WHAT IS MASONRY? AND OF WHAT USE ARE ITS TEACHINGS TO MAN?
by R.W. Louis Zeigler, Grand Orator, Grand Lodge of
Washington
DELIVERED BY R.'.W.'. LOUIS ZEIGLER, GRAND ORATOR, AT THE ANNUAL
SESSION OF THE M.'.W.'. GRAND LODGE OF WASHINGTON, HELD AT
SEATTLE, WASH., JUNE 6, 1883
This question is often propounded to us, not only by those opposed to our
Institution, but also by many of the Initiates into our Mysteries, and that
too, with
a proper sense of propriety; especially after having been inducted (so
called)
into the esoteric and exoteric teachings and principles of our order, by the
unskillful hands of many of our miscalled Masters of our teachings.
It is to be regretted exceedingly that such a state of things exists, but
it does
withal exist; and in many instances where men of mind and mental capacity
have
passed the process of Initiation, turned aside utterly indifferent, and in a
measure disgusted, from disappointment in having failed to behold what they
had reason to expect to see and hear; and what they had every assurance that
they would hear, all simply because the Master was not Master of the work in
hand, simply because he failed to understand the Mission before him, simply
because the Master failed or neglected to attain the necessary
qualifications,
and to study and comprehend the underlying principles upon which that
beautiful
system of Symbolism, Philosophy and Ritualism is based; and without a clear
and thorough knowledge of which the Master will prove to the intelligent
man, a
dull and stupid preceptor.
But it is a lamentable fact that this state of things exists, and has
always existed;
and that often men's ambitions for preferment lead them far beyond their
capacity to arise to the exigencies of the occasion, and wherever we find the
existence of this state of things most, we will always find a due
appreciation for
the teachings and principles of Masonry less prevalent. We shall hail with
gladness, the coming of the day, when none but men of skill and ripe Masonic
scholarship will be called to explain and impart to the newly initiated,
the true
teachings and meanings of our beautiful system of Philosophy, Symbolism and
Ritualism, which when properly understood form the grandest chain of Moral
instruction, that was ever forged by the skillful hand of human ingenuity,
and
thus forever obliterate this often somewhat contemptuous query by the
intelligent
neophyte after passing through the barred process of initiation (when
conducted
by unskillful Masters.) What is Masonry?
We will now revert to answer questions of the former by saying:
First. That Masonry is not a Political Institution.
Second. That it is not a Reformatory Institution.
Third. That it is not a Religious Institution.
Masonry is not a Political Institution, because according to the
obligations we
assumed as Masons, and in accordance with the spirit which pervades our
Fraternity, the schemes and tricks of the ordinary politicians are no
concern of
ours; we have as a brotherhood nothing in common with them. But as individual
members, free to exercise our own judgment and reasoning faculties, we accept
the doctrines of political parties, and co-operate with them in the
furtherance of
General and Local projects, as our better judgment may determine and dictate;
and as a further evidence, that Masonry is not a Political Institution. The
casual
observer may and does behold in all general and local political contests, a
clear
division of the near eight-hundred thousand Masons contained in the various
jurisdictions of these United States, pitted against each other in earnest
strife,
for the accomplishment of the ends of their respective political parties to
which
they claim allegiance, and this is eminently right and proper; for when we
stop to
consider the powerful nucleus which eight-hundred thousand men might form in
a government like ours, especially when swayed and guided by bad and
designing men, it might entail dangerous and fearful consequences to the
public
and general weal.
I say when guided by bad men, yes, even an Institution like ours, based on
the
purest and noblest principles, contains within its folds bad and impure
men, who
are ever ready to employ every agency possible for the accomplishment of
sinister and impure motives. I am pained to frankly assert, that a Masonic
Certificate is not always a patent for good morals and perfect integrity,
but this is
not the fault of the teachings of our order, for they are pure and true;
but the fault
lies with the Individual who comes forward and voluntarily assumes our vows
and obligations, then by his action prostitutes his manhood by a heedless
disobedience of the sacred precepts they enjoin.
Again - Masonry is not a Reformatory Institution. A Masonic Lodge is not a
Moral
Infirmary, nor an asylum for the vicious and the debauched; that class of the
human family we leave to the tender mercies of the Reformatory and
Eleemosynary Institutions of the land, for the spirit of our Order admits
of good
men only, not the bad. And if Masonry never proselytes even good men, much
less would it seek the vicious and the debauched.
