A Masonic Dictionary…to help Masons and Non-Masons
[ A – H ]
- [ I – P ] - [ Q – Z ]
ACCEPTED
The Latin accipere, receive, was from ad, meaning "to," and capere,
meaning "take," therefore to take, to receive. The passive
apprenticeship and initiation, but after the participle of this was acceptus.
In Operative Masonry members were admitted through course of time, and when the
Craft had begun to decay, gentlemen who had no intention of doing builders'
work but were interested in the Craft for social, or perhaps for antiquarian
reasons, were accepted" into membership; to distinguish these gentlemen
Masons from the Operatives in the membership they were called the
"Accepted." After 1717, when the whole Craft was revolutionized into
a Fraternity, all members became non-Operatives, hence our use of the word in such
phrases as "Free and Accepted Masons."
AFFILIATE
Filius is Latin for son, filia for daughter; the prefix "af" is a
form of the Latin ad, meaning to add to. To be affiliated means therefore to be
adopted into a family as a son or daughter, a meaning that beautifully covers a
Mason's relation to his Lodge once he has affiliated with it.
ALARM
The Latin for weapons, or arms, was arma. Our "art" and
"article" came from the same root, art meaning something originally
made by the use of the arms, hands and fingers. The English "alarm"
goes back directly to the Italian alle arme, and ultimately to the Latin ad
arma so that "alarm" means "to arms, signifying that something
has happened of possible danger. A knock at the Lodge door is so named because
it calls for alertness, lest the wrong man be permitted to enter.
ALLEGORY
The Greeks called a place of public assembly agora; from this they built the
word agoreuein, meaning speak, in the sense of ad-dressing a public. When to
this is added alias, meaning another, the compound gives us our
"allegory," which is the speaking about one thing in the terms of
something else. In Masonry we have the allegory of Solomon's
ALTAR
Alt, in Latin, referred to height, preserved in our "altitude;" this
root appeared in altare, literally meaning a "high place." In
primitive religion it was a common practice to make sacrifices, or conduct
worship, on the top of a hill, or high platform, so that "altar" came
to be applied to any stone, post, platform, or other elevation used for such
purposes. In. the Lodge the altar is the most holy place.
APPRENTICE
In Latin apprehendre meant to lay hold of a thing in the sense of learning to
understand it, the origin of our "apprehend." This became contracted
into apprendre and was applied to a young man beginning to learn a trade. The
latter term came into circulation among European languages and, through the
Operative Masons, gave us our "apprentice," that is, one who is
beginning to learn Masonry. An "Entered Apprentice" is one whose name
has been entered in the books of the Lodge.
APRON
In early English, napron was used of a cloth, a tablecloth, whence our napery,
nap-kin; it apparently was derived from the Latin map pa, the source of
"map." "Apron is a misdivided form of "a napron," and
meant a cloth, more particularly a cloth tied on in front to protect the
clothes. The Operative Masons wore a leather apron out of necessity; when the
craft became speculative this garment, so long identified with building work
was retained as the badge of Masons; also as a symbol of purity, a meaning
attached to it, probably, in comparatively recent times, though of this one
cannot be certain.
ASHLAR
The Latin assis was a board or plank; in the diminutive form, assula, it meant
a small board, like a shingle, or a chip. In this con-nection it is interesting
to note that our "axle" and' "axis" were derived from it.
In early English this became asheler and was used to denote a stone in the
rough as it came from the quarries. The Operative Masons called such a stone a
"rough ashlar," and when it had been shaped and finished for its
place in the wall they called it a "perfect ashlar." An Apprentice is
a rough ashlar, because unfinished, whereas a Master Mason is a perfect ashlar,
because he has been shaped for his place in the organization of the Craft.
ATHEIST
The Greek for God was theos; when the j prefix a was placed before it, we get
the origin j of "atheism," signifying a denial of the god, or gods.
