And as the youth is prepared by a useful and virtuous education for his journey through life, so the Apprentice obtains in his degree those first instructions whereon to erect his future moral and Masonic edifice. He now receives the elementary details of that universal language in which hereafter he is to converse with his brethren of all nations, so as to understand and be understood by Masons of every tongue and dialect under the sun. He is directed to take, as a staff and scrip for his journey, a knowledge of all the virtues that expand the heart and dignify the soul. Secrecy, obedience, humility, trust in God, purity of conscience, economy of time, are all inculcated by symbolic ceremonies too impressive in their character ever to be forgotten. And, lastly, as charity forms the chief corner-stone of all the Masonic virtues, the beauty and holiness of this attribute are depicted in emblematic modes which no spoken language could equal. His degree of the Apprentice is, in short, one of probation and preparation for a more advanced position, and more exalted privileges and duties.
FIRST LECTURE.
The first lecture of Freemasonry, or that appropriated to the degree of an Entered Apprentice, is divided into three sections. In this lecture virtue is painted in the most beautiful colors, and the duties of morality are strictly enforced. In it we are taught such useful lessons as prepare the mind for a regular advancement in the principles of knowledge and philosophy; and these are imprinted on the memory by lively and sensible images, to influence our conduct in the proper discharge of the duties of social life.
Every candidate, before his reception, is required to make the following declarations to the Senior Deacon, in the presence of the Stewards, in a room adjacent to the Lodge.
Do you seriously declare, upon your honor, that, unbiased by the improper solicitation of friends, and uninfluenced by mercenary motives, you freely and voluntarily offer yourself a candidate for the mysteries of Masonry?
I do.
Do you sincerely declare, upon your honor, that you are prompted to solicit the privileges of Masonry by a favorable opinion conceived of the Institution, and a desire of knowledge?
I do.
Do you seriously declare, upon your honor, that you will cheerfully conform to all the ancient usages and established customs of the fraternity?
I do.
FIRST SECTION.
The first section of the Entered Apprentice's Lecture principally consists of a recapitulation of the ceremonies of initiation. But, on this account, a knowledge of it is highly necessary to every Mason, that he may be the better enabled to assist in the correct performance of the ritual of the degree. It is, however, introduced by some general heads, which qualify us to examine the rights of others to our privileges, while they prove our claims to the character we profess.
It is, of course, impossible, in a monitorial work, to give a full explanation of the various symbols and ceremonies which are used in the inculcation of moral and religious truths; but an allusion, in even general terms, to the most important ones, in the order in which they occur, will be sufficient to lead the contemplative Mason to a further examination of their import.
THE SHOCK OF ENTRANCE.
In the symbolic science of Masonry, the Lodge is often represented as a symbol of life. In this case, Lodge labor becomes the symbol of the labor of life, its duties, trials, and temptations, and the Mason is the type of the laborer and actor in that life. The Lodge is, then, at the time of the reception of an Entered Apprentice, a symbol of the world, and the initiation is a type of the new life upon which the candidate is about to enter. There he stands without our portals, on the threshold of this new Masonic life, in darkness, helplessness, and ignorance. Having been wandering amid the errors and covered over with the pollutions of the outer and profane world, he comes inquiringly to our doors, seeking the new birth, and asking a withdrawal of the vail which conceals divine truth from his uninitiated sight. And here, as with Moses at the burning bush, the solemn admonition is given, "Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground;" and ceremonial preparations surround him, all of a significant character, to indicate to him that some great change is about to take place in his moral and intellectual condition. He is already beginning to discover that the design of Masonry is to introduce him to new views of life and its duties. He is, indeed, to commence with new lessons in a new school. There is to be, not simply a change for the future, but also an extinction of the past; for initiation is, as it were, a death to the world and a resurrection to a new life. And hence it was that among the old Greeks the same word signified both to die and to be initiated. But death, to him who believes in immortality, is but a new birth. Now, this new birth should be accompanied with some ceremony to in indicate symbolically, and to impress upon the mind, this disruption of old ties and formation of new ones. Hence the impression of this idea is made by the symbolism of the shock at the entrance. The world is left behind—the chains of error and ignorance which had previously restrained the candidate in moral and intellectual captivity are to be broken—the portal of the Temple has been thrown widely open, and Masonry stands before the neophyte in all the glory of its form and beauty, to be fully revealed to him, however, only when the new birth has been completely accomplished. Shall this momentous occasion be passed unnoticed? Shall this great event—the first in the Masonic life of the aspirant—have no visible or audible record? Shall the entrance, for the first time, into the Lodge—the birth, as it has justly been called, into Masonry—be symbolized by no outward sign? Shall the symbolism of our science, ever ready at all other times, with its beautiful teachings, here only be dumb and senseless? Or, rather, shall not all the Sons of Light who witness the impressive scene feel like the children of Korah, who, when released from the captivity of Babylon, and once more returning to the Temple, exclaimed, in the heart-burst of their grateful joy, "O, clap your hands all ye people; shout onto God with the voice of triumph."
The Shock of Entrance is, then, the symbol of the disruption of the candidate from the ties of the world, and his introduction into the life of Masonry. It is the symbol of the agonies the first death and of the throes of the new birth.
PRAYER AT THE INITIATION OF A CANDIDATE.
As Masons, we are taught never to commence any great or important undertaking, without first invoking the blessing of Deity. At the initiation of a candidate it is, therefore, usual to make use of the following
PRAYER.1
Vouchsafe thine aid, Almighty Father of the Universe, to this our present convention, and grant that this candidate for Masonry may dedicate and devote his life to thy service, and become a true and faithful brother among us. Endue him with a competency of thy divine wisdom, that by the secrets of our art he may be better enabled to display the beauties of godliness to the honor of thy holy name. So mote it be.—Amen.
THE RITE OF CIRCUMAMBULATION.
The rite of Circumambulation, derived from the Latin verb "circumambulare," to walk around anything, is the name given to that observance in all the religious ceremonies of antiquity, which consisted in a procession around an altar or some other sacred object.
Thus, in Greece, the priests and the people, when engaged in their sacrificial rites, always walked three times around the altar while singing a sacred hymn. Macrobius tells us that this ceremony had a reference to the motion of the