MassachusettsGC2012 PART I

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GRAND CONSTITUTIONS, PART I

PART I: GENERAL

Sec. 100. COMMON LAW

The Common Law of Freemasonry is to be learned from the ancient usages of the Craft as developed and interpreted from and after A. D. 1721. It is the foundation of Masonic jurisprudence.

Earlier Revisions

References

  • MFM, Vol. XXV, No. 1, 11/01/1865, Page 21, refers to an essay on the sources and content of Masonic law.
  • Woodbury Address, 1877-20; Description of the formation of an independent Grand Lodge.
  • 1916-826 refers to a portion of the lecture on Masonic Jurisprudence by Rt. Wor. Roscoe Pound, in which he discusses Masonic common law.
  • 1916-872A refers to a portion of the lecture on Masonic Jurisprudence by Rt. Wor. Roscoe Pound regarding Masonic law making.

Sec. 101. LANDMARKS: DEFINITION

The Landmarks are those ancient and universal fundamental principles of the Craft which no Masonic authority can alter or repeal.

Earlier Revisions

References

  • 1902-21, 03/12/1902, refers to a report to Grand Lodge regarding the prerogatives of Grand Lodge. "It is specified in the Ancient Constitutions that the old Landmarks shall be carefully preserved. As to what the Landmarks are, probably no two Masonic writers are in exact accord. Dr. Geo. Oliver, a voluminous writer from 1823 to 1867, says in his Dictionary of Symbolic Masonry that "some restrict them to the O B, signs, tokens and words, others include the ceremonies of initiation, passing and raising; and the form, dimensions and support; the ground, situation and covering; the ornaments, furniture and jewels of a Lodge, or their characteristic symbols. Some think that the order has no Landmarks beyond its peculiar secrets." Further details on the subject follow.
  • 1916-805 refers to a portion of the lecture on Masonic Jurisprudence by Rt. Wor. Roscoe Pound, in which he discusses Masonic landmarks.
  • 1918-217, 09/11/1918, is a description of the cornerstone laying of the Bunker Hill Monument in 1825.

Sec. 102. LANDMARKS: LIST

This Grand Lodge recognizes the following Landmarks:

  • a. Monotheism, the sole dogma of Freemasonry;
  • b. Belief in immortality, the ultimate lesson of Masonic philosophy;
  • c. The Volume of the Sacred Law, an indispensable part of the furniture of a Lodge;
  • d. The legend of the Third Degree;
  • e. Secrecy;
  • f. The symbolism of the operative art;
  • g. A Mason must be a freeborn male adult.

The above list of Landmarks is not declared to be exclusive.

Earlier Revisions

References

  • MFM, Vol. XXVI, No. 10, 08/01/1867, Page 320, refers to a comment regarding Freemasonry in France. It reads in part, "Masons in Paris have been discussing the question of the existence of God and the immortality of the soul . . . The convention before which the discussion took place finally decided by a vote of 178 that it was proper to retain in their masonic formula the words 'To the Glory of the Grand Architect of the Universe.' "
  • MFM, Vol. XXVI, No. 11, 09/01/1867, Page 325, refers to a brief description of the ancient Landmarks.
  • MFM, Vol. XXXI, No. 4, 02/01/1872, Page 99, refers to a discussion of the ancient Landmarks, particularly with respect to the definition of a "freeborn male adult", and whether a man should be allowed to visit if admitted by another jurisdiction at an earlier age than permitted by that of the lodge he seeks to visit.
  • 1878-85, 09/11/1878, refers to the actions of the Grand Orient of France in removing a belief in Deity from its Grand Constitutions; the Grand Lodge adopted the following resolution: "Resolved, That the belief in God is a Landmark of Freemasonry, incorporated into its creed from the beginning, and must be unequivocally expressed by every initiate into its mysteries; that it is not in the power of any man or body of men to alter or annul it ; that any effort to do so has our solemn protest, and will receive, as it will justly deserve, our unqualified condemnation."
  • The Builder, 1915-38, refers to an article on the Old Landmarks.
  • The Builder, 1915-183 and 1915-197, refer to an article on the Landmarks of Masonry, delineated by state.
  • 1916-819 refers to a portion of the lecture on Masonic Jurisprudence by Rt. Wor. Roscoe Pound, in which he delineates the seven Landmarks.
  • 1951-138, 06/13/1951, refers to commentary by Grand Master Roy regarding the use of sacred names. "We are well-advised if in our prayers we use the terminology that is common to all of our religions. In my duties as Chaplain in a Lodge, I have found the prayers suggested in our ritual to have such spiritual meaning and such dignity of expression as to make them completely satisfying to me. I am quite sure that as Brethren we shall strengthen the bonds that unite us as we find a common expression in prayer rather than assert our right to use each his own distinctive phraseology."
Sections
  • a:
    • 1915-227, 09/08/1915, refers to commentary by Grand Master Melvin Johnson regarding the petition of International Lodge in China for a charter. He was particularly concerned with "Eligibility of Candidates who subscribe to Prevailing Oriental Religions". "It is an unchangeable Ancient Landmark of the Fraternity that there is but one Masonic dogma . . . the Landmark of belief in a Supreme Being, omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, the creating and superintending Power of all things. No man may be a Freemason unless he is a believer in monotheism. . . To those of our friends in China who of their own free will and accord may seek Masonic light, whatever their religious belief so long as it include our single dogma, if they be worthy and well qualified, men free-born, of good report, and properly vouched for, Freemasonry extends her hand in greeting." A very detailed committee report appears on 1915-379, 12/08/1915, in which the opinion of the Grand Master is declared "beyond controversy, being sustained by long precedent and usage, by the clearest deduction from the fundamental tenets of the Fraternity, and by the concurrent testimony of Masonic scholars."
  • c:
    • 1915-221, 09/08/1915, refers to a ruling by Grand Master Melvin Johnson regarding the appropriate display of the Bible.
    • 1915-230, 09/08/1915, refers to commentary by Grand Master Melvin Johnson regarding the petition of International Lodge in China for a charter. He was particularly concerned with the presence of the Volume of Sacred Law upon the altar. "I know of no Landmark that the Holy Bible is one of the essential furnishings of a Lodge. As I understand the Ancient Landmark in this regard it is simply that the Volume of the Sacred Law is an indispensable part of the furniture of each Lodge . . . While the Holy Bible should not be removed from the Lodge, the conscientious Islamite who so desires may be permitted to take his obligation upon the Koran; the Hindu, otherwise qualified and accepted, may be permitted to have the Vedas spread open before him; and the the rite of initiation may be so far adapted to the conscience and religious belief of a candidate to permit his taking the obligation in a manner and form regarded by him as sacred and binding, and upon that work which to him is the Volume of the Sacred Law, providing always that such Volume of the Sacred Law teach Monotheism." A very detailed committee report appears on 1915-379, 12/08/1915, in which the opinion of the Grand Master is declared "beyond controversy, being sustained by long precedent and usage, by the clearest deduction from the fundamental tenets of the Fraternity, and by the concurrent testimony of Masonic scholars."
  • e:

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