Yet if any of our Fraternity should chance to fall by the wayside of life
(as many
do) it becomes our duty to employ every means possible within the scope of
Brotherly love and charity to aid their reformation and restore them to
manhood
and respect; but when every means of charity and Fraternal persuasion are
exhausted to no effect, we gently put them aside for the general good. For
the
effects of vicious and intemperate habits of human nature are as baneful to
good
society, as are the influences of the deadly Upas tree, beneath whose
poisoning
shades all living beings droop and die; therefore, the Masonic body cannot
foster dead or sickly members, when a moral restoration becomes impossible
The infected member must be cut off in order that the health of the trunk may
remain unimpaired.
And again - Masonry is not a religious institution. The religious concerns
of the
human family are a thing apart from the material, social or moral pursuits
of life,
they are no special concern of ours as a Fraternity; we leave that to the
Individual to pursue according to the dictates of his own conscience. But
that
there is, in every human being, a certain principle or faculty of a faith
in the
Infinite, cannot be denied, and I cannot describe it better than to use the
language of Max Muller, who says, "as there is a faculty of speech
independent
of all the historical forms of language, so we may speak of a faculty of
faith in
man, independent of all historical religions. If we say that it is religion
which
distinguishes man from the animal, we do not mean the Christian or Jewish
religion only, we do not mean any special religion, but we mean a mental
faculty,
which independent of, nay, in spite of sense and reason, enables man to
apprehend the Infinite under varying disguises.
"Without that faculty, no religion, not even the lowest worship of Idols and
Fetiches would be possible; and if we will but listen attentively, we can
hear in all
religions a groaning of the spirit, a struggle to conceive the
inconceivable, to
utter the unutterable, a longing after the Infinite, a love of God."
All we ask of the candidate for our mysteries, when bowing at our shrine,
is to
express his belief in the Deity, the ruler and governor of the Universe. But
whether he approaches the Deity in his hours of devotion by the name of
Brahma, Allah, Jehovah or Jesus, is no concern of ours; or whether he accepts
the Bible of Christian, the Talmud of the Jew, the Koran of the Mohammedan,
the Ziud Avesta of the Persian, the Vedas of the Hindoos, or the Eddas of the
Goth, as a true book of inspiration, is a matter left entirely to himself.
We, as Masons accept the Bible, not for any doctrines or dogmas it may
contain,
but we accept it because it has received the highest sanction known to the
law;
and as the book of the law forms one of our great lights, so we necessarily
accept the book of the law, of whatever land we may chance to be in, as one
of
the great lights of our Institution. Hence, all we demand of the applicant
for our
mysteries is, his belief in the existence of the ever living and true God.
And we
promise, that while bowing at our shrine, he will not hear his way of
serving God
spoken of irreverently.
We now come to the answer of the questions upon which our remarks are
based.
What is Masonry? We answer Masonry is:
First. A Progressive Institution.
Second. It is a Charitable Institution.
Third. It is a Philosophical Institution.
That Masonry is a progressive science was well demonstrated, when it was
operative as well as speculative, by the various Masters of ancient as well
as
modern times, by the different works of our craft, from the building of the
Tabernacle and the first and second temples, down to the building of the
various
cathedrals of St. Paul, Strassburg and Cologne. The work triumphantly
progressed under the Mastership of Aholiab and Bazelleel, Hiram the Builder,
Sir Christopher Wren, Inigo Jones and Erwin Steinback. And history to-day
accords to them, the honor of being the most skillful and progressive
architects
of their time.
This is simply a type of the skill and progressive spirit the craft
possessed when
operative Masonry was in vogue and practised with such grand results.
And again, that Masonry is a progressive science from a speculative
standpoint,
is a truth self-evident and cannot be gainsaid; it affords a subject of
reflection fit
to engage the brightest mind, it is a field of thought, wherein may gather
and
glean the thoughtful laborers of science, with an assurance that the grandest
results will be awarded for toil and labor; indeed, the resources of this
field are
endless and inexhaustible, and it is here only, where the true and useful
Mason
is moulded and developed. If we will closely follow the course marked out
for the
Masonic student by this speculative science, we find the first lesson
taught him
upon crossing the Masonic threshold is, he must believe in the existence of
the
Infinite and Ineffable Deity, the Author of light, truth and perfection;
hence, the
very essence of truth, that is to say, the applicant for our mysteries must
be a
man capable of appreciating and understanding that truth and wisdom exist,
and
can only be obtained by diligent search and industry and constant
perseverance.
