Greater Lights Is the Holy Book That Rests Upon Proper

VOLUME 24 THE ILUNOIS LODGE OF RESEARCH PAGE IS lodge are the three great lights in Masonry and Master of the lodge. However, even more the three lesser lights. important is the fact that the three lesser lights illuminate the three greater lights. This allows Let us first look at what the greatest of the three usto better visualize the information imparted greater light teaches us. The greatest of the three in the book of holy law and to better envision greater lights is the holy book that rests upon the meaning of the square and compass. It is the the altar. The contents of the holy book teaches aura sent out by the lesser lights that illuminate us the difference between right and wrong and the teachings of the holy book on the altar. gives information leading to the formation of proper character of mankind. Thus, the holy A quotation that I read states that, “knowledge book is enlightening the brother asto the is the greatest of all luxuries”. It is the never principles and standards of our brotherhood. ending search for light, also defined as knowledge that has given long lifeto our Our ritual teaches us that the square is to square Masonic fraternity. The look for Masonic our actions and that it is the square of virtue. knowledge is a search for what it means to truly The square is also anemblem of morality. The be a Mason in more than name only. That hunt compass circumscribes us and keeps us within can make a manmore than just a Mason in due bounds. Here, again, the new brother is name only. It willmake him atrue and just being inoculated into the principles and upright Mason. standards of Freemasonry. He is learningwhat it means to not only be aMason, but what it To paraphrase the Book of Genesis, “Let there means to be a man. belight, not only in the visual sense, but in the knowledge that is imparted by the holy book The ritual goes onto tell usthat the three lesser and by our Masonic teachings.” lights represent the sun, the moon, and the BritishFreemasonry at the Valley of Chicago by HiltonKaufman,RM. The Scottish Rite, Valley of Chicago used a involved, and the Freemasons Guide and Britishtheme for its Spring, 2015 reunion. As Compendium by Bernard E. Jones. part of the decoration for this reunion, posters with information about some aspects of British MASONRYBEFORE THE GRAND Freemasonry were displayed. This information LODGES was gathered rapidly, so meticulous research (About 11005 to 17003) methods were not always used. The text on each poster had to stand on its own for casual reading Duringthe Middle Ages and somewhat beyond, by individuals unfamiliar with the subtleties of skilled workmen were employed in the Masonic history. The text of the posters is construction of large stone buildings, such as presented here asused, except for minor cathedrals, churches, and castles. When one corrections. project was finished, these workmen were free to leave the area to seek work elsewhere. While the scholarship for this project might not be of the highest standards, it does give a decent There was a system of recognition and local general picture of BritishFreemasonry and how Lodges among these workers, or Operative it differs from practices in the United States. Masons. They had aritual for initiating or accepting new members into the trade. This The information was obtained from various included reading something known asthe Old websites, including those of the bodies Charges, which contained legends asto the VOLUME 24 THE ILUNOIS LODGE OF RESEARCH PAGE I6 origins of the trade. Of course, there was also an brethren are thought to have brought Masonry oath or obligation complete with vicious and to England and thus formed Speculative Lodges bloody penalties. there. These menwere expected to follow the No formal Operative Lodges existed in England prevailing religion. Depending on the time and after the reign of His Glorious Majesty Henry place, this might be Roman Catholicism, VIII,who ordered them to be disbanded and Anglicanism, Puritan Protestantism, or seized their property. There were, however, men Presbyterianism. (and maybe a few women) Who did such work. Once anOperative Mason was sufficiently By the end of the period, there were architects skilled, hereceived signs and words to indicate and others who supervised the work, rather than that hewas aqualified worker. These signs and coming up through the ranks of the Masons. words enabled himto prove himselfto be a The London Company of Masons was permitted Masonwhen seeking work elsewhere. to operate asatrade association of construction workers, although not asa Lodge. While the Lodges were independent, some of the more prominent ones, such asKilwinning Elias Ashmole records in his diary of being Lodge in Ireland, constituted and supervised made a Mason in 1646, probably in apurely other Lodges. Apparently some