The Swedish Rite of
Freemasonry
by Bro. Burton E. Bennett, Sc. D.
The Master Mason - January 1926
THE SWEDISH Rite of Freemasonry is a state institution. A
Mason in Sweden is a man of note and of influence in the
community. He is in a class apart and, in effect, belongs to a
species of nobility. It was for the purpose of weakening the old
nobility, and enhancing the power of the crown, that the present
system was devised. Gustavus III, to further his political purposes,
broke down the power of the old nobility, determined, among other
things, to create an Order, a new kind of nobility, composed of
men in all walks of life, irrespective of birth. He wanted a class of
high-minded, successful, intellectual and learned men, of all
professions and industries, who would wholly rely upon him for
their leader. There was to be a chance for any of them to obtain the
highest offices and the greatest honors in the nation. They could
become nobles of high degree. Like Napoleon's soldiers, each of
whom carried a marshal's baton in his knapsack, each of them
would carry a patent of nobility in his pocket, which when
unfolded, so that all could see, entitled him to a seat among the
mighty and the great.
It is probable that his brother, the Duke of Sundermania, who was
inclined to mysticism and who had given much study to the "isms"
of that time, had much to do with preparing the ritual, and of
conducting the Order. Gustavus was too great a man, with too
many great things to do, to pay attention to such things. When the
Duke came to the throne as Charles III, he rounded out the system
by creating the Knightly Order of Charles III. Gustavus III, King
of Sweden, was born January 24, 1746, a son of King Adolphus
Frederick and Louise Ulrich, of Prussia, a sister of Frederick the
Great. He was shot in the back by an assassin in the opera house in
Stockholm on March 13, 1792, and died thirteen days later. He was
one of the greatest of the European kings of the 18th century. He
was interested in every branch of literature and art. He created the
Swedish theater. He was the patron of poets and artists. His natural
gifts were great; his manners charming. He was a great statesman
and soldier. He found his country in anarchy, steeped in
corruption, ruled by arrogant nobles fighting one another to see
who could get the most, and left it a consolidated, great nation,
prosperous and well governed. When he came to the throne its
power had nearly reached the vanishing point. When he left it its
power was supreme. He found his country one of no moment in the
affairs of Europe. He left it one of the great powers of the
Continent.
IT WAS only by a revolution created by himself that a new
constitution was obtained that secured for him some real power
and turned what was really a disunited republic of nobles into a
strong, but limited monarchy. This was accomplished on August
20, 1772, by the estates giving in, as they had to, to Gustavus and
his tried soldiers. Thus was Sweden released from what is known
as the Northern System, with Russia as the controlling power.
Sweden again entered into the natural stream of European
progress. The administration was reformed. The appalling
corruption was stopped. The whole course of judicial procedure
was changed and torture in legal investigations abolished. Liberty
of the press was proclaimed. The natural defenses of the country
were developed, and the navy enlarged and made one of the
greatest in Europe. Free trade in corn was had, and export tolls
abolished. The poor law was reformed and absolute religious
liberty proclaimed. A wise foreign policy was pursued. But it was
not till February 17, 1789, that Gustavus was enabled, by a second
coup d'etat, finally to crush the Rusophile nobility. The old nobility
was ever after his bitter enemy. But they could not resist so great,
talented and popular a king. They finally brutishly assassinated
him. The loss to Sweden was irreparable. He left Sweden happy
and prosperous, and one of the mighty powers of Europe. And so
the last great monarch of Sweden passed to the great beyond to
meet that other great monarch, Gustavus the Great, (Vasa), who
when he died, in 156o, left the kingdom peaceful and civilized.
The rite is Christian in character. The story is that Jesus told
secrets to some of his apostles that he did not tell to others, and,
also, told secrets to the Essenes, of whom he was one; that these
secrets were handed down as a mystery through the Essenes, and
that at the time of the Crusades they were greatly oppressed by the
Saracens, and while seven of them, Syric Christians, were fleeing
from the Saracens they were rescued by the Knights Templars.
They stayed with them in Jerusalem and imparted to the Templar
priests their secrets. These were handed down in this Order till it
was abolished and the priests dispersed. They were not molested to
the extent that the seculars were, and with their secret knowledge
they kept their secret writings. Some of them fled to Scotland,
where they founded a priory, and from there their secrets gradually
spread to the continent of Europe, and finally reached Sweden. The
exact story in regard to the Templarism in the Rite is that they are
descended from the Templars by way of the real Order of Christ of
Portugal, and that Beaujeau, a nephew of DeMolay, took his
uncle's ashes to Stockholm, buried them there and established the
Swedish Templar system. The Rite, besides Freemasonry proper, is
a mixture of Strict Observance Templarism, Rosicrucianism and
Swedenborgism.
STRICT OBSERVANCE Templarism became a power in the
Masonic world in Germany about 1750. It is claimed that the time
had come to revive the Order of the Templar, which had only been
dormant, and to have it restored to its former power and glory. It
was claimed that the Templars founded Freemasonry, and that all
of the mighty and mysterious secrets of the ancient past were
deposited with them and were now in their possession.
Rosicrucianism dates from the early part of the 17th century.
Those who believed in it were moral and religious reformers, who
used the sciences of that day to further their opinions. It savored of
mysticism, ocultism and hidden secrets, only known to the
reformers. The story is that Charles Rosenkreuz, in the 15th
century, in his travels, discovered the secret wisdom of the East,
and brought it with him to Europe. It had very little influence on
real Freemasonry, but it helped to make the so-called "high
degrees."
Swedenborgism, however, has so interwoven itself with the "high
degrees" of all systems, and by this I mean those degrees above
that of Master Mason, and below the Knights, that it cannot be
passed over lightly or explained in a few words. It must be
understood to understand this so-called part of Freemasonry.
Emmanuel Swedenborg was born at Stockholm, Sweden, on
January 29, 1688. He lived to be 104 years old. His father was a
Bishop of the Lutheran Church and a professor in the University of
Upsula. Swedenborg, after graduating from the university, traveled
extensively over Europe. His original name was Swedberg, but on
account of his great contributions to science and philosophy he was
ennobled. There was added to the first part of his name an "en," the
equivalent of the German "von," and the latter part was changed to
"borq."
As a scientist he was astonishingly ahead of his time. His work in
geology and paleontology is enough alone to perpetuate his name.
His theory of light and cosmic atoms are astounding for their
correctness. He was the first to attempt to establish a system of
crystallography. He invented a method of determining longitude at
sea by observations of the moon among the stars. He was the first
to employ mercury for the air pump. He experimented with the
power of ship models, invented an ear trumpet, and improved the
common stove. He studied machine guns and turned his attention
to flying machines, and many of his ideas and conclusions square
with the results of today. He tried to discover the nature of the soul
and spirit by studying human anatomy, and contended that the
divine spirit ruled all. Professor Neuberger, of Vienna, in 1901,
stated that Swedenborg anticipated the modern view of the
functions of the brain, the magnitude of which is not now realized.
He announced the modern view that the activity of the brain is the
combined activity of the individual cells. Modern scholars agree
with him as to the physiological action of the spinal cord. And,
strange as it may appear, his views as to the ductless glands are
those that we are coming to find out now.
AS SWEDENBORG neared the age of fifty years a great change
came over him. Up to this time he had been a true scientist and
philosopher - one of the greatest in the world. He now became a
mystic, and all of his attention thereafter was given to psychical
and spiritual research. He commenced to have visions and averred
that he talked with God. He stated that the Lord appeared to him
and said: "I am the God, the Lord, the Creator and Redeemer of the
world. I have chosen thee to unfold the spiritual sense of the Holy
Scripture. I will Myself dictate to thee what thou shall write." He
wrote some fifty volumes. He founded no church. He called his
doctrines that of the New Church, in which all members of all
denominations could unite. Some of his followers, however,
organized the New Jerusalem Church, now of small membership,
but found in nearly all parts of the world. The doctrines of the New
Church are as follows:
1. That there is one God in whom there is a divine trinity; and
that
he is the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. That a saving faith is to believe in, him.
3. That evils are to be shunned because they are of the devil and
from the devil.
4. That good actions are to be done because they are from God.
5. That these are to be done by man as from himself; but that it
ought to be believed that they are done from the Lord with him and
by him.