The next lesson taught him, is to seek and he shall find, ask and he shall
receive. To seek for knowledge and instruction is the first sacred duty of
the
craftsman; this, he is to obtain from the observation and experience of
others,
and the proper employment of his own reasoning faculties, and to seek for the
truth in the field of science and separate it from the chaff of error and
falsehood,
should be his constant practice, as he will thereby be fitted for the
second step
where the arts and sciences are brought to his notice; where by a zealous
attachment to their teachings, he finds that reason, observation and
experience,
extracted from the chaff of astrology, that pure science of astronomy, and
from
the rubbish of alchemy, that useful science of chemistry, and a due
proportionate
reduction of the facts and truths of the other kindred sciences and
beautiful arts,
so useful and indispensable for the elevation and refinement of the mind of
man.
In the next grade he finds, in that beautiful field of science, that
metaphysical
contention between the good and evil, the right and the wrong, the true and
the
false.
The lesson taught the applicant is, that in all the walks of life he is
constantly
beset by good and evil influences, contending for supremacy in the guidance
of
our walks, and teaches him that although the evil may overcome the good for
the
time being; yet if we will faithfully persevere to the end, and be true to
our charge
and duty, there can be no doubt of the final triumph of the good over the
evil, the
right over the wrong, the just over the unjust.
By the next step he is led into the quarry of science, where he is taught
to select
all that is true and good, and reject all that is false and spurious as
unfit for use.
And all the discovery of truth and wisdom he makes in the quarries, although
they had often been rejected by the unskillful as untrue, he is to carry
with him to
the chambers of his Craft, where they will be received as the cap-stone of
wisdom and truth for the Temple of Science.
By the next step we find him elected to the seat of honor to preside over his
Fellow Craftsman; this honor can be obtained by a close adherence to the
various duties before him, a constant practice of the virtues of temperance
and
prudence, by the exercise of Brotherly Love, Relief and Truth. These alone
can
fit him for that distinguished position of which he has been called and
when the
duties over his Fellow Craftsman are properly discharged they will abound in
credit to himself and honor to the progressive science.
By the next step we behold the applicant for still further light and
knowledge, if
he still continues faithful and industrious in the school of art, received
and
acknowledged as a Master of Science and the beautiful arts, where he receives
that almost divine injunction "Go ye into the world and teach all nations."
To
travel into foreign countries and to dispense light and knowledge and truth
to all
the uninformed children of man, and his reward will be that knowledge of that
divine truth which the author of truth bestows on those only who are
faithful to
the tasks and trusts committed to their care.
We next, and lastly, behold him a wanderer, returning from strange lands,
leaning upon the staff of knowledge, ripe with age, observation and
experience.
He travels over rough and rugged roads, over high hills and mountains (the
inevitable obstructions we find in the course of all human pursuits). He
bewails
the shortcomings of his Brethren and the conditions of his people; he passeth
through that Triumphal Arch which opens only to the true believers and
followers
of the great I AM, that I AM, of him that is, the embodiment of the past, the
present and the future. When he says "I have been, I am and shall be, in all
time, in all eternity and through the boundless limits of space."
He wanders on, the veils of ignorance rend before the tallismanic efficacy
of the
pass, he enters the Holy Sanctuary by the signet of Truth; here he again
finds
the shortcomings of his fellow laborers, he descends into the mysterious
vaults
of Nature, he recovers the long lost word of truth, returns to the Holy
Sanctuary
of the chosen and, by means of the key of science, he unlocks the mysterious
casket; he draws forth the long lost magic word of the ineffable, the
pronunciation of which was forbidden by profane lips, the utterance of which
would shake the earth and the heavens, and convulse the mountains and seas;
yes, it would make the very angels of heaven quake with fear. He proves the
potent efficacy of truth, that it is mighty and must and will prevail. This
is the
Philosopher's stone of science, which the Masonic student is in search of,
before
the transforming powers of which all baser metals of falsehood and error are
transmitted into precious wisdom. He beholds the Holy Shekina descend and
fill
the house of science, he is crowned with the crown of Merit, he is invested
with
the Urim and Thummim, those sacred lots of Light and Perfection, Revelation
and Truth, as a mark by which he is known forever after as a disciple and
lover
of the good and the true.
