Reformed Presbyterian Minutes of Synod 1928 - Rparchives.org

92 MINUTES OF THE SYNOD OF THE
that it is as good as the church. Why should he not think so?
When initiated he states that he wishes to be "admitted to the
mysteries and privileges of masonry by the help of God." A
prayer is offered with the words: "That assisted by the secrets
of our masonic art, he may the better be enabled to unfold the
beauties of true godliness, to the honor and glory of thy Holy
Name." Waite, Wilhurst and Ward teach that "The first degree
corresponds with the sacrament of baptism—The second
is equivalent to the rite of confirmation. The third degree
stands for entire sanctification." The Three Degrees "exhibit
the entire process of human regeneration." In the third degree
the resurrection of the body is represented. When the candidate
is raised from his improvised grave the worshipful master
embraces the "corpse," the candidate returns to life, and the
words of the ritual are: "Your heart thus purified from every
baneful and malignant passion."
The author named says "The purpose of the book is to
call the attention of the Christian public to a menace, which
if not checked, may imperil the very existence of the Church.
In recent years Freemasonry has so entwined its tentacles
around the official section of the Church that only the rank and
file, taking the trouble to understand the teaching of Masonry,
can save the situation.' The author says he has "purposely refrained
from reading anything written by an enemy of the
craft. I confine myself entirely to evidence obtained directly
from Masonic sources of the highest authority .... I have
ransacked the Order from top to bottom and I claim now to
know that there is no other interpretation .... I have read
and re-read the whole of the literature of the last generation,
and a great deal of that emanating from earlier periods, to assure
myself that the teaching of the more recent literature isnot
an aberration of the moment. These volumes are written
by men occupying high official position in the Craft. Masonry
publishes a number of weekly, monthly and quarterly periodicals,
every word of which I have read. All this mass of writing—Rituals,
Expositions and Periodicals are in complete agreement."
Quoting further we read: "Freemasonry is simply Theosophy.
It is the perpetuation of the worship of the old pagan
gods of ancient Egypt, Greece, India, etc." "The one idea running
throughout the Rituals is that the real name of God has
been lost. All Masonry is the quest of the lost .... The central
thing in Masonic ritual is the amazing discovery of the
grand secret that God is worshipped not through Jesus Christ
but through the union of Jehovah, Baal, Osiris .... They
find the lost name on a plate among the ruins of an oid' arch of
the Temple .... The name is TAO-BUL-ON."
"Religion is the soul of Masonry, its basis and apex"
Treating of Masonry and the Church he says: "The Protestant
element est other (from antagonist claims section religion). and that so, of of logically, Christendom the Well Freemasonry.
Reformation in Protestantism 1717 who Masonry Yet cut condones she out should cut it the it. is out more pagan be Does the the than Christian she element strong­
con- any