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Article LITERARY NOTICES. ← Page 5 of 6 →
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Literary Notices.
then proceeds to show the difference betAveen the allegories and symbols of genuine Masonry , and those of spurious Masonry , and introduces amulets and a talisman of his OAVII collection , in Avhich his prolific mind has discovered vestiges of genuine Freemasonry . We are also favoured Avith a long extract of a letter , consisting of nine pages , Avhich he addressed to the late bishop of NorAvich , in explanation of this amulet which he brought from North Africa . Passing over a great deal of Avhat Ave confess Ave could not really understand , he thus concludes : —
" I have met with many Bro . Masons during my various peregrinations in different parts of the world , and one and all have put down the idea of universality to the superstition of Freemasonry . As for modem Jews being Ereemasons , this proves nothing to the purpose . They can only date their admission into the Confraternity to the middle of the last century , when one of them , Stephen Morin by name , contrived to learn a few of the pass-words from a weak Brother , and who was also a dealer m Masonic publications , and thus picked up a good deal of information on the subject , by which he was smuggled into some of the Lodges in America , wMch became a precedent for Jews being admitted as Masons , and was one of the causes which conduced to tarnish , the pristine purity of Freemasonry . How well-informed and zealous Jews could be Freemasons is a greater mystery to me than is Masonry to the mass of the people !"
Such is the language of a converted HebreAV . He has surely forgot the Avords of the Litany : " From pride , vain-glory , and hypocrisy ; from envy , hatred , and malice , and all uncharitableness , good Lord , deliver us . " And , again : " Charity suffereth long , and is kind ; charity envieth not ; charity vaunteth not itself , is not puffed up , cloth not behave itself unseemly " True Masons , instead of calumniating , cannot evince sufficient gratitude to " God's ancient people , " and our Rev . Brother would
have done Avell if he had consulted the Old Testament , Avhere he Avould have found many examples of a pure Masonic spirit , Avorthy of Christian imitation . Ben-hadad , the Syrian monarch , Avho Avas conquered by the Israelites 900 years before Christ , and AA'hose discomfiture is assigned to the Assyrians having said " that the Lord Avas God of the hills and not of the valleys" oAved his life to his compassionate conqueror and Brother in the folloAving manner . ( 1 Kings xx . 80 . )
And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city into an inner chamber . And his servants said unto him , Behold now , we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings : let us , I pray thee , put sackcloth on our loins , ancl ropes upon [ over ] our heads , ancl go out to the king of Israel ; peradventure he will save thy life . So they girded sackcloth on their loins , and put ropes on their heads , and came to the king of Israel , and said , Thy servant Ben-hadad saith , I pray thee , let me live . And he said , Is he yet alive ? He is my brother . Now tho men did diligently observe whether anything would come from himand did hastilcatch it [ This could onlbe a Masonic sij
, y . y gn And they said , Thy brother JJen-hadad . [ Of course they returned the sign . ] Then he said , Go bring Mm : and he caused Mm to come up into the chariot . And Ben-hadad said unto him , The cities which my father took from thy father , I will restore , and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus , as my father made in Samaria : Then said Ahab , I will send thee away with this covenant . So he made a covenant with him , and sent him away . "
AVe leave our Brethren to trace the intimate connection of this narrative Avith the mysteries of our Craft , and as an exhibition of that universal benevolence , Avithout Avhich , Masonry Avould become " as a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal . "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Literary Notices.
then proceeds to show the difference betAveen the allegories and symbols of genuine Masonry , and those of spurious Masonry , and introduces amulets and a talisman of his OAVII collection , in Avhich his prolific mind has discovered vestiges of genuine Freemasonry . We are also favoured Avith a long extract of a letter , consisting of nine pages , Avhich he addressed to the late bishop of NorAvich , in explanation of this amulet which he brought from North Africa . Passing over a great deal of Avhat Ave confess Ave could not really understand , he thus concludes : —
" I have met with many Bro . Masons during my various peregrinations in different parts of the world , and one and all have put down the idea of universality to the superstition of Freemasonry . As for modem Jews being Ereemasons , this proves nothing to the purpose . They can only date their admission into the Confraternity to the middle of the last century , when one of them , Stephen Morin by name , contrived to learn a few of the pass-words from a weak Brother , and who was also a dealer m Masonic publications , and thus picked up a good deal of information on the subject , by which he was smuggled into some of the Lodges in America , wMch became a precedent for Jews being admitted as Masons , and was one of the causes which conduced to tarnish , the pristine purity of Freemasonry . How well-informed and zealous Jews could be Freemasons is a greater mystery to me than is Masonry to the mass of the people !"
Such is the language of a converted HebreAV . He has surely forgot the Avords of the Litany : " From pride , vain-glory , and hypocrisy ; from envy , hatred , and malice , and all uncharitableness , good Lord , deliver us . " And , again : " Charity suffereth long , and is kind ; charity envieth not ; charity vaunteth not itself , is not puffed up , cloth not behave itself unseemly " True Masons , instead of calumniating , cannot evince sufficient gratitude to " God's ancient people , " and our Rev . Brother would
have done Avell if he had consulted the Old Testament , Avhere he Avould have found many examples of a pure Masonic spirit , Avorthy of Christian imitation . Ben-hadad , the Syrian monarch , Avho Avas conquered by the Israelites 900 years before Christ , and AA'hose discomfiture is assigned to the Assyrians having said " that the Lord Avas God of the hills and not of the valleys" oAved his life to his compassionate conqueror and Brother in the folloAving manner . ( 1 Kings xx . 80 . )
And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city into an inner chamber . And his servants said unto him , Behold now , we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings : let us , I pray thee , put sackcloth on our loins , ancl ropes upon [ over ] our heads , ancl go out to the king of Israel ; peradventure he will save thy life . So they girded sackcloth on their loins , and put ropes on their heads , and came to the king of Israel , and said , Thy servant Ben-hadad saith , I pray thee , let me live . And he said , Is he yet alive ? He is my brother . Now tho men did diligently observe whether anything would come from himand did hastilcatch it [ This could onlbe a Masonic sij
, y . y gn And they said , Thy brother JJen-hadad . [ Of course they returned the sign . ] Then he said , Go bring Mm : and he caused Mm to come up into the chariot . And Ben-hadad said unto him , The cities which my father took from thy father , I will restore , and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus , as my father made in Samaria : Then said Ahab , I will send thee away with this covenant . So he made a covenant with him , and sent him away . "
AVe leave our Brethren to trace the intimate connection of this narrative Avith the mysteries of our Craft , and as an exhibition of that universal benevolence , Avithout Avhich , Masonry Avould become " as a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal . "