The installation ceremony

Title

Creator

Austin, Sidney F.

Language

English

Year

1957

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

nativity, and in the councils of the Nation. He held at various times the offices of Mayor of the city, Deputy Attorney-General of the city, United States Senator from the State, Attorney-General of the State, Vice-President of the United States, Minister Plenipotentiary to the several Courts of St. Peterburg and St. James, of these, his duties were ably, efficiently, and faithfully discharged, and the fame of his public carrer remains untarnished, and is known and respected in countries other than our own. ------oOo — THE INSTALLATION CEREMONY By Sidney M. Austin,P.G.M. We have every reason to believe that the ceremony of installation, in some form or another, is of very ancient origin, in fact there is evidence that it formed an important part of the rites used in those ancient mysteries of pre-Christian days. However, we have no direct evidence that would tend to cause us to believe that a distinct ceremony of installation was made use of during the days of Operative Masonry. Therefore, the Masonic Ceremony of installation is generally accepted as being among the younger of the Masonic Ceremonies, nevertheless, we do know, and are justly proud of the fact, that it has been in use for about 240 years. In spite of its comparatively modern origin, much of the material used in the ceremony is of very ancient vintage. The 15 charges to which the incoming Master must freely signify his assent were taken from the various Old Charges of the order. These old charges are Manuscripts which were laboriously written long before the arts of reading and writing were universal accomplishments and it is believed that these manuscripts formed part of the ceremonies connected with the lodges of our Operative Brethren. They have been discovered from time to time since the period of transition from operative to speculative Masonry and are now counted among the prized possessions of various museums and lodges. The oldest among them is believed to have been written about the year 1390, however, the similarity of their contents tends to cause our scholars to believe that all of them must have been copied Page 21S THE CABLETOW from an original manuscript which would, of course, far out-date them all. The various charges connected with the various offices of the lodge were also taken from ancient sources and they are believed to have been adapted to the ceremony by our Bro. William Preston, the brother to whom we are indebted for having put our degree work into definite form. The purpose of the ceremony of installation is the practical one of bringing fresh blood, fresh viewpoint and a redistribution of the responsibilities and duties of managing the affairs of the lodge. With the possible exception of the Treasurer and the Secretary, the majority of the lodges change their officers yearly and this serves to remind the brethren, especially those newly elected or appointed, of their respective responsibilities and duties and for that reason Grand Lodges prescribe ceremonies and rituals and require that they be strictly followed. In the maj. *ty of the Grand Lodges through-out the world, the regulations require that the installing Officer must be either the retiring Master or a Past-Master as it is a tradition that the responsibilities of the Oriental Chair should be handed down from Master to Master. This particular aspect must be borne in mind when one takes into consideration that the purpose of the ceremony is to pass the authority and responsibilities that are vested in the occupant of the Eastern Chair from Master to Master in an unbroken sequence that serves to bind the brethren together into one common bond of brotherly love that is conducive to the betterment of all. $ Code Address > PlI I LAM ! IMPORTS > i exlilcs PHJLAMCO ENTERPRISE R-315 Yulivo Dldg. Dasmariflos, Manila P. 0. Box 257 Tel. 3-53-38 Andres L. Tcodoro EXPORTS Gum Copal Gum Elemi HATS Balibuntal Halt (Ventilated or No Vent) Buntal Hall Buri Hal* Ladies Death Hal* Plucemats December, 1957 Page 219 Therefore, it matters not whether the out-going Master surrenders the emblem of authority to the in-coming Master or whether he places it into the hands of a brother who has already passed the chair for the latter, in his turn, to conduct the ceremony and eventually to pass on the gavel to the in-coming Master, in every instance the symbol of power is passed on in an unbroken sequence and the spirit of the tradition is worthily upheld. — oOo-----SHAKESPEARE — A FREEMASON? By L. W. Bridgman Some Deductions by Inquisitive Students Reprinted from The Freemason (Canada) Reprinted in the Masonic press some years ago were views that the poet Shakespeare may have been a Mason. In printing certain lines from immortal plays, the "Royal Arch Mason" suggested that either Shakespeare’s vocabulary was Masonic or "did the Freemasons get their vocabulary from Shakespeare?" Here are some provocative quotations: In Act III, Scene 2, of Henry VIII, the Dukes of Suffolk and Norfolk have been talking with Cardinal Wolsey, informing the Cardinal of the King’s intentions to forfeit the Cardinal’s possessions. Leaving Wolsey alone, he thus soliloquizes: So, farewell to the little good you bear me. Farewell! A long farewell, to all my greatness! This is the state of man; today he puts forth The tender leaves of hope: tomorrow blossoms, And bears his blushing honours thick upon him; The third day comes a frost, a killing frost; And, when he thinks, good easy man, full surely, His greatness a-ripening, nips his root, And then he falls, as I do. (Line 350-358.) Act III, Scene 1, Twelfth Night: And that no woman has, nor ever none Shall mistress be of it. Act II, Scene 4, Titus Andronicus: Both are at the LODGE. Act V. Scene 1, Taming of the Shrew: What! My old Worshipful Master! Page 220 THE CABLETOW

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