Scottish Rite Masonry Illustrated - The Masonic Trowel

112 CHiEF ON THE TABERNACLE. INITIATION. 113
do not so likewise, f or as God has said that no stranger
not of the seed of Aaron shall approach to offer incense
before the Lord that he be not dealt with as Korah and
his companion, even so, if thou approach our mysteries,
excepL with a~pure heart, thy sins repented oftand the,
sincere desire to serve God and thy fellow man, will
their fate or a worse overtake thee. Doet thou now dare
to proceed?
Canzd~’d~de—I do. (Senior Deacon sprinkles him
with water and cuta off a lock of his hair.)
Senior Deacon—I sprinkle thee with pure water in
tokcn of that purity of heart and blarneles8ness of life
which must hereafter characterize thee as a Levite~’
without guile, and as I sever from thy head this Jock
of hair, even so must thou divest thyself of every selfish
and sordid feeling and devote thyself hereafter to the
scrvice of God and the welfare, happiness
and improvement of mankind. (He then
clothes him in a white tunic and white
drawers, puts sandals on his feet and a.
white cloth over his head, covering his eyes
so as to prevent him from seeing, and leads
him to the door of the assembly and
knocks seven; 00 00 00 0. The door is
opened, he is admitted, the Junior Warden
meets him, op~ns his tunic and makes
the sign of the cross upon his breast.)
Junior Warden—Upon thy entrance into
this holy place, thou art marked with
the sign of the cross, which, pointing to
the four quarters of the compass, is a sym— Preparationof Can.
didate, Chief of tbe
~aber,iacIeDegree.
Note 361.—~L.YIteL Thoec descendant. ot IaYt who were .mpIoy~
Eu the lowest ministerial duties of the Temple. and were thus subcrdtnate
to the priests who were the lineal descendants of Aaron. Tbe7
w,te reprpuented In some of tbe bigb degreea.’—Nacke7’. ~no~o1opad4a
Of lr..maaowy. Article Lovites.
bol of thc Universe of which God is the sou[, and it
teaches ~ou how insignificant is man, and how continually
he should humble himsclf in the presence of that
grcat being who knows his inmost thoughts. (The Senior
Deacon now conducts him three times around the
room, kecping the altar on his right, while the High
Pricst reads:)
If igh P,4cst—O mighty and inscrutable being, wc
bow down before Thce as the primitive creator, th~t
with a tho~ight didst from thyself utter all the worlds!
Eternal Father, of whose thoughts the Universe is but
a mode; infinitc in attributes, of which cach is infinite,
incorruptible, coeval with time and co-extensive with
space, the anelent, absolute and sole original existence;
whose laws of harmony guide the motions of the sun
and stars. Thou art the all, and in Thee all things exist.
(At the end of the third circuit, the Senior Deacon
ha[ts with him in the East)
High Fries f—Whom do you bring hither, brother
Senior Deacon?
Senior Deacon—Eliasaph, the son of Lael, whom God
has given as a gift to thee, and to thy sons from among
the children of Israel to do the service of the children
of Israel in the Tabernacle of the congregaLon and to
make atonement for the children of Israel.
High Priest—Hath he prayed in the silence and
darkness of the cell of probation and purificaLion?
Se~ior Deacon—He has.
Iliqh Priest—Hath he heard the thunder of thc Lord;
the roar of the earthquake, and repented of his sin8?
Senior Deacon—He has.
If igh Priest—Hath he been sprinkled with the water
of purification, and passed through the other necessary
ceremonies to prepare him to receive the niysteriea?