Here, then, we have in the Mission of the true and faithful craftsman, a
Type and
Symbol of the powerful influences and effect of the Mysterious Laws of
Nature,
to fathom and unravel which is the earnest desire of every student of
knowledge
and wisdom; and by a careful observation we find that the perpetual
revolution of
the planets, the succession of light, twilight and darkness, the passing and
returning of seasons, the rise and fall of mists and vapors, and the
spontaneous
growth and decay of all matter - all unite in attesting that Potent Truth,
that the
Universe is governed by law.
Masonry is also a charitable institution. True charity does not consist
alone of
alms-giving and relieving the wants of the distressed, for that duty is
incumbent
on the whole human family. But true charity is the nobler impulses of the
heart,
and finer sentiments of the soul, which enable us to judge rationally the
shortcomings and frailties of our fellow men. To admonish them with pure
friendship and reprehend them with fraternal justice, is our motto and our
creed;
this virtue has ever characterized the Institution of Masonry through all
ages.
When despotism and bigotry ran highest and when almost the whole human
race was guided by passion and prejudice, Masonry, imbued by the almost
divine influences of charity, held forth the olive-branch of peace and
love, and
invited those longing for, and fit to enjoy, the blessings of mental
freedom to her
shrine. At our altars none are persecuted for their particular faith or
belief, all we
ask or enjoin is, to be true to our God, and just to our country and fellow
men;
and that our advice be prompted by the highest principles of morality. By
this
virtue we are further admonished that all we ask we concede to others; that
is,
that charity's broad mantle be gently thrown around our foibles and
shortcomings, when moral justice demands responsibility for the weaknesses of
human nature. Hence, a Mason's charity is, and should be, as expansive as are
the infirmities of human nature and the wants of mortal man.
Masonry is also a philosophical institution. De Witt Clinton defines
Masonry as
"A beautiful system of morality and philosophy veiled in allegory and
illustrated
by symbols." When Zeno was asked whether he was a wiseacre, he replied,
"No, I am a philosopher" (a lover of wisdom). Therefore, we find Zeno's
definition
of philosophy to be love of wisdom.
This love of wisdom is the mainspring and propelling power of the mind of
every
disciple of Science and every diligent and faithful craftsman.
To understand the influences of mind upon matter and matter upon mind, to
know that things are, and why they are, to know that truth exists and the
reason
why it does exist, to comprehend the cause of every effect, and the effect of
every cause, is the grand theme and study that has employed the mind of the
lover of wisdom and true craftsman in all ages.
The Philosophy of Masonry is a three-fold character. Our ethical
injunctions are
three-fold. Mandatory, Prohibitory and Optionary.
It is obligatory upon us as Masons to be good men and true, and strictly to
obey
the commands of the Moral Law. We are prohibited from indulging in vicious
and
pernicious practices and habits, for by the indulgence of these, the object
of true
manhood is defeated and the faculties of mind and body are debased; it is
optionary with us and left to our own choosing, the way and manner we deem
best of serving our God and our country, so long as we keep the ends of truth
and justice in view.
Our Symbolism by which the Philosophical reasons are demonstrated, are three-
fold. And very naturally so. For man in the primitive ages, alone, and
unaided by
observation and experience, was left wholly, and had recourse only, to the
first
head of that trinity of Science, viz., Reason through a proper exercise of
which
he beheld the material Universe, threefold in all its important phases,
viz., the
three stages of existence; the past, the present and the future. The three
natural
kingdoms: the animal, the vegetable and the mineral. The three stages of
life:
helpless infancy, vigorous manhood and decrepit old age. The three great
luminaries of Nature: the Sun, the Moon and the Stars. The three great
diurnal
changes: Light, Twilight and Darkness. And by Nature's process of propagation
and reproduction, we behold in the vegetable kingdom the continuous process
of
growth, ripening and decay.
And in the animal kingdom, the perpetual succession of hopeful birth,
blooming
vigor and melancholy death.
This led on to still further search and reasoning, and man discovered that
by this
constant process of growth and decay, this changeless changing, this
perpetual
evolution, not a single particle or atom was lost, for what to-day apparently
decays and passes away, will come forth to-morrow by evolution and
reproduction in greater splendor and glory. This led man's reasoning powers
to
speculate upon this grand plan, and he soon discovered that this Grand
Universe was not a thing of chance, but that the Universe was governed by
natural laws, and that these laws were a divine principle, impressed on all
matter
by the Ruler and Governor of all things. This gave birth to the reasoning and
observation of the Philosophers of all ages.
