The Universal Language of Freemasonry - ArchiMeD - Johannes ...

Chapter 6 - Peculiarities of Masonic Language 377
a 'well-tried, true, and trusty' corner-stone. The squareness of its surface,
emblematic of morality - its cubical form, emblematic of firmness and
stability of character - and the peculiar finish and fineness of the
material, emblematic of virtue and holiness - show that the ceremony of
the north-east corner of the Lodge was undoubtedly intended to portray,
in the consecrated language of symbolism, the necessity of integrity and
stability of conduct, of truthfulness and uprightness of character, and of
purity and holiness of life, which just at that time and in that place the
candidate is most impressively charged to maintain. 1212
In a speech from 1924 on the occasion of laying the corner-stone for a
Masonic home, Grand Orator John R. Webster from the Grand Lodge of
Nebraska beautifully illustrates the symbolism of the corner-stone. He states that
it represents the individual Mason and was carefully selected, as are all who gain
admittance into Freemasonry. It came from the quarry as a rough, uneven mass
of rock, just like the applicant, a rough ashlar who has yet to form his character.
He was subjected to chipping, grinding, pounding, and surfacing. After this, the
corner-stone was carefully tested by all the working tools of Masonry, "symbolic
of that testing by the 'Master Builder of Souls' which we must all undergo - and
which will determine our place in the temple of eternal life." 1213 Grand Orator
Webster philosophizes on the eternity of the corner-stone, while the rest of
ancient buildings has tumbled away:
The buildings of antiquity are gone. They have crumbled into ruins; but
their corner-stones have endured throughout the ages - a striking
symbol of Immortality; to remind the Mason that 'If the earthly house of
our tabernacle be dissolved,' 'we have within us a corner-stone of
immortality that will survive the tomb, and rise triumphant and eternal,
above decaying dust and the grave.' 1214
Furthermore, Grand Orator Webster mentions that the corner-stone is a very
important part of the entire building, which nevertheless remains unspectacular
and unseen. It functions as a covenant between God and man and symbolizes the
advancement from darkness to light. Situated towards the North, it is emblematic
of the dark periods of life that the Mason has to meet with bravery:
Then, too, brethren, let us never forget that the corner-stone is not laid to
be seen of men; nor to advertise the architect or builders. It is a Sign of
the Covenant between the Mason and the Supreme Architect of the
universe; and so, whether fronting on crowded thoroughfares or hidden
away in the obscurity of some dark alley, it is placed at the Northeast
1212 Ibid.
1213 Myler (compiled by ~), p. 33.
1214 Ibid.