If the first
degree is intended
as a representation of youth, and the second of manhood, the third,
or MASTER MASON, is emblematic of old age, with its trials, its
sufferings, and its final termination in death. The time for toiling
is now over; the opportunity to learn has passed away; the spiritual
temple that we all have been striving to erect in our hearts is now
nearly completed, and the wearied workman awaits only the word of the
Grand Master of the Universe, to call him from the labors of earth to
the eternal refreshments of heaven. Hence, this is by far the most
solemn and impressive of the degrees of Masonry; and it has, in
consequence of the profound truths which it inculcates, been
distinguished by the craft as the sublime degree. As an
Entered Apprentice, the Mason was taught those elementary
instructions which were to fit him for further advancement in his
profession, just as the youth is supplied with that rudimentary
education which is to prepare him for entering on the active duties
of life; as a Fellow Craft, the Mason is directed to continue his
investigations in the science of the Institution, and to labor
diligently in the tasks it proscribes, just as the man is required to
enlarge his mind by the acquisition of new ideas, and to extend his
usefulness to his fellow-creatures; but, as a Master, the Mason is
taught the last, the most important, and the most necessary of
truths, that having been faithful to all his trusts, he is at last to
die, and to receive the rewards of his fidelity.
It
was the single object of all the ancient rites and mysteries
practiced in the very bosom of pagan darkness, shining as a solitary
beacon in all that surrounding gloom, and cheering the philosopher in
his weary pilgrimage of life, to teach the immortality of the soul.
This is still the great design of the third degree of Masonry. This
is the scope and aim of its ritual. The Master Mason represents man,
when youth, manhood, old age, and life itself have passed away as
fleeting shadows, yet raised from the grave of iniquity, and
quickened into another and a better existence. By its legend and all
its ritual, it is implied that we have been redeemed from the death
of sin and the sepulchre of pollution. “The ceremonies and the
lecture”" as a distinguished writer has observed,
“beautifully illustrate this all-engrossing subject; and the
conclusion we arrive at is, that youth, properly directed, leads us
to honorable and virtuous maturity, and that the life of man,
regulated by morality, faith, and justice, will be rewarded at its
closing hour by the prospect of eternal bliss.”
LECTURE.
This
has very properly been called the sublime degree of a Master
Mason, as well for the solemnity of the ceremonies which
accompany it, as for the profound lessons of wisdom which it
inculcates. The important design of the degree is to symbolize the
great doctrines of the resurrection of the body and the immortality
of the soul; and hence it has been remarked by a learned writer of
our Order, that the Master Mason represents a man saved from the
grave of iniquity, and raised to the faith of salvation. The lecture
is divided into three sections.
FIRST SECTION.
The
ceremony of raising a candidate to the sublime degree of a Master
Mason is particularly described in the first section, which, though
brief, will be found essentially useful.
The
Compasses are peculiarly consecrated to this degree, because within
their extreme points, when properly extended, are emblematically said
to be inclosed the principal tenets of our profession, and hence the
moral application of the Compasses, in the third degree, is to those
precious jewels of a Master Mason, Friendship, Morality, and
Brotherly Love.
The
following passage of Scripture is introduced during the ceremonies:
“Remember
now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come
not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure
in them; while the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be
not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: in the day when
the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow
themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those
that look out of the windows be darkened, and the doors shall be shut
in the streets when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall
rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music
shall be brought low; also when they shall be afraid of that which is
high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall
flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall
fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about
the streets: or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl
be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel
broken at the cistern. Then shall the dust return to the earth as it
was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” —
Ecclesiastes 12:1-7.
The
passage of Scripture here selected is a beautiful and affecting
description of the body of man suffering under the infirmities of old
age, and metaphorically compared to a worn-out house about to fall
into decay. How appropriate is such an introduction to the sublime
and awful ceremonies of that degree, in which death, the
resurrection, and life eternal are the lessons to be taught by all
its symbols and allegories!
WORKING TOOLS.
The
Working Tools of a Master Mason are all the implements of
masonry indiscriminately, but more especially the Trowel.
The
Trowel is an instrument made use of by Operative Masons, to
spread the cement which unites a building into one common mass; but
we, as Free and Accepted Masons, are taught to make use of it for the
more noble and glorious purpose of spreading the cement of brotherly
love and affection; that cement which unites us into one sacred band,
or society of friends and brothers, among whom no contention should
ever exist, but that noble contention, or rather emulation, of who
can best work and best agree.