The word should be distinguished from "agnosticism," which means
neither to affirm nor to deny but to remain in doubt; and from
"infidel," which means that one does not believe some doctrine.
Christians call Mohammedans "infidels" because they do not believe
the Bible; Mohammendans call Christians "infidels" because they do
not believe the Koran. Inasmuch as Masonry requires of a petitioner that he
believe in God the atheist is automatically excluded from the Fraternity.
BROTHER
This word is one of the oldest, as it is one of the most beautiful, in any
language. No-body knows where or when it originated, but it is certain that it
existed in the Sanskrit, in a form strikingly similar to that used by us. In
Greek it was phrater, in the Latin frater, whence our "fraternal" and
"fraternalism." It has always meant men from the same parents, or men
knit by very close blood ties. When associated with "initiation, which las
the general meaning of "being born into," one can see how appropriate
is its k use in Freemasonry. All of us have, through initiation in our
"mother" Lodges, been born into a Masonry and therefore we are
"brothers," and that which holds us together in one great family is
the "Mystic Tie," the Masonic analogue of the blood tie among
kinsmen.
CANDIDATE
Among Romans it was the custom for a man seeking office to wear a shining white
robe. Since the name for such a color was candidus (whence our
"candid"), the office seeker came to be called candidate. In our
ceremonies the custom is reversed: the candidate is clothed after his election
instead of before.
CARDINAL
In Masonry we have "cardinal points" and "cardinal
virtues." The Greeks had kradan, meaning, "swing on," and the
Romans had cardo, meaning "hinge." The roots mean that on which a
thing swings, or hinges, on which a thing depends or hangs, therefore anything
that is of fundamental or pivotal, importance. A member of the Sacred College
of the Roman Church is a Cardinal because of the importance of his office,
which ranks next in dignity to that of the Pope. The cardinal points of the
compass are those from which are determined all other points, north, east,
south, west; the cardinal virtues are those which are fundamental to all other
virtues.
CEREMONY
The Latin caerimonia referred to a set of formal acts having a sacred, or
revered, character. A ceremony differs from a merely formal act in that it has
a religious significance; a formality becomes a ceremony only when it is made
sacred. A "ceremony" may be individual, or may involve only two
per-sons; a rite" (see below under "ritual") is more public, and
necessarily involves many. An "observance" is public, as when the
whole nation "observes" Memorial Day. A "Master of
Ceremonies" is one who directs and regulates forms, rites and ceremonies.
CHARITY
The Greeks had a word, charisma, meaning a gift, and a number of words from the
same root, variously suggesting rejoicing, gladness. The Latins had a similar
word, carus, and meaning dear, possibly connected with am or, signifying love.
From these roots came "grace," meaning a free, unbought gift, as in
the theological phrase, "the grace of God," and "charity."
Strictly speaking, charity is an act done freely, and spontaneously out of
friendship, not as a civic duty and grudgingly, as is sometimes the case in
public charity. The Masonic use of the word is much nearer this original sense,
for a Mason extends relief to a needy brother not as a duty but out of
friendship.
CHARTER
In Latin charta was a paper, a card, a map; in Medieval Latin this became an
official paper, as in the case of "Magna Charta." Our
"chart" and "card" are derived from the same root. A
Masonic charter is the written paper, or instrument, empowering a group of
brethren to act as a Lodge.
CIRCUMAMBULATION
In Masonic terminology this is the technical name of that ceremony in which the
candidate walks around the Lodge. The word 4 is derived from the Latin prefix
cireum, meaning "around," and ainbulare, meaning "walk,"
whence our ambulate, ambulatory, etc.; a circumambulation is therefore a
walking around. In ancient religions and mysteries the worshippers walked
around an altar; imitating the movements of the sun; this became known as
circumambulation, and is the origin of our own ceremony.
