Entered Apprentice Royal Master
Fellowcraft
Select Master
Master Mason Superexcellent Master
CAPITULAR DEGREES (CHAPTER)
CHIVALRIC ORDERS (COMMANDERY)
Mark Master Order of the Red Cross
Past Master Order of Malta
Most Excellent Master Mediterranean Pass
Royal Arch Mason Order of the Temple
The purpose of this
pamphlet is to explain to the initiate and to the uninitiate, so far as may
be done, the symbolism and the connection between the Degrees & Orders of
the York Rite, and the necessity of taking all of them in the pursuit of
"more light" In Masonry.
First, we would dismiss from our minds the idea of
division or separation between the four sets of degrees that compose the
York Rite. Such a separation is merely formal and for convenience sake, not
essential.
THE YORK RITE IS A WHOLE
not an aggregate of four lodges.
You
cannot stop on the way-either with Blue Lodge, Chapter or Council - if you
hope to have thorough knowledge of Masonry.
These degrees as progressively
taken shed light upon the prior degrees. and only when you have had all of
them have you passed the circle of perfection in Ancient Craft Masonry.
You
should not be misled by the Brother who tells you confidently, but
mistakenly that "the Blue Lodge is all there is." nor by him who urges you
to take certain degrees merely as a preliminary to the Commandery and thence
to the Shrine.
These Degrees & Orders are full of the most important and
beautiful moral lessons ever imparted to man. They are entitled, each and
all of them, to be respected and loved for themselves alone, and not as
stepping stones to something else.
The following brief account of the YORK
RITE degrees is founded upon the traditional and ethical elements in them,
and does not undertake to analyze them historically or critically.
The ENTERED APPRENTICE is a bearer of burdens, the FELLOWCRAFT a skilled workman and the MASTER MASON a director of the work.
The ENTERED APPRENTICE is taught symbolically to labor upon the building of King Solomon's Temple, to subdue his passions. and to improve himself in Masonry. He must obey the rules and regulations and learn to practice secrecy.
The FELLOWCRAFT is carefully instructed in the principles of Geometry. The different Orders of Architecture me explained to him, together with the Five Senses of human nature - seeing, hearing, tasting, feeling and smelling - and the Seven Liberal Arts and Sciences, and he is instructed in the kind of wages he is to receive.
The MASTER MASON is taught numerous very important moral lesson. governing his conduct in the world and towards others; that he must answer and obey the rules of the order; must not cheat, wrong, or defraud a brother or a lodge of Masons, but on the contrary must help, aid and assist a distressed brother, his widow and orphans. Preparation for the life to come is inculcated by beautiful ceremonies. The Temple is not yet completed and those faithful craftsmen who have Labored so long upon it are deprived, by the wickedness of others, of that for which they have wrought. The building of the Temple symbolizes the perfection of our moral life, and the continuous effort to erect within ourselves a spiritual building, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
MARK MASTER. The work on the Temple is continued as in the preceding degrees of the Blue Lodge. The candidate represents one of the workmen whose custom if was to have their work inspected at the end of each week. He presents a piece of work whose value is not appreciated at first, but later becomes "the head of the corner." An important lesson is then taught -that we should never claim for ourselves the property of another. The degree lays still greater stress upon the dignity of labor, that we must all work, and receive wages according to our desserts.
PAST MASTER. This degree begins the preparation for the Royal Arch. In former times no one was eligible for the Royal Arch except actual or past Masters of lodges; but this meant that very few could receive it, so the degree of Post Master was instituted whereby one might become a "virtual Master" by means of the ceremony of the degree, and thus be eligible for exaltation to the Royal Arch. The candidate is taught that he must first learn to obey before he can learn to rule, and that he must learn to govern himself before he can govern others.
MOST EXCELLENT MASTER. In this degree
King Solomon's Temple is at last completed and is dedicated with imposing
ceremonies to the service of the Most High God. King Solomon offers a
sublime invocation, and the fire comes down and consumes the burnt offerings
and sacrifices. The brethren rejoice that their Long labor is ended, lay
aside their aprons, are great
ROYAL ARCH. The candidates, three in number, witness the burning bush when Moses was given the command to return from Arabia to Egypt and lead forth the children of Israel from bondage. and where God imparted to him the ineffable Name.. They then witness the destruction of the beautiful Temple erected by King Solomon and carried away captives to Babylon. After 70 years of bondage they an permitted to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the city and the House of the Lord, The toilsome journey is made along the river Euphrates by Tadmor in the Wilderness, by Damascus, and southward near the Lebanon mountains. On arriving. they find themselves in the midst of ruins, make themselves known to the grand council--Joshua, Zerrubbabel, and Haggai--and are set at work to remove the rubbish of the old Temple in order to lay the foundations of the new. Amidst these ruins they make many valuable discoveries which had lain buried in darkness for ages, and which complete the Knowledge gained in the Symbolic degrees. Thus are connected together in the most intimate way the work of the Blue Lodge and the work of the Chapter, neither being complete without the other.