SWEDENBORG was not a Mason, never spoke of Masonry, never
mentioned Masonry in any of his writings. Yet some "high"
Masons took much of the material for some of their degrees from
Swedenborg, and particularly from the following vision:
I accordingly entered the Temple, which was magnificent, and in
the midst of which a woman was represented clothed in purple,
holding in her right hand a golden crown piece and in her left a
chain of pearls. The statue and the representation were only
FANTASTIC REPRESENTATIONS; for these INFERNAL
SPIRITS, by closing the interior degree, and opening the exterior
one, are able at the pleasure of their imagination to represent
magnificent objects. Perceiving that they were illusions, I prayed
to the Lord. Immediately the interior of my spirit was opened, and
I saw, instead of the superb Temple, a tottering house, open to the
weather from the top to the bottom. In the place of the woman-
statue an image was suspended, having the head of a dragon, the
body of a leopard, the feet of a bear, and the mouth of a lion; in
short, it was the beast rising out of the sea, as described in the
Apocalypse XIII, 2. In the place of a park, THERE WAS A
MARSH FULL OF FROGS, and I was informed that under this
marsh there was a GREAT HEWN STONE, beneath which the
WORD was entirely hidden. Afterwards I said to the prelate, who
was the fabricator of these illusions, "Is that your Temple?"
"Yes,"
replied he, "it is." Immediately his interior sight was opened like
mine, and he saw what I did. "How now what do I see?" cried he. I
told him that it was the effect of the celestial light, which discovers
the interior quality of everything, and that which taught him at that
very moment what faith separated from good works was. While I
was speaking, a wind blowing from the EAST destroyed the
Temple and the image dried up the marsh, and DISCOVERED
THE STONE UNDER WHICH THE SACRED WORD WAS
CONCEALED. A genial warmth, like that of the spring, descended
from heaven; and in the place of the Temple we saw a tent, the
exterior of which was very plain. I looked into the interior of it,
and there I saw THE FOUNDATION STONE BENEATH
WHICH THE SACRED WORD WAS CONCEALED,
ornamented with precious stones, the splendor of which, diffusing
itself over the walls of the Temple, diversified the colors of the
paintings, which represented cherubim. The angels, perceiving me
to be filled with admiration, told me that I should see still greater
wonders than these. They were then permitted to open the THIRD
HEAVEN, inhabited by the celestial angels, who dwelt in LOVE.
All of a sudden the splendor of a LIGHT OF FIRE caused the
Temple to disappear, and left nothing to be seen but the Lord
himself, standing upon the FOUNDATION STONE - the Lord,
who was the WORD, such as He showed Himself. (Apocal., 1, 13-
16.) Holiness immediately filled all the interior of the spirit of the
angels, upon which they MADE AN EFFORT to prostrate
themselves, but the Lord SHUT THE PASSAGE TO THE LIGHT
from the THIRD heaven, OPENING the passage to the light of the
SECOND, which caused the Temple to reappear, with the tent in
the midst.
IT IS said that Count Wrende Sparre, who had been admitted to
Freemasonry in both England and France, established a Lodge of
Masons in Stockholm in 1731. If so it was short lived, for Masonry
was prohibited in Sweden in 1738. However, it was soon
readmitted.
In 1746, what is known as the Mother Lodge of Sweden, "St. John
Auxiliary," existed in Stockholm, but it was not regularly
constituted till 1752. This was done by Count Porse. It is thus seen
that by 1746, at least, Masonry became firmly established in
Sweden.
On December 25, 1759, the Grand Lodge of Sweden was formed
by Count Eckleff. He was, probably, elected its first Grand Master.
The only addition to true Freemasonry appears at this time to have
been one Scots Lodge. While the "high" degrees made their
appearance the next year, they made no great impression for
several years. By 1766, however, they had grown into the Swedish
system so far that the Rite was remodeled into its present form. But
it, probably, consisted of only eight degrees, the last one
containing the Templar legend. In 1780 the Rite was rearranged
and remodeled, divided into different classes, and, with the
exception of the last class, which was created in 1811, assumed the
form that it has since maintained.
The Rite consists of five classes, to wit: (1) St. John's Lodges
(Craft degrees), (2) St. Andrew's Lodges (Scots degrees), (3)
Chapter degrees, (4) Chapter Dignitaries of the Red Cross (Knights
and Commanders), and (5) Order of Charles III. This last class,
however, does not apply to Norway, Denmark, and the greater part
of northern Germany, governed by the Grand Lodge of Germany,
where the Swedish Rite is also worked. Neither does the Swedish
governmental system apply, the really working part of the Rite
being of only nine degrees. Probably about 100,000 persons
practice the Swedish Rite.
