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

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Chapter 7 - Rituals
sand of the sea at low water mark, or a cable's length from the shore, where the
tide regularly ebbs and flows twice in twenty-four hours [...]" 1395
Another example occurs in the description by the Worshipful Master of the
dangers that await the candidate (Emulation Ritual, p. 80):
Traditional Form Permissive Alternative Form
Bro ....., by your meek and candid
behaviour this evening you have
escaped two great dangers, but there is a
third which will await you until the
latest period of your existence.
Here, the subjunctive construction "would have awaited you" and the allusion
to a "traditional" danger which does not exist any longer are a moderation of the
ancient version, being less scary for the candidate. In the next example, the
Worshipful Master asks the candidate to pledge his honor that he will not reveal
the secrets of Freemasonry (p. 109); here, the words "penalty" and "Obligation"
are left out completely:
Traditional Form Permissive Alternative Form
Do you likewise pledge yourself under
the penalty of your Obl that you will
conceal what I shall now impart to you
with the same strict caution as the
other secrets in Masonry?
Do you likewise pledge yourself that
you will conceal what I shall now
impart to you with the same strict
caution as the other secrets in
Masonry?
So much for the First Degree. Talking of the Second Degree, the passages
referring to the Obligation are likewise opposed to alternative forms; thus at the
point when the Worshipful Master explains to the candidate the Fellow Craft
Sign (p. 127).
Traditional Form Permissive Alternative Form
This is in allusion to the P of your
Obl, implying, that as a man of honour
and a FC FM you would rather have y
1395 Cf. MacKenzie, p. 155.
Bro ....., by your meek and candid
behaviour this evening you have
escaped two great dangers, but
traditionally there was a third which
would have awaited you until the
latest period of your existence.
This is in allusion to the traditional P
referred to in your Obl, implying that
as a man of honour a FC FM would