CLANDESTINE
In Anglo Saxon "helan" meant something hidden, or secret, a meaning
preserved in "conceal;" "hell," the hidden place, is from
the same word. Helan descended' from the Latin celare, hide; and on this was
built the Latin clandestinus, secret, hidden, furtive. In English clandestine,
thus derived, came to mean a bad secret, one that must be indulged in
furtively. A secret may be innocent; it is merely something done without the
knowledge of others, and nothing is more common; but a clandestine act is one
done in such a way as to elude observation. Clandestine Masonry is a bad kind
of irregular and unlawful secret society falsely claiming to be Masonic. In the
Constitutions a Clandestine Mason is defined as, "One claiming to be a Free
and Accepted Mason not having received the degrees in a Lodge recognized as
regular by the Grand Lodge of the State of New York."
CLOTHING
In early English cloth was used of garment, dress, and shows up in our clad,
cloth, clothe, clothing. Clothing is the set of garments, or coverings, by
which the body is protected from the weather and concealed from view. In
Masonic usage the meaning is much narrower and more technical; a Mason is
clothed when he wears the apron, white gloves, and the emblem of his rank. The
apron and gloves are also employed as symbols, though gloves have pretty much
fallen into disuse in American Masonry.
COLUMN
The Greeks called the top or summit of anything kolophon; in Latin culmen had a
similar meaning; from these origins come our culmination ;" excelsior,
colophon, colonnade, colonel, and climax appears to he closely related to it. A
"column" is a cylindrical, or slightly tapering, support; a
"pillar" is a rectangular support. Either may stand free or be
incorporated into the building fabric. The officers of a Lodge are figured as
columns because they are the supports of the official fabric of the Lodge. The
Great Pillars are symbolical representations of the two pillars, which stood on
the Porch of King Solomon's Temple.
COMMUNICATION
There is some dispute as to the origin of this word but usually it is held to
have come from communis, a Latin term for general, or universal, whence our
common, common wealth, communion, communism, communal and many similar words.
To communicate is to share something with others so that all may partake of it;
a communication is an act, transaction, or deliberation shared in by all
present. From this it will be seen how appropriate is our use of the word to
designate those official Lodge meetings in which all members have a part or a
voice.
COMPASSES
This is the plural of compass, from the Latin corn, meaning
"together," and passus, meaning a pass, step, way, or route.
Contrivance, cunning, encompass, pass, pace derive from the same roots. A circle
was once described as a compass because all the steps in making it were
''together," that is, of the same distance from the center; and the word,
natural transition, became applied to the familiar two-legged' instrument for
drawing a circle. Some Masons use the word in the singular, as in "square
and compass," hut the plural form "square and compasses" would
appear to he preferable, especially since it immediately distinguishes the
working tool from the mariner's compass, with which it might be otherwise
confused by the uninformed.
CONSECRATION
Sacer was the Latin for something set aside as holy. By prefixing con, meaning
"together," consecrare resulted, the general significance of which
was that by adding to some holy object a formal ceremony the object was
declared to be holy to the public, and must therefore be treated as such. The
ceremony of consecrating a Lodge room is a way of giving notice to the public
that it has been dedicated, or set aside, for Masonic purposes only.
CONSTITUTION
Statuere meant that a thing was set, or placed, or established; when con was
added (see immediately above) constituere meant than an official ceremony had
set, or fixed, or placed a thing. From the same source come statue, statute,
institute, restitute, etc. A Lodge is "constituted" when it is
formally and officially set up, and given its own permanent place in the
Fraternity.
COWAN
The origin is unknown, but it may be early Scotch. It was used of a man who
practiced Masonry, usually of the roughest character as in the building of
walls, who had not been regularly trained and initiated, corresponding in some
sense to "scab" as used by labor unions. If a man has learned the
work by some illegal method he is a cowan. An "eavesdropper" is one
who spies on a Lodge, and may be such without having learned anything about it
before. A "clandestine" is one who has gone through initiation
ceremonies but not in a regular Lodge.