The
three precious jewels of a Master Mason are here referred to.
SECOND SECTION.
The
second section of this lecture is of pre-eminent importance. It
recites the legend or historical tradition on which the degree is
founded; a legend whose symbolic interpretation testifies our faith
in the resurrection of the body and the immortality of the soul,
while it exemplifies a rare instance of virtue, fortitude, and
integrity.
The
legend of the third degree has been considered of so much importance
that it has been preserved in the symbolism of every Masonic rite.
No matter what modifications or alterations the general system may
have undergone—no matter how much the ingenuity or the
imagination of the founders of rites may have perverted or corrupted
other symbols, abolishing the old, and substituting new ones—the
legend of the Temple Builder has ever been left untouched, to present
itself in all the integrity of its ancient mythical form.
The
idea of the legend was undoubtedly borrowed from the Ancient
Mysteries, where the lesson was the same as that now conveyed in the
third degree of Masonry.
Viewed
in this light, it is evident that it is not essential to the value of
the symbolism that the legend should be proved to be historical.
Whether considered as a truthful narrative of an event that actually
transpired during the building of the Temple, or simply as a myth,
embodying the utterance of a religious sentiment, the symbolic lesson
of life and death and immortality is still contained in its
teachings, and commands our earnest attention.
Again
is the lesson taught here, as it was in the first degree, that a
Mason should enter upon no great and important labor without first
invoking the blessing of Deity. But the symbolism here is still
further extended, and the candidate, representing one who is about to
enter upon the pilgrimage of life, and all its dangers and
temptations, first is supposed to lay down upon his trestle-board the
designs of labor, of honest ambition, or of virtuous pleasure upon
which he is about to enter, and then to invoke the protection and
blessing of the Grand Architect of the Universe upon his future
career. For the Temple Builder is, in the Masonic system, the symbol
of humanity developed here and in the life to come; and as the Temple
is the visible symbol of the world, its architect becomes the
mythical symbol of man, the dweller and worker in the world, and his
progress by the gates is the allegory of man's pilgrimage through
youth, man hood, and old age, to the final triumph of death and the
grave.
The
number 12 was celebrated as a mystical number in the ancient systems
of sun-worship, of which it has already been said that Masonry is a
philosophical development. The number there referred to the twelve
signs of the zodiac, and in those Masonic rites in which the Builder
is made the symbol of the sun, the twelve F:. C:. refer to the twelve
signs in which alone the sun is to be sought
for. But in the York rite this symbolism is lost, because Hiram
there represents man, and not the sun. But the
ancient number has still been preserved. Portal says the number
twelve was
a perfect and complete number. The number thirteen indicated the
commencement of a new course of life, and thence it became the emblem
of death. The number
twelve has always been considered as a sacred number: witness the 12
great gods of the Greeks and Romans; the 12 altars of Janus,
referring to the 12 months of the year, the 12 tribes of Israel, the
12 Apostles, and a hundred other instances that if necessary, might
be cited.
A WAYFARING MAN.
The
word means a traveler, one who passes over the road—derived
from way or road, and the word fare, in its old meaning
of to pass or go over. Bailey defines a wayfaring man as “one
who is accustomed to travel over the roads.” It is with this
meaning frequently found in Scripture, as in Judges 19:17: “And
when he had lifted up his eyes, he saw a wayfaring man in the street
of the city.” Such a man, having perhaps just landed at Joppa,
and on his way to the interior, would be most likely to be met near
that city, and would be best enabled to give any information wanted
as to the condition of the shipping in the harbor, or in relation to
any othet matter connected with a passage.
The
word “sea-faring man” sometimes ignorantly used in
this place, is a monstrous corruption of the old term.
Joppa,
which was by the Hebrews called Japho, and is now known as Jaffa,
was and is a sea-port town and harbor on the coast of Palestine,
about forty miles in “a westerly direction” (being about
northwest) from Jerusalem. At the time of the building of the Temple
it was the only sea-port possessed by the Israelites, and was
therefore the point through which all passage out of or into the
country was effected.