It is a peculiarity of the York Rite, whether intended or not by its authors, that the movement of the degrees is often inverse, and the historical connection reversed: so that as we apparently go forward in regular Progression, the knowledge and light gained always reflect backward upon the path we have traveled before, and degrees that seemed complete when we took them are found to require the explanation of the subsequent degrees before they can be understood. That is what makes the infinite interest in the work and causes the reflective Mason to continually study the sublime precepts and ceremonies of the order, This is especially true of the Cryptic degrees, two of which historically precede the Royal Arch, but which hold In reserve their valuable teachings until the candidate is ready to receive them with the most impressive effect.
ROYAL MASTER. In
this degree Hiram Abif is alive again, and imparts to the candidate the
sublime teachings of useful labor on earth and a worthy end to life. The
tragedy of his untimely death is again brought forward, with the great loss
suffered by the craft. This is one of the most beautiful degrees in all
Masonry, with lessons so impressive that they are never forgotten, It is
especially illustrative of the third and seventh degrees.
SELECT MASTER. In this degree we have dramatized one of the incidents that occurred during the building of the Temple. It is closely connected with the Royal Arch degree and in fact it affords the explanation needed for its fact understanding. Our three ancient Masters appear in charge of a very important work connected with the Temple. One of King Solomon's most particular friends is promoted to the work, in which only a limited number are employed. Certain secrets are imparted to the candidate which make clear to him the preceding degrees. It is highly dramatic and of the greatest interest.
SUPER EXCELLENT MASTER. This degree has no connection either in history or symbolism with the Royal and Select Master degrees. It refers to circumstances that occurred during the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuzaradan, commander of the army of the King of Babylon, and the ceremonies are intended to represent the final destruction of the Temple and the carrying away of the captive Jews to Babylon as exemplified in the Royal Arch degree. The Super Excellent Master degree is divided into three striking scenes. The first scene represents the Jewish captives at Babylon, under the direction of Haggai. the Prophet. In the second scene, King Zedekiah of Judah listens to his false counselors and despises the warnings of the prophet Jeremiah, and the vengeance of the Lord is poured upon him. Jerusalem is captured and its wicked King is taken, with his sons, before King Nebuchadnezzar, who causes the sons to be put to death before their father's face, after which he deprives the wretched parent of his eyesight and carries him in chains to Babylon.
ORDER OF RED CROSS. Our
story goes back to the period of the Royal Arch, in the reign of King
Darius, when the Jews were returning to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple. A
grand council was convened at Jerusalem to deliberate upon the unhappy
condition of the country and devise means to secure the favor of the King
and his consent to their proceeding with the rebuilding of the city and
temple.
Zerrubbabel participated in this council, represented by the
candidate, and offered his services to travel to the Persian court and
remind the King of his former promise to aid the Jews in the work. When
Zerrubbabel's turn came he proclaimed THE ALMIGHTY FORCE OF TRUTH.
The King
was so pleased that he told Zerrubbabel to ask what he would and it should
be granted. Zerrubbabel then reminds him of his vow to rebuild Jerusalem and
restore the holy vessels which were taken from the sack of King Solomon's
Temple, and to rebuild the house of the Lord. The King then makes a decree
accordingly, and to perpetuate it he forms a new order founded upon TRUTH,
the Order of the Red
Here we bid farewell to all the degrees having
to do with the building of King Solomon's Temple, its destruction, and the
rebuilding of the city and temple, and we go forward to the period of the
Crusades when the Orders of Knighthood were formed to recover the Holy Sepulchre and to protect the pilgrims who went to visit its sacred shrines.
KNIGHTS OF MALTA and MEDITERRANEAN PASS. The members represent soldiers of
the Cross and the Order is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. The
candidate humbly solicits to be admitted to the privilege of the
Mediterranean Pass to enable him in safety to undertake a pilgrimage to the
Holy Sepulchre, and also to be enrolled as a Knight of Malta.
The ceremonies
of the Mediterranean Pass refer to the shipwreck of Saint Paul upon the
island of Melita or Malta and the viper that came out of the fire and clung
to his hand, as related in the Acts of the Apostles.
ORDER OF THE TEMPLE. We
now approach one of the grandest and most impressive orders in all Masonry,
the true capstone of the YORK RITE. The candidate represents a knight of the
period that succeeded the Crusades, who had made a vow to visit the Holy Sepulchre, and seeks admission into the ranks of the Templars the better to
fulfill that vow. As a trial of his worthiness there is enjoined upon him
seven years of preparation, beginning with unarmed pilgrimage in the
direction of the Holy Shrine. After having served six years of this
preparation he is commanded to devote the remaining year of preparation to
penance, as a trial of faith and humility. Beautiful lessons of the death
and ascension of our Saviour are inculcated. and the candidate is at last
received into full fellowship in the most solemn manner.
The ancient Order
of the Temple was suppressed and its members dispersed, and the warlike
spirit of the Order has passed away, but there remains a spirit of refined
and moral Chivalry which prompts the members to be ever ready to defend the
weak, the innocent, the helpless and the oppressed. and at last to be
greeted as Brethren and received into the "widely extended arms of the
blessed Emmanuel."