CRAFT
In Anglo-Saxon, craft meant cunning, skill, power, dexterity, etc. The word became
applied to trades and occupations calling for trained skill on the part of
those practicing it. The distinction between such trades and those not
requiring trained workmen, so rigidly maintained, was one of the hallmarks of
the Middle Ages. Freemasonry is called a Craft, partly for historical reasons,
partly because, unlike so many fraternities, it requires a training (given in
the form of initiation ceremonies) of those seeking its membership.
DEACON
Despite the fact that the bloom has been rubbed off by our slangy use of it,
this is one of the most beautiful words in our language. In Greek, diakonos was
a servant, a messenger, a waiting man. In the early Christian Church a deacon
served at the Lord's Supper and administered alms to the poor; and the word
still most frequently refers to such a church officer. It appears that the two
Lodge offices of Senior and Junior Deacon were patterned on the church offices.
DEDICATION
The Latin dedicatus was a participial form of dedicare, the latter having the
meaning of declare, devote, proclaim - the root from which "diction"
comes. To dedicate a building means by public ceremony to declare it built for
some certain purpose. Dedication and consecration are closely allied in
meaning, but the latter is more religious in its purposes.
DEGREE
The Latin gradus from which are derived grade, gradual, graduation, etc., meant
a step, or set of steps, particularly of a stair; when united with the prefix,
da, meaning "down," it became degradus, and referred to steps,
degrees, progress by marked stages. From this came our "degree,"
which is a step, or grade, in the progress of a candidate toward the
consummation of his membership. Our habit of picturing the degrees as
proceeding from lower to higher, like climbing a stair, is thus very close to
the ancient and original meaning of the word.
DEPUTATION
A group of words such as compute, repute, depute sprang from the Latin putare,
which meant (among other things) to estimate, to think, to count among. From
this came deputatus, to select, to appoint. The idea was that from a number of
persons one was told off for a special duty, hence our word "deputy."
A deputation is an instrument appointing some man or group of men to act for
others officially. Our Deputy Grand Master is thus set apart to act in the
place of the Grand Master on need, and a District Deputy Grand Master is so
called because he is appointed or told off by the Grand Master to act as his
personal representative in a District.
DEMIT
(Also spelled "dimit.") As a verb this hails from the Latin
dimettere, to send away, to release, to let go; we have it in our
"dismiss." To dimit from an organization is, using the official form,
to resign, to relinquish one's membership. It has this meaning in Masonry.
DISCALCEATION
'While this is not as familiar to Masons as the preceding words, it should come
into more popular use because it is the technical name to describe an important
element in the ceremony of initiation. Calceare was the Latin for shoe,
calceatus meant shod. When united with the prefix dis, meaning apart, or
asunder, our discalceate was originated, the obvious meaning of which is the
removal of one's shoes, as suggested in the familiar Bible passage, "Put
off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy
ground." The ceremonial removal of the shoes is properly called the
"rite of discalceation."
DISPENSATION
Pendere was the Latin word for a weight, the root from which came many English
words, notably pendent, expend, spend, dispense, etc. With the prefix dis,
explained in the preceding paragraph, dispendere meant to weigh out, to pay
off, to expend. From this came dispensatus, meaning to manage, to regulate, to
distribute. In our usage a dispensation is a written instrument by which
authority is made over to a group of brethren to form a Lodge.
DOTAGE
This is not a very beautiful word but it is interesting. It first came into
existence among the early English, Dutch, German, and Scandinavian peoples,
generally in the form dotten, dutten, meaning to nod with drowsiness, to nap.
Since it was old people who most frequently sat nodding in their chairs it
became associated with old age. "An old man in his dotage" is one who
nods or prattles like a sleepy child, and whose faculties have begun to decay
through old age. Old age is never a bar to Masonic membership unless it has
reached this stage.
DUES
In Latin debere meant to owe something; it is preserved in our familiar, too
familiar, "debt," in debit, indebted, debenture, duty, dues, etc.
