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ceasing progress . I could , indeed , have wished that a theme of such importance had fallen into abler hands than mine to dwell upon ; for , as I proceed with this my pleasing task , I feel that I do not adequately possess the power to trace out the beauties of the subject , nor to do that justice to it , which it so well and worthily
deserves . Still I flinch not from it ; and I trust that not only will my Brethren look with a favourable eye upon the deficiencies which I feel satisfied will largely abound , but that they will be tempted to emerge from silence , point out any errors I may have committed , and supply the defects of this paper . And upon this point , perhaps , I may not be considered as digressing unnecessarily , if I urge upon
my Brethren of this Lodge , the great advantage that would ensue if the science we now profess were > by all of us , more studied thaii it is . To the newly initiated , much of our forms and ceremonies , beautiful though they undoubtedly are , can only convey to the mind a vague and faint light of the real beauties of the Craft , which others would then be able to explain and illustrate . I do not say , nor
would I have you to infer , that our members are behind others ; still all will , I think , admit that there is yet much to be done ; and I would that a spirit of emulation would arise amongst us , and that we would not only satisfy our minds by obtaining such information , but that when so obtained , it should be freely imparted to the Brethren . We live in times when the march of men ' s intellect exhibits itself
on all sides ; and if we would have Masonic knowledge advance too , carefully observing the landmarks of our Order , it can only be done by each of us communicating freely that which the other has been able by study and observation to acquire . The greatest discoveries the world has seen , have not been the fruit of one man ' s mind alone . It is true that grand principles have
been originated by one contriver , but the perfection and applicability of the invention , or the theory has arisen , not because the inventor kept to himself that which his imagination had conceived , but because he propounded it to the world , and the minds of other men were brought to bear upon the numerous details requisite , and the general combination of the whole , for one or more great ends . So it is with
Preemasonry ; and I would humbly submit , that although an accurate knowledge of our system , and the correct working of a Lodge , are essential in themselves to the perpetuating of our Order , yet at the same time there are other requisites besides these to be considered , and no subject , in my opinion , stands so prominently in the foreground , as a careful application of the mind to Masonic knowledge , and a general desire , when that shall have been obtained , to impart it
freely to the Brethren . I fear that I shall be considered as having been straying from my subject , but the importance of what I have said must form my apology for having so done . But now to my subject . Preemasonry is defined to be a peculiar system of morality , by the careful teaching of which , Masons learn to regard it as a duty incumbent on them to yield homage to the Deity , thereby securing to them both happiness and pleasure . It teaches
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Untitled Article
ceasing progress . I could , indeed , have wished that a theme of such importance had fallen into abler hands than mine to dwell upon ; for , as I proceed with this my pleasing task , I feel that I do not adequately possess the power to trace out the beauties of the subject , nor to do that justice to it , which it so well and worthily
deserves . Still I flinch not from it ; and I trust that not only will my Brethren look with a favourable eye upon the deficiencies which I feel satisfied will largely abound , but that they will be tempted to emerge from silence , point out any errors I may have committed , and supply the defects of this paper . And upon this point , perhaps , I may not be considered as digressing unnecessarily , if I urge upon
my Brethren of this Lodge , the great advantage that would ensue if the science we now profess were > by all of us , more studied thaii it is . To the newly initiated , much of our forms and ceremonies , beautiful though they undoubtedly are , can only convey to the mind a vague and faint light of the real beauties of the Craft , which others would then be able to explain and illustrate . I do not say , nor
would I have you to infer , that our members are behind others ; still all will , I think , admit that there is yet much to be done ; and I would that a spirit of emulation would arise amongst us , and that we would not only satisfy our minds by obtaining such information , but that when so obtained , it should be freely imparted to the Brethren . We live in times when the march of men ' s intellect exhibits itself
on all sides ; and if we would have Masonic knowledge advance too , carefully observing the landmarks of our Order , it can only be done by each of us communicating freely that which the other has been able by study and observation to acquire . The greatest discoveries the world has seen , have not been the fruit of one man ' s mind alone . It is true that grand principles have
been originated by one contriver , but the perfection and applicability of the invention , or the theory has arisen , not because the inventor kept to himself that which his imagination had conceived , but because he propounded it to the world , and the minds of other men were brought to bear upon the numerous details requisite , and the general combination of the whole , for one or more great ends . So it is with
Preemasonry ; and I would humbly submit , that although an accurate knowledge of our system , and the correct working of a Lodge , are essential in themselves to the perpetuating of our Order , yet at the same time there are other requisites besides these to be considered , and no subject , in my opinion , stands so prominently in the foreground , as a careful application of the mind to Masonic knowledge , and a general desire , when that shall have been obtained , to impart it
freely to the Brethren . I fear that I shall be considered as having been straying from my subject , but the importance of what I have said must form my apology for having so done . But now to my subject . Preemasonry is defined to be a peculiar system of morality , by the careful teaching of which , Masons learn to regard it as a duty incumbent on them to yield homage to the Deity , thereby securing to them both happiness and pleasure . It teaches