Stray leaves from a Freemason's notebook . These kind of lamps or lanterns are verycommon; and in the palace of a monarch they are oftenof great magnificence. I subjoin an engraving of one ofthese lanterns, with the pentangle of Solomon attached.^^ The next great and distinguishing symbol of theRoyal Arch Degree is the tau cross triplified,|Ij. Andas the former was the seal of Solomon, and consideredcapable of warding off earthly dangers, so is this the sealof Christ, and competent to guard the recipient fromsuch dangers as are spiritual. This latter seal is baptism,accompanied by the crucial
Stray leaves from a Freemason's notebook . These kind of lamps or lanterns are verycommon; and in the palace of a monarch they are oftenof great magnificence. I subjoin an engraving of one ofthese lanterns, with the pentangle of Solomon attached.^^ The next great and distinguishing symbol of theRoyal Arch Degree is the tau cross triplified,|Ij. Andas the former was the seal of Solomon, and consideredcapable of warding off earthly dangers, so is this the sealof Christ, and competent to guard the recipient fromsuch dangers as are spiritual. This latter seal is baptism,accompanied by the crucial sign. Thus Valesius, andothers expound it, and term it the seal of our Lord,because in the very nature of it there is contained a cove-nant made between God and man, of which the sign or ^^ In the Landmarks of Masonry, this pentangular symbol isfully illustrated; and I refer the curious reader to vol. ii., pp. 355 and659, for further information; and some remarks may also be foliud inthe Theocratic Philosophy, p. 169. so THE IXSIGNIA OF. symbol of the cross is the seal. Hence Thecla said to — Give me the seal of Christ and no temptationshall have power over me. And the shepherd Hermas,speaking of some who had died after baptism, says— They were sealed with the seal of the Son of God, andare entered into the kingdom of God. For before a personreceives the sign of the Son of God, he is consignedover to death ; but wdien he receives that seal, he is freedfrom death and consigned over to life. And hence thecross was the symbol of life ; and when triplified, it wasan emblem of life eternal. This remarkable figure, at its first construction, wasan emblem used by the eastern Christians as a monogramof the sacred name of Christ. The original form appearsto have been this ^k , a combination of the Greek xp i THE ROYAL ARCH. 21 (Chr),^ the two first letters in XPIITOI; and it wasplaced, as a talisman of protection, on the summit of theensign staff by Constantine; thus occupjri
Size: 1205px × 2074px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, booksubjectfreemasonry, bookyear
