manhood , and age , he is imperceptibly journeying onwards in the road of progress towards a hiher and a hiher heretowards the source of all
g g sp , light , or in the road of ignorance and error , the road of evil and darkness . As " Sons of Light , " let it be our duty to progress upwards , to live in accordance with the teachings of the Order , to do all we can to promote our spiritual advancement , to be living examples of the philosophy of Freemasonry , and thus convince the world around us that Masonry is something more than a mere social Orderthat its aims are to advance the welfare of
, the human famil y , morally and spiritually , through the active influence of its principles exhibited in the daily life and conversation of the members of the fraternity . —American Masonic Mirror and Keystone .
Sights Which The Poet Loves.
SIGHTS WHICH THE POET LOVES .
BV BRO . GEORGE Jr . TWEDDEMi .- " To the human earth worm—the wretch who passes through life a slave to the mere accumulation of wealth ; or , what is equally vile and servile , the dissipated coxcomb—the slave of fashion and luxury—to both those benighted children of men , the love of nature which bums so brightly in the poet ' s soul , illumining his mind with unrevealable splendour , and warming his inmost heart with an unquenchable love of all that is fair and
pure upon earth—the sublime conceptions of his imagination—and the faith which upholds him with the hope that the masses will catch a portion of his celestial fire—are nothing more than « . the children of an idle brain , Begot of nothing 'but vain fantasy ; AA hich is as thin of substance as the air ; And more inconstant than the wind . ' '
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Israelites And Egyptians.
Abraham , but we are expressly told in sacred story that Joseph was considered by Pharaoh himself the wisest man in the whole empire of Egypt : — "And Pharaoh said unto his servants , ' Can AVC find such a one as this is , a man in whom the Spirit of God is' ? ' And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' Forasmuch as God has showed thee all this , there is none so discreet and wise as thou art . Thou slialt be over my house , and according to thy word
shall all my people he ruled . Only in the throne will I be greater than thou . ' And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' See , I have set thee over all the land of Egypt . ' And Pharaoh took off bis ring from his hand , and put it upon Joseph's hand , and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen , and put a gold chain about his neck ; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had , and they cried before him , ' Bow the knee , ' and he made him ruler all
over the land of Egypt . And Pharaoh said unto Joseph , ' I am Pharaoh , and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt . ' And Pharaoh called Joseph ' s name Zaphnath-paaucah , and he gave him to wife Asenath , the daughter of Poti-phorah , priest of On . And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt . " Joseph and his brethren had doubtless taught the wise men of Egypt many
important secrets respecting the principles of Masonry , and whilst theywerc alive , and in high favour with those savans , every communication which tho Hebrews made was deposited in the archives of the court . Joseph and his brethren made no secret of God ' s revelation to Abraham , which spoke to him after this manner : — " Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirsand shall serve themand they shall afflict
, ; them four hundred years ; and also that nation , whom they shall serve , will I judge , and afterward shall they come out with great substance . " This supposition is confirmed by Joseph ' s orders respecting his remains : — " I die , and God will surely visit you , and bring you out of this land into the land which he swarc to Abraham , to Isaac , and to Jacob . And Joseph took an oath of
the children of Israel , saying , ' God will surely visit you , and ye shall carry up my bones from hence . ' " Iu fact , we may hazard the conjecture that the golden age of Masonry in Egypt was during the period of Joseph ' s glory ; and we may go farther , and assert that the chronicles of Egypt were never more adorned with divine wisdom than during that period . Now there arose up a new king over Egypt which knew not hAnd he said
Josep . unto his people , "Behold , the people of the children of Israel are more and mi ghtier than we . Come on , let us deal wisely with them , lest they multiply , and it come to pass that , when there falleth out any war , they join also unto our enemies , and fight against us , and so get them up out of the land . " This king- must have become acquainted with tho revelations made bJoseph and his brethrenandnot being child of IHit
y , , a , was determined to defeat the design of the Great Architect of the universe . He laboured , therefore , to obliterate , by oppression and degradation , all the glorious predictions respecting the tribes of Israel from the poor children of the patriarchs . But all Pharaoh ' s plans were overruled . His daughter introduces a Hebrew child mto the court of the tyrant oppressor , and the king himself takes care that the poor foundling should be "learned in all the wisdom of the
Egyptians , and become mighty in words and deeds . " So that Moses regained the mysteries of Masonry , which were , we may safely say , buried in the temples of ]<> ypt since the death of Joseph . This Moses we know ultimately triumphed , though for a time lie lived a voluntary exile from Egypt , yet his wisdom never forpook lum and when the Great Architect of the universe mani
; - fested himself to the future Grand Master of the tabernacle his Masonic information stood him in good stead . The triumph of the children of Israel and the destruction of the Egyptians was another scenic representation of that which is yet to come respecting the final conflicts and conquests between the sons of li"ht and those of darkness . —Iter , Bro . Moses Maraoliovih . °
1 < minxes is CHINA . —In walking- along the banks we came upon a man fishing m a- most peculiar way . He was perched on a low bridge leaniu " over a stream that joined the canal . At first I thought he had hooked an enornious fish , but on closer inspection found it was merely a live decoy Its dorsal fin was laced to two small sticks , one on each fidefrom these it was tethered to what I first took to bo his rod . The poor lish sported about in the water its best to attract
, apparently doing the attention of its finny fellows . The man held a small arrow-pointed triilent , ivith which lie dexterously struck any large fish that came wondering at the antics of the tethered deeoy . The whole apparatus was so SrT % vl ™ udei- . ° P ™ astern is not applied elsewhero .-*™ i " ¦ Tmlxe Irars m China .