The material and the immaterial Universe were surveyed, and it was found that
underlying all were the creative, the destructive and the preservative
principles
of nature. What sunlight destroyed and caused to decay, the gentle
influence of
the shades of night would repair and preserve, and as the destructive wars of
the elements would devastate, the soothing powers of the preservative
principles
of nature would hasten to repair the wreck of matter and restore health and
order.
This gave rise to another yet higher train of thought, to endeavor to
discern the
undiscernible, to scrutinize the inscrutable, to behold the invisible, the
infinite
Author of this perfect but ever varying, this changeless, yet ever-changing,
Universe. The Infinite Creator, the great first cause.
But as this could only be through the eye of faith and imagination, it is but
reasonable to infer that the natural surroundings and the appearances of
external objects, controlled or influenced the powers of conception; hence,
we
behold through all the various systems of religions and all the forms of the
ancient mysteries, practiced in all times and by all nations, that man
assigned to
the Deity the Infinite Ruler, the Author of Nature and Nature's laws, a
three-fold
character. The triune attributes of the Creator, the preserver and the
destroyer.
Therefore, the Philosophy of Freemasonry is pervaded throughout with a
reverential awe for the triune Deity, and a clear belief and a firm
reliance on the
three-fold attributes of the Great Jehovah, viz., Omniscience, Omnipotence
and
Omnipresence.
This belief in the triune Deity and the efficacy of His divine attributes,
constitutes
the basis of our Philosophy and teachings. The Spiritual Temple we are
engaged in building (which is simply a beautiful metaphor for our mission and
duty of life) is supported by three great pillars: Wisdom, Strength and
Beauty.
The necessity is apparent that there must be wisdom to conceive the beauties
attendant upon a virtuous and industrious life; and it is necessary to
possess
moral strength to evade all the temptations which constantly beset our
ways, in
the fulfillment of our missions as true and faithful Craftsmen, while
laboring in the
cause of humanity and Brotherly Love.
The next symbol that merits our attention, is that Mystical ladder whose
principal
rounds are Faith, Hope and Charity.
Faith enables us to look beyond the veil of time, and by a firm reliance on
the
grand Architect of this beautiful Universe, we may hope that our labors
here will
be rewarded beyond the grave, which we may enjoy by the practice of Charity
with all mankind.
The next symbol that claims our attention is the point within the circle.
The point
represents time and the circle eternity, which is without beginning and
without
end. The point also represents the finite and the circle the infinite; it
is as
impossible for the finite to measure the infinite, as it is for the point to
comprehend and take within its space the circumference of the circle. This
emblem reminds us of our relation to the great Creator; for every creature
God
hath made is equally near and equally distant from the center and
circumference
of the Universe, which is pervaded by the great, I am, the God of All.
The point and circle also represent the various systems and constellations
which
occupy the immensity of space, for as the circle embraces the point, so many
planets encircle many Suns throughout the immensity of infinite space.
The advance to the chamber of wisdom by the stairway of Science, is
emblematical of the progress in the pursuit of knowledge.
He alone will well be received anal recorded as a disciple of wisdom, who has
devoted his time and labors to scientific and useful pursuits, which alone
adorn
and embellish the mind fit for the abode of Truth.
The legend of the Master Mason is a representation of the trials and
tribulations
through life, and is typical of the contention for supremacy, of the good
and the
evil; although the evil may for a time overcome the good, yet if we are
true to our
trust, the good will finally prevail and bring us triumphantly to the haven
of rest
and peace. This contention for power between the principle of good and the
principle of evil, has and does pervade every system of Religion embraced by
man, from the earliest time to the present day; and very naturally thus,
for it is
based upon that universally accepted theory of the survival of the fittest.
And as
truth will in the end triumph over falsehood, so the good must and will
survive
the bad.
Thus we conclude our remarks with a cheering admonition to our fellow
laborers
in the cause of Humanity, Morality and Masonry by saying man was made to
labor. Intelligent labor is ennobling, ignorant idleness is debasing. All
the great
and good men of the past were frequent toilers in the field of thought. All
the
great and good men that are, and are to be, will be faithful toilers for
themselves
and others, "whilst this great world spins forever down the surging grooves
of
change."
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