Mackey A G - Encylopedia of Freemasonry - The Grand Masonic ...

204 DEGREES
DEMIT
from the most ancient period down to our own
day." (See Fessler, Rite of.)
Degrees, Philosophical. See Philosophic
Degrees .
Degrees, Symbolic . See Symbolic Degrees
.
Deiseil. The counterpart of Tuathal . Mackenzie,
in the Royal Masonic Cycloptedia, says
"Deiseil is used by the Druids as a term for
the circumambulation of the sacred cairns .
Derived from deas, south, and tul, a course ;
that is, in a southward direction following the
course of the sun. The opposite is Tuathal, in a
northward direction, as is observed at the
present day in approaching the grave witl} a
corpse ."
Deism . In an abstract sense, Deism, or
Theism is the belief in God, but the word is
general'y used to designate those who, believing
in God, reject a belief in the Scriptures as
a revelation. The sect of Deists-which, in
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, enrolled
among its followers many great intellects,
such as Toland, Collins, Lord Herbert
of Cherbury, Hume, Gibbon, and Voltaire-is
said by Findel (Hist ., p . 126) to have "necessarily
exercised an important influence on the
Fraternity of Masons" ; and, he adds, that
"we cannot doubt that it contributed essentially
to its final transformation from an operative
to a universal speculative society ."
The refutation of this remarkable assertion is
best found in the first of the Charges adopted
at the revival in 1717, and which was published
in the Constitutions of 1723 : "A Mason
is obliged, by his tenure, to obey the moral
law ; and if he rightly understands the art, he
will never be a stupid atheist nor an irreligious
libertine," where the words irreligious libertine
refer to the Freethinkers or Deists of that
period . It is evident, then, that the Deists
could have had no influence at that time in
molding the Masonic organization . There is
still better evidence to be found in the old
records of Freemasonry during several preceding
centuries, when the Operative was its
dominant character, and when the dogmas
of Christianity were fully recognized, which
must necessarily have been the case, since
Freemasonry during that period was under
the patronage of the Church . There is, in
fact, no evidence to sustain Findel's theory,
that in the transition stage from the Operative
to the Speculative, when such men as the
deeply religious Ashmole were among its members,
the Deists could have infused any of
their principles into its organization or exercised
any influence in changing its character .
Freemasonry, at that time sectarian, demanded
almost a Christian belief--at all
events, a Christian allegiance-from its disciples
. It is now more tolerant, and Deism
presents no disqualification for initiation .
An atheist would be rejected, but none would
now be refused admission on religious grounds
who subscribed to the dogmas of a belief in
God and a resurrection to eternal life .
Deity. See Great Architect of the Universe.
Delalande, Charles Florent Jacques.
A French litterateur of this century, who
was the author of many didactic and poetic
articles on Masonry inserted in the Miroir de
la Veritk, the Annales Magonniques, and other
collections . He was also the author of the
Defense et Apologie de la Franche-Magonnerie,
ou Refutation des Accusations dirigees centre
elle d difjerentes Epoques et par divers Autems,
a prize essay before a Lodge in Leghorn, published
in 1814 . He founded the archives of
the Lodge of the Philosophic Rite at Douay,
France.
Delalande, Joseph Jerome Frangols.
One of the most distinguished French astronomers
of the eighteenth centur . He was
born in 1732 and died in 1807 . He was one of
the founders of the Grand Orient of France,
and published, in 1774, an able memoir upon
the History of Freemasonry, which was subsequently
incorporated in the twentieth volume
of the Encyclopedie Methodique .
Delaunay, Frangois H . Stanislaus . A
French litterateur and historian, and author
of many works on Masonry, the principal of
which is the Tuileur des trente trois degres de
l'Ecossisme du Rite Ancien et Accepte . This
is a work of great erudition, and of curious research
in reference to the etymology of the
words of the Rite . These etymologies, however,
are not always correct ; and, indeed, some
of them are quite absurd, betraying a want of
the proper appreciation of the construction of
Hebrew, from which language all of the words
are derived .
Delaware. The Grand Lodge of Delaware
was organized on the 7th of June, 1806 .
Its seat is at Wilmington . The Grand Chapter
was instituted in 1818, but having
suspended labor for many years, a new organization
was established by the General
Grand High Priest of the United States in
1869 .
Delegates. Past Masters, or others, sent
by a Lodge to represent it in the Grand Lodge,
in place of the Master and Wardens, if these
are absent, are in some of the American jurisdictions
called delegates . The word is a
modern one, and without good authority .
Those who represent a Lodge in the Grand
Lodge, whether the Master and Wardens or
their proxies, are properly representatives .
Delta. A triangle . The name of a piece
of furniture in a Commandery of Knights
Templar, which, being of a triangular form,
derives its name from the Greek letter A,
delta . It is also the title given, in the French
and Scottish Rites, to the luminous triangle
which encloses the Ineffable name. (See
Triangle .)
Demeter. The Greek name of Ceres,
which see .
Demit . A Mason is said to demit from
his Lodge when he withdraws his membership
; and a demit is a document granted by
the Lodge which certifies that that demission
has been accepted by the Lodge, and that the
demitting brother is clear of the books and in
good standing as a Mason . To demit, which