The
small hill near Mount Moriah can be clearly identified by the
most convincing analogies as being no other than Mount Calvary. Thus
Mount Calvary was a small hill; it was situated in a westerly
direction from the Temple, and near Mount Moriah; it was on the
direct road from Jerusalem to Joppa, and is thus the very spot where
a weary brother, traveling on that road, would find it
convenient to sit down to rest and refresh himself; it was
outside of the gate of the Temple; and lastly, there are several
caves, or clefts in the rocks, in the neighborhood, one of
which, it will be remembered, was, subsequently to the time of this
tradition, used as the sepulchre of our Lord. The Christian Mason
will readily perceive the peculiar character of the symbolism which
this identification of the spot on which the great truth of the
resurrection was unfolded in both systems—the Masonic and the
Christian—must suggest.
SPRIG OF ACACIA.
The
Sprig of Acacia is an important symbol in Freemasonry. The
plant is known to botanists as the acacia vera of Tournefort
and the mimosa nilotica of Linneaus. It is an evergreen that
grows in great abundance in the vicinity of Jerusalem. Its name in
Hebrew is Shittah, or in the plural, Shittim, and it
was always esteemed as a sacred tree by the Israelites. The
tabernacle and its furniture, with the Ark of the Covenant, was made
out of it, and it was consecrated, from among the other trees of the
forest, to sacred purposes.
As
a symbol, it received, among the ancients, three interpretations. 1.
In consequence of its incorruptible and evergreen nature, it was
readily adopted as a symbol of the immortality of the soul. 2. In
allusion to the derivation of its name, among the Greeks, from a word
which signifies freedom from sin, it was also adopted as a
symbol of innocence. 3. Like all the other sacred plants, such as
the myrtle, the mistletoe, and the lotus, which were used in the
Ancient Mysteries, it became a symbol of initiation. The three
interpretations combined teach us, by the use of this one symbol,
that in the initiation of life and death, of which the
initiation in the third degree is simply emblematic, innocence
must for a time lie in the grave—at length, however, to be
called by the Grand Master of all things to immortality.
CLEFTS IN THE ROCKS.
The
vicinity of Jerusalem is exceeding rocky and mountainous. These
rocks abound in clefts or caves, which were sometimes used by the
inhabitants as places of sepulture, sometimes as places of refuge in
time of war, and sometimes as lurking-places for robbers, or for
persons guilty of crime and fleeing from justice.
THE GRAND MASTER'S JEWEL.
There
is a Masonic tradition, that the Jewel of an ancient Grand Master—and
the one therefore always worn by the Builder—was the Square and
Compasses, with the letter G between. The finding of this jewel
alone gives any probability to this part of the legend.
It
is hardly necessary to say that the letter G, wherever spoken of in
Masonry as a symbol, is merely a modern substitute for the Hebrew
letter yod (י)
which was the initial of Jehovah, the tetragammaton, and
therefore constantly used as a symbol of Deity.
PRAYER AT RAISING A BROTHER TO THE SUBLIME DEGREE OF MASTER MASON.
Thou,
O God! knowest our down-sitting and our up-rising, and understandest
our thoughts afar off. Shield and defend us from the evil intentions
of our enemies, and support us under the trials and afflictions we
are destined to endure, while traveling through this vale of tears.
Man, that is born of a woman, is of few days, and full of trouble.
He cometh forth as a flower, and is cut down; he fleeth also as a
shadow, and continueth not. Seeing his days are determined, the
number of his months are with thee; thou hast appointed his bounds
that he can not pass; turn from him that he may rest, till he shall
accomplish his day. For there is hope of a tree if it be cut down,
that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will
not cease. But man dieth and wasteth away; yea, man giveth up the
ghost, and where is he? As the waters fail from the sea, and the
flood decayeth and drieth up, so man lieth down and riseth not
up, till the heavens shall be no more. Yet, O Lord! have compassion
on the children of thy creation, administer them comfort in time of
trouble, and save them with an everlasting salvation. So
mote it be. Amen.
FIVE POINTS OF FELLOWSHIP.
The
five-pointed star has been adopted, in very recent times, as a
Masonic symbol. Differing, as it does, entirely from the blazing
star, which in the first degree refers to Divine Providence, it is
consecrated, in the third degree, as a symbol of the Fire Points
of Fellowship.
Among
the Jews, as, indeed, among all other civilized nations, it was
considered not only an act due to decency and humanity, but a
religious obligation, to bury and pay honors to the dead. The bier
was followed by mourners, who poured out the anguish of their hearts
in lamentable wails, and who rehearsed the virtues of the departed,
and expressed the sorrow of the survivors. “Men,” says
Jahn, “who were distinguished for their rank, and who, at the
same time, exhibited a claim to the love and favor of the people for
their virtues and their good deeds, were honored with an attendance
of vast multitudes, to witness the solemnities of their interment.”
[Jahn, John. Biblical Antiquities. p. 100.]
The
Mosaic law which related to defilement by dead bodies, rendered it
necessary that none should be buried near sacred places, nor even
within the limits of cities, except in the case of kings and very
distinguished men. The strictness of the religious code against
pollution would, however, forbid that even these should be interred
in the neighborhood of a temple or sanctuary.
As
far back as the era of Abraham, sepulchral monuments are mentioned.
When Rachel died, we are told that Jacob “set a pillar upon her
grave.” The ancient Arabians erected a heap of stones over the
dead; but as among the Hebrews such a heap was an indication that the
body beneath had been stoned to death, the latter nation, therefore,
confined their monuments to a single stone, which it was usual
carefully to hew and to ornament with inscriptions.
Although
among the early Jews the burning of the body was esteemed
disgraceful, the sentiment of the people was subsequently changed,
and to burn the body with aromatic spices, and deposit the ashes
in an urn, was considered, in the days of King Solomon, as a
distinguished honor, while, says Jahn, “not to be burned was
regarded a most signal disgrace.”
[Jahn, John. Biblical Antiquities. p. 102.]
We
thus close the second section with a tribute to the memory of that
distinguished artist who preferred to lose his life rather than
betray his trust.
THIRD SECTION.
The
third section furnishes many details in relation to the building of
the Temple, and concludes with an explanation of the hieroglyphical
emblems of the degree. Nearly all of this section is monitorial.
The
Temple of King Solomon occupied seven years in its construction,
during which time we are informed that it rained not in the daytime,
that the workmen might not be obstructed in their labor.
This
famous fabric was supported by fourteen hundred and fifty-three
columns, and two thousand nine hundred and six pilasters, all hewn
from the finest Parian marble.
WISDOM, STRENGTH, AND BEAUTY.
It
was symbolically supported, also, by three principal columns, Wisdom,
Strength, and Beauty, which were represented by the three
Grand Masters.
There
were employed in its building three Grand Masters; three thousand
three hundred Overseers, or masters of the work; eighty thousand
Fellow Crafts; and seventy thousand Entered Apprentices. All these
were classed and arranged by King Solomon, that neither envy,
discord, nor confusion were suffered to interrupt that universal
peace and tranquillity which pervaded the world at this important
period.
EMBLEMS.
There
are in this degree two classes of emblems or symbols, the first of
which is monitorial, and consists of the Three Steps, the Pot
of Incense, the Bee-Hive, the Book of Constitutions,
guarded by the Tiler's Sword, the Sword, pointing to a Waked
Heart, the All-seeinq Eye, the Anchor and Ark,
the Forty-seventh Problem of Euclid, the Hour-Glass,
and the Scythe. They are thus explained:
THE THREE STEPS usually
delineated upon the Master's carpet, are emblematical of the three
principal stages of human life, viz: Youth, Manhood, and
Age. In Youth, as Entered Apprentices, we ought industriously
to occupy our minds in the attainment of useful knowledge; in
Manhood, as Fellow Crafts, we should apply our knowledge to
the discharge of our respective duties to God, our neighbor, and
ourselves; so that in Age, as Master Masons, we may enjoy the
happy reflections consequent on a well-spent life, and die in the
hope of a glorious immortality.
THE POT OF INCENSE is
an emblem of a pure heart, which is always an acceptable sacrifice to
the Deity; and as this glows with fervent heat, so should our hearts
continually glow with gratitude to the great beneficent Author of our
existence, for the manifold blessings and comforts we enjoy.
THE BEE-HIVE is
an emblem of industry, and recommends the practice of that virtue to
all created beings, from the highest seraph in heaven to the lowest
reptile of the dust. It teaches us, that as we came into the world
rational and intelligent beings, so we should ever be industrious
ones; never sitting down contented while our fellow-creatures around
us are in want, when it is in our power to relieve them without
inconvenience to ourselves.
BOOK OF
CONSTITUTIONS, GUARDED BY THE TILER'S SWORD reminds
us that we should be ever watchful and guarded in our words and
actions, particularly when before the enemies of Masonry; ever
bearing in remembrance those truly Masonic virtues, silence and
circumspection.