THE FIRST class consists of three degrees: (1) Entered
Apprentice, (2) Fellow Craft, and (3) Master Mason. The second
also consists of three degrees: (4) Scottish Apprentice, (5) Scottish
Fellow, and (6) Scottish Master. The third class, as well, consists
of three degrees: (7) Knight of the East or Prince of Jerusalem. The
Knight of the East is found in nearly all Rites. It is the fifteenth
degree of the Ancient and Accepted Rite, the sixth degree of the
French Rite, the forty-first degree of the Rite of Misraim, and the
tenth degree (Knight of the Red Cross) of the American Rite. The
Knight of the Red Cross really belongs to the Royal Arch degree.
It depicts incidents in the story of the building of the Second
Temple at Jerusalem. The Prince of Jerusalem, on the other hand,
is the sixteenth degree of the Ancient and Accepted Rite, and the
forty-first degree of the Misraim Rite. This is a continuation of the
story of incidents in the building of the Second Temple. The
second one is (8) Confident of Solomon or Knight of the West.
This degree is said to unfold the Templar legend. The Knight of
the West is also the name of the forty-second degree of the Rite of
Misraim. The third class, again, consists of three degrees. Instead
of degrees, however, they are really titles of honor. They are as
follows: (10) Confident of St. Andrew or Perfect Templar, (11)
Knight Companion of the Red Cross, and (12) Vicar of Solomon.
This is the governing class of the Order and the Vicar of Solomon,
who is always the King of Sweden, is the head of it. The Vicar has
charge of the ritualistic work, while the Grand Master has charge
of all business affairs. These two offices may, or may not be,
centered in one and the same person. Generally the heir apparent is
the Grand Master. It is asserted that all princes are born
Freemasons. The King, as Vicar of Solomon, is really a Protestant
pope, and it was so intended.
THE VICARIUS SALOMONIS (Vicar of Solomon) dates from
about 1780. The Duke of Sundermania became Grand Master in
1773. In 1775 King Gustavus III became a Grand Lodge member,
and under the name of "Protector" assumed control of Masonry.
This Protectorship grew into Vicarius Salomonis.
The fifth class is the Order of Charles XIII, created May 27, 1811.
This is an Order of Knighthood. It is composed, besides the
sovereign and princes of the blood, of three of the great church
dignitaries of the realm, and twenty-seven Masons who have
reached the tenth degree. This Order greatly resembles the
Supreme Councils and Grand Orients of the thirty-third degree, as
its members are chosen to a great extent in the same manner as are
honorary thirty-thirds. It also may be compared to the official
governing degrees of the Rite of Memphis, which are all above the
ninetieth degree, and the Vicar of Solomon is about the same as the
Grand Hierophant, who holds his position for life, and is the only
member taking the ninety-seventh degree.
Sweden has five Orders of Knighthood, to wit: (1) Order of the
Seraphim (the "Blue Ribbon"), the creation of which is attributed
to Magnus I in 1280. The Order is limited, exclusive of the king
and princes of the blood, to eight foreign and twenty-seven
Swedish members. The collar of the Order is formed of alternate
gold seraphim and blue enameled patriarchal crosses. (2) The
Order of the Sword (the "Yellow Ribbon"), which is the principal
military order. It was created by Gustavus I (Vasa) in 1522. There
are five classes with subdivisions. The badge is a white cross in the
angles of which are gold crowns. The points of the cross are joined
by gold swords entwined with gold and blue belts. In the blue
center is an upright sword with three gold crowns. The whole is
surrounded by the royal crown. The ribbon is yellow with blue
edging. (4) Order of Vasa (the "Green Ribbon"). This Order was
created by Gustavus III in 1772. It consists of three classes with
subdivisions. It is given for services rendered to industries and
manufactures. The white cross bears on a blue center the charge of
the house of Vasa, a gold sheaf shaped like a vase with two
handles. (5) Order of Charles XIII (the "Red Ribbon"). The
insignia are a red enameled cross, bound in gold surmounted by a
regal crown, worn on a red ribbon as a collar round the neck, and a
smaller, but similar cross, minus the crown, on the left breast.
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