Lodges in Great Speculative Lodge. He next records an entry Britain,prior to 1717, were self-constituted by about Masonry in 1682. When the list of those groups of Masons. There were also Masons who he says were present is analyzed, it is found to were not members of any Lodge. There was have amix of both gentlemen and Operative even apractice in some places of one Mason Masons. The mixture at that time was such that simply making another a Mason. a prominent stonemason who had been knighted A number of such independent Lodges for his work asan architect aswell asaskilled continued to exist after the Modern Grand stone cutter, was later accepted into a Lodge Lodge of England system was established and with a mix of members. were considered legitimate to allow visitation in Lodges on Modern Grand Lodge rolls well into Evenwhen we look at the formation of the first the 18th century. or Modern Grand Lodge in 1717, three of the four Lodges had many, if not allmembers, who OPERATIVE T0 SPECULATIVE were actual skilled construction workers. Only MASONRY one of these Lodges was purely Speculative. (15005 to mid-1700s) THE MODERN GRAND LODGE OF There are several theories as to the origins of ENGLAND modern Speculative Masonry. These include (1717 to 1813) things like secret clubs where Royalists could meet during the Commonwealth period of the In 1717, three largely Operative Lodges from middle 16005 to an offshoot of a society of London and one purely Speculative Lodge from astrologers. Westminster formed the Modern Grand Lodge of London and elected a Grand Master. This The most commonly accepted theory is that Modern Grand Lodge claimed authority over Speculative Masonry was developed from Masonry for a seven mile radius, or roughly the Operative Masonry, or that of the construction London metropolitan area. (The metropolitan trade. According to this theory, Scottish area generally known asLondon consists of the Operative Masons accepted gentlemen and City of London, the City of Westminster, and 31 nobility into their Lodges. Some of these separate boroughs. The City of London is a VOLUME 24 THE ILLINOIS LODGE OF RESEARCH PAGE I7 commercial and financial hub with headquarters Notable admissions into membership were for many trades. Westminster is the seat of published for all to see, thus giving the Modern government with Royal Palaces and Houses of Grand Lodge an appearance of being elite. Parliament.) This seven mile limit covered the area over which the Operative London Dissension Among the Masons Company of Masons had authority. (early to mid 17003) There were previously prominent individual or There were many Masons besides those who local Lodges, such asKilwinningLodge in were members of Lodges that were part of the Scotland, that constituted and supervised other Modern Grand Lodge of England. There were Lodges in their areas. KilwinningLodge served Lodges which had existed for many decades as as a Grand Lodge for at least part of Scotland. ‘Operatives’. They were known as ‘Time The thing that was unique about this Modern ImmemorialLodges’. Some Lodges had Grand Lodge is that several existing Lodges received charters or warrants from older gave up authority to anew body with authority Lodges. Stillothers had been formed by several to make rules and together elect its leaders, Masons according to ancient tradition. On top of rather than one Lodge being dominant over the this, some Masons independently made others others. Masons and there were brethren who were not affiliated with any Lodge. Many independent Lodges affiliated with this Modern Grand Lodge and were issued charters The exposé in 1730 showed that the Modern or warrants. New Lodges formed and were also Grand Lodge was making changes in ritual and issued charters. However, many ‘Time practice aswell asexposing the secret means of Immemorial Lodges’ remained independent of recognition. Because they had been revealed, this Modern Grand Lodge. the words and signs used to gain admittance were changed, thus excluding the other Masons. Eventually the Modern Grand Lodge of London and Westminster called itselfthe Grand Lodge Innovations that were made by the Modern of England and claimed Masonic authority over Grand Lodge greatly upset the others, even all of country. By 1726, there were Lodges when of littlereal consequence. For example, throughout England with allegiance to this the form of a Lodge would beput on the floor Grand Lodge. ‘ of the taverns where the Lodges met with chalk and then washed offwith a mop and water when In 1730, Pritchard's Masonry Dissectedwas the meeting was over. The Modern Grand published. This indicated changes made by the Lodge used tape and metal letters instead. Modern Grand Lodge asto ritual aswell as revealing the secret method of proving The ModernGrand Lodge did not permit its membership.

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