THE SWORD,
POINTING TO A NAKED HEART demonstrates
that justice will sooner or later overtake us; and although our
thoughts, words, and actions may be bidden from the eyes of men, yet
that
ALL-SEEING EYE,
whom the Sun, Moon, and Stars obey, and under
whose watchful care even Comets perform their stupendous revolutions,
pervades the inmost recesses of the human Heart, and will reward us
according to our merits.
THE ANCHOR AND ARK are
emblems of a well-grounded hope and a well-spent life. They
are emblematical of that divine Ark which safely wafts us over
this tempestuous sea of troubles, and that Anchor which shall
safely moor us in a peaceful harbor, where the wicked cease from
troubling, and the weary shall find rest.
THE FORTY-SEVENTH
PROBLEM OF EUCLID was an invention of our ancient friend and brother, the
great Pythagoras, who, in his travels through Asia, Africa, and Europe, was
initiated into several orders of priesthood, and raised to the
sublime degree of a Master Mason. This wise philosopher enriched his
mind abundantly in a general knowledge of things, and more especially
in Geometry or Masonry. On this subject he drew out many problems
and theorems; and among the most distinguished he erected this, when,
in the joy of his heart, he exclaimed, Eureka, in the Grecian
language signifying I have found it;
and upon the discovery of which he is said to have sacrificed
a hecatomb. It teaches Masons to be general lovers of the arts and
sciences.
[This
problem is thus enunciated by Euclid: “In any right-angled
triangle, the square which is described upon the side subtending the
right angle is equal to the square described upon the sides which
contain the right angle—Euclid, Book I., Prob. 47.]
THE HOUR-GLASS is
an emblem of human life. Behold! how swiftly the sands run, and how
rapidly our lives are drawing to a close! We can not without
astonishment behold the little particles which are contained in this
machine; how they pass away almost imperceptibly! and yet, to our
surprise, in the short space of an hour they are all exhausted. Thus
wastes man! Today he puts forth the tender leaves of hope; tomorrow
blossoms, and bears his blushing honors thick upon him; the next day
comes a frost, which nips the shoot; and when he thinks his greatness
is still aspiring, he falls, like autumn leaves, to enrich our mother
earth.
THE SCYTHE is
an emblem of time, which cuts the brittle thread of life, and
launches us into eternity. Behold! what havoc the scythe of Time
makes among the human race! If by chance we should escape the
numerous evils incident to childhood and youth, and with health and
vigor arrive at the years of manhood; yet, withal, we must soon be
cut down by the all-devouring scythe of Time, and be gathered into
the land where our fathers have gone before us.
The
second class of emblems are not monitorial, and therefore their true
interpretation can only be obtained within the tiled recesses of the
Lodge. They consist of the Setting Maul, the Spade, the Coffin, and
the Sprig of Acacia. They afford subjects of serious and solemn
reflection to the rational and contemplative mind, and thus the
lecture closes with cheering promises of a blessed immortality beyond
the grave.
CHARGE AT THE RAISING TO THE SUBLIME DEGREE OF MASTER MASON.
Brother:
Your zeal for the institution of Masonry, the progress you have made
in the mystery, and your conformity to our regulations, have pointed
you out as a proper object of our favor and esteem. You are now
bound by duty, honor, and gratitude to be faithful to your trust; to
support the dignity of your character on every occasion; and to
enforce, by precept and example, obedience to the tenets of the
Order.
In
the character of a Master Mason, you are authorized to correct the
errors and irregularities of your uninformed brethren, and to guard
them against a breach of fidelity. To preserve the reputation of the
Fraternity unsullied, must be your constant care; and for this
purpose it is your province to recommend to your inferiors, obedience
and submission; to your equals, courtesy and affability; to your
superiors, kindness and condescension. Universal benevolence you are
always to inculcate, and by the regularity of your own behavior
afford the best example for the conduct of others less informed. The
ancient landmarks of the Order, intrusted to your care, you are
carefully to preserve; and never suffer them to be infringed, or
countenance a deviation from the established usages and customs of
the fraternity.
Your
virtue, honor, and reputation are concerned in supporting with
dignity the character you now bear. Let no motive, therefore, make
you swerve from your duty, violate your vows, or betray your trust;
but be true and faithful, and imitate the example of that celebrated
artist whom you have this evening represented. Thus you will render
yourself deserving of the honor which we have conferred, and merit
the confidence that we have reposed.