Part 1 (1/2)
The Builders
by Joseph Fort Newton
THE ANTEROOM
Fourteen years ago the writer of this volume entered the temple of Freemasonry, and that date stands out in nificant days in his life There was a little spread on the night of his raising, and, as is the custoive his is, he made request to know if there was any little book which would tell a young s he would most like to know about Masonry--what it hence it ca to do in the world? No one knew of such a book at that time, nor has any been found to meet a need which many must have felt before and since By an odd coincidence, it has fallen to the lot of the author to write the little book for which he o
This bit of reminiscence explains the purpose of the present volued by its spirit and purpose, not less than by its style and contents Written as a coe of Iowa, and approved by that Grand body, a copy of this book is to be presented to every ree of Master Mason is conferred within this Grand Jurisdiction Naturally this intention has deterement of the book, as well as thethe order the antecedents of Masonry, its develop this purpose always in mind, the effort has been to prepare a brief, si of the Order, so written as to provoke a deeper interest in and a more earnest study of its story and its service to mankind
No work of this kind has been undertaken, so far as is known, by any Grand Lodge in this country or abroad--at least, not since the old _Pocket Companion_, and other such works in the earlier tie from the fact that the need of it is so obvious, and its possibilities so fruitful and important Every one who has looked into the vast literature of Masonry must often have felt the need of a concise, coht the way Especially must those feel such a need who are not accusto and involved periods of history, and more especially those who have neither the time nor the opportunity to sift ponderous volumes to find out the facts Much of our literature--indeed, by far the larger part of it--ritten before the methods of scientific study had arrived, and while it fascinates, it does not convince those who are used to the more critical habits of research Consequently, without knowing it, some of our et for ridicule by their extravagant claims as to its antiquity They did not make it clear in what sense it is ancient, and not a little satire has been ai as true the wildest and ends Besides, no history of Masonry has been written in recent years, and soht in the world of historical and archaeological scholarshi+p,not a little that has hitherto been obscure e be related to as already known
While modern research aies of fact, devoid of literary beauty and spiritual appeal--a skeleton without the war for accuracy, the writer has sought to avoid ures, which feould have the heart to follohat success the reader must decide
Such a book is not easy to write, and for two reasons: it is the history of a secret Order, much of whose lore is not to be written, and it covers a bewildering stretch of ti that the contents of innue, disjointed, and difficult to digest--be compact within a sious labor, it is assuredly worth while in behalf of the young ates, as well as for those who are to come after us Every line of this book has been written in the conviction that the real history of Masonry is great enough, and its siend, much less of occultism It proceeds from first to last upon the assurance that all that we need to do is to re from the historic teht, where all men can see its beauty and symmetry, and that it will co intellects, as well as the ho study has been guided; in this confidence it has been completed
To this end the sources of Masonic scholarshi+p, stored in the library of the Grand Lodge of Iowa, have been explored, and the highest authorities have been cited wherever there is uncertainty--copious references serving not only to substantiate the stateuide the reader into further and more detailed research Also, in respect of issues still open to debate and about which differences of opinion obtain, both sides have been given a hearing, so far as space would allow, that the student h and decide the question for himself Like all Masonic students of recent ties of England--especially to the Quatuor Coronati Lodge, No 2076--without whose proceedings this study would have been much harder to write, if indeed it could have been written at all Such han, Speth, Crawley, Thorp, to na Pike, Parvin, Mackey, Fort, and others in this country--deserve the perpetual gratitude of the fraternity If, at tiend, soetting that there is much in Masonry that cannot be traced by name and date--it was but natural in their effort in behalf of authentic history and accurate scholarshi+p Alas, one and to the people who are no longer with us here, but they are recalled by an hureat reat Masons
This book is divided into three parts, as everything Masonic should be: Prophecy, History, and Interpretation The first part has to do with the hints and foregleay, and sy its foundations in the nature and need of le were brought fro of Masonry as we know it The second part is a story of the order of builders through the centuries, froanization of the land, and the spread of the Order all over the civilized world The third part is a statement and exposition of the faith of Masonry, its philosophy, its religious enius, and its h the individual to society and the state Such is a bare outline of the purpose, method, plan, and spirit of the work, and if these be kept in mind it is believed that it will tell its story and confide its reatness and its pathos, howis our obligation to preserve and enrich the inheritance of hu of the heart toward all his felloorkers; and especially toward the young, to e h these pages the wish has been to n tradition he stands, that he may the more earnestly strive to be a Mason not merely in form, but in faith, in spirit, and still more, in character; and so help to realize soht the latent powers and unguessed possibilities of this the greatest order of men upon the earth Everyone can do a little, and if each does his part faithfully the sureat, and we shall leave the world fairer than we found it, richer in faith, gentler in justice, wiser in pity--for we pass this way but once, pilgri a country, even a City that hath foundations
/ JFN
_Cedar Rapids, Iowa_, September 7, 1914
TABLE OF CONTENTS
/ THE ANTE-ROOM vii
PART I--PROPHECY CHAPTER I THE FOUNDATIONS 5
CHAPTER II THE WORKING TOOLS 19
CHAPTER III THE DRAMA OF FAITH 39
CHAPTER IV THE SECRET DOCTRINE 57
CHAPTER V THE COLLEGIA 73