Philosophy Of Masonry.
PHILOSOPHY OF MASONRY .
Tin : philosophy of Masonry is moral and spiritual . Its object is the improvement of man morally and spiritually . Those who view Masonry only as a social institution ( aud , alas ! too many Freemasons only regard it as such ) , are like those who value a book for its binding , and not for its contents . The entire ritual of Masonry , its ceremonials , symbolisms , and teachings , is but the outward expression , the body , which enshrines the soul or
spirit of Masonry . The Masonic degrees arc allegorical of youth , manhood , and age—the three stages of life ' s probation . In these several degrees , the duties of man , as a moral and spiritual being , are inculcated , having a reference to his progression in this and the future life . The entering and passing are preliminary to the raising , and man is only finally raised after the earthly body has ceased to be animated by the irit . There is an interior irit in
sp sp all the symbols and teachings of Masonry . The plumb level and square are the visible representations of the moral lessons they teach . AVe might with as much propriety understand that the working tools wore intended for operative uses by Freemasons , as for us to believe that Masonry is only a social institution . These tools arc necessary for illustration , and they are the best that could be adopted for that purpose . They can be seeii by the
exterior vision , and handled with the fingers . The lessons they teach arc the soul or spirit of which they form the body , and as each has a different form , so does each convey a different lesson , and the various illustrations of Masonry taken together as a whole , constitute one perfect system of man ' s duties to God , his neighbour , and himself;—a system embracing every duty of life , written with the finger of God in nature ' s illustrated world , in the volume of inspiration , and in the heart and consciences of the beings created in his image . The ultimate of these teachings is the finite perfection of the finite man . The philosophy of
Masonry teaches that man is immortal , and as the life on earth is only probationary , and he therefore cannot attain the ultimate ol perfection in this sphere , it will be his privilege in the spirit world to progress onward and upward to the highest perfection his nature is capable of . The teachings of Masonry have this object in view . The work of progress must commence here . Hence the teachings of Masonry are not merely speculative .
They contemplate the progress of man in this sphere and a continued progression throughout an endless eternity . To the true Freemason the philosophy of Freemasonry is no idle speculation , no vain theory , no visionary problem . It is to him a living reality , and in comparison to which all things else are as nothing . It is therefore of paramount importance that the true philosophy of Masonry be understood by every disciple of the Order is as the hi
ghest interest of man , embraced in its principles and the duties which it enjoins . Progress is stamped upon all the works of the Creator . There is no cessation , and there can be none in God ' s world . Man is continually progressing in his physical development , and through the stages of youth , manhood , and age , he is imperceptibly journeying onwards in the road of progress towards a hiher and a hiher heretowards the source of all
g g sp , light , or in the road of ignorance and error , the road of evil and darkness . As " Sons of Light , " let it be our duty to progress upwards , to live in accordance with the teachings of the Order , to do all we can to promote our spiritual advancement , to be living examples of the philosophy of Freemasonry , and thus convince the world around us that Masonry is something more than a mere social Orderthat its aims are to advance the welfare of
, the human famil y , morally and spiritually , through the active influence of its principles exhibited in the daily life and conversation of the members of the fraternity . —American Masonic Mirror and Keystone .
Sights Which The Poet Loves.
SIGHTS WHICH THE POET LOVES .
BV BRO . GEORGE Jr . TWEDDEMi .- " To the human earth worm—the wretch who passes through life a slave to the mere accumulation of wealth ; or , what is equally vile and servile , the dissipated coxcomb—the slave of fashion and luxury—to both those benighted children of men , the love of nature which bums so brightly in the poet ' s soul , illumining his mind with unrevealable splendour , and warming his inmost heart with an unquenchable love of all that is fair and
pure upon earth—the sublime conceptions of his imagination—and the faith which upholds him with the hope that the masses will catch a portion of his celestial fire—are nothing more than « . the children of an idle brain , Begot of nothing 'but vain fantasy ; AA hich is as thin of substance as the air ; And more inconstant than the wind . ' '