Blanchard J (anti-masonic) - Scotch Rite Masonry Illustrated Part I

CLOSINGCEREMONIESINTENDANT OF THU BUILDING.Solomon-Brother Tito what’s the hour?Tt~e—..Thrice Illustrious, the shades of evening announcea time for repose.Solomon—Since man must rest, let us close our laborstrustiug in the Grand Architect who never sleeps;but before we retire, brother Tito declare to us themeaning we give in this degree to the triangle, circle,square and blazing star.Tito—The triangle expresses the triple attributes ofthe divine essence, the triple nature of man, the triplecompositiou of the material world. The circle definesthe unity of God-head and the unity of man. The squareimplies the quadrature of a sane mind with a soundbody, and of individuals with society. The blazing star,(having five points) signifies the five points of felicity,or more properly, of order to which man is destined viz:(first) loving, (second) thinking, (third) working,(fourth) speaking, (fifth) designing.Solomon—(Knocks 00000; all rise.)Tito— (Knocks 00000.)Adoniram—(Knocks 00000.)AlZ—(Knock 00000.)Solomon—I declare this college of Intendant. of theBuildings closed.HISTORICAL ANALYSISEIGHTH Duoaiz Oi INTENDANT OF THE BUILDING.3Ia~ot~,y the Image of the Beast—Abeolute Secrecy and Absolute Deapotlam—Caricature of Chriata BcaurrecUom—aulera of the Darknein of thisWorld.“Intendant” means superintendent. The word is ofFrench dialect, where these rites were coined by Ramsayand the Jesuits, which are the sum and substanceof the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite now theruling rite of the Masonic world.This Eighth Degree opens with an endorsement byrepetition of the ridiculous anachronism, that, in thesixth degree Joabert was made Intimate Secretary“after the completion of the temple,” and then was raiseda step higher, to “Provost and Judge,” in the seventhdegree, while the work of the Temple was goingon, involving the Irishman’s “hoist a peg lower.”As Rev. 13, 14, is believed to teach tl~at Popery suggestedMasonry “The Image of the Beast,” and yetPopery and Masonry, in this country, are professed antagonisms;it is of extreme importance that we knowassuredly whether these Scotch Rite degrees were actuallythe work of the Jesuits, the most active and conspicuousorder in the Romish Church.Now the testimony of Rebold, conflrtned by otherMasonic authorities, is: “Another system was establishedat Lyons by a partisan of the Stuarts, and afterwardsworked by the Jesuits.” (Rebold p. 214.) Again“suspicion engendered investigation, and investigationelicited the fact that these ‘unknown superiors’ were noother than leading Jesuits and partizans of the Stuartinterest.” (Ru bold, p. 22.) Pages might be filled with