Related is the French devoir, often employed in English, meaning a piece of
work one is under obligation to do. The same idea appears in "duty,"
which means that which is due, or that which is owed, in the moral sense. Dues
represent one's fixed and regular indebtedness to his Lodge which he placed
himself under obligation to pay when he signed the by-laws.
EAVESDROPPER
Early European peoples used a word in various forms - evese, obasa, opa, etc.,
-which meant the rim, or edge, of something, like the edge of a field; it came
in time to be applied wholly to the gutter which runs along the edge of a roof.
(Our "over" comes from this root.) "Dropper" had an origin
among the same languages, and meant that which drips, or dribbles, like water dropping
from a thawing icicle. Eavesdrop, therefore, was the water which dripped from
the eaves. If a man set himself to listen through a window or keyhole to what
was going on in a house he had to stand so close that the eavesdropping would
fall upon him, for which reason all prying persons, seeking by secret means
what they have no business to know, came to be called eavesdroppers.
EDICT
The root of this word is the Latin dicere, speak; united with the prefix e,
meaning out, to come forth, it produced edicere, meaniiig to proclaim, to speak
out with authority. It came in time to be applied to the legal pronouncements
of a sovereign or ruler speaking in his own name and out of his own authority.
When a Grand Master issues a certain official proclamation in his own name and
out of the authority vested in his office it is an edict.
EMBLEM
This beautiful and significant word, so familiar to Masons, has historical
affiliations with the original idea embodied in "mosaic work," on
whch something is said below. Emblem is derived from the Greek prefix en,
meaning in, united with ballein, meaning cast, put. The word became applied to
raised decorations on pottery, to inlay work, tessellated and mosaic work; and
since such designs were nearly always formal and symbolical in character,
emblem came to mean an idea expressed by a picture or design. As Bacon put it,
an emblem represents an intellectual conception in a sensible image. It belongs
to that family of words of which type, symbol, figure, allegory, and metaphor
are familiar members.
ESOTERIC
This is the opposite of exoteric. The root of it is the Greek eso, within. It
means that which is secret, in the inner circle. Exoteric is that which is
outside. In Masonry the "esoteric work" is that part of the Ritual
which it is illegal to publish, while the exoteric is that part which is
published in the Monitor.
FELLOW
In Anglo Saxon lagu (from which we have "law") meant that which was
permanently ordered, fixed, set; fe meant property; fela suggested properties
set together, in other words, a partnership. From this we have
"fellow," a companion, mate, partner, an equal, a peer. A man became
a "fellow" in a Medieval guild or corporation when admitted a member
on the same terms as all others, sharing equally in the duties, rights, and
privileges. In Operative Masonry, in order to be a fellow a man had to be a
Master Mason, in the sense of having passed through his apprenticeship, so that
Masters were fellows and fellows were Masters. Prior to about 1740 "Fellow
of the Craft" and "Master Mason" referred to the same grade or
degree, but at about that year a new division in ranking was made, and
"Fellow Craft" was the name given to the Second Degree in the new
system, Master Mason to the Third.
FORM
We speak of the "form of the Lodge," "due form," etc. The
word is derived from the Latin forma, which meant the shape, or figure, or
frame of anything; also it was used of a bench, or seat, whence the old custom
of calling school benches "forms." It is the root of formal,
formation, informal, and scores of other English words equally familiar. The
"form of the Lodge" is its symbolical shape; a ceremony is in
"due form" if it have the officially required character or framework
of words and actions.
FORTITUDE
The key to the meaning of this magnificent word lies in its derivation from the
Latin fords, meaning strong, powerful, used in the Middle Ages of a stronghold,
or fort. Force, enforce, fortify, fortification, forceful, are from the same
root. A man of fortitude has a character built strong like a fort, which can be
neither taken by bribe nor over-thrown by assault, however strong may be the
enemy, or however great may be the suffering or deprivation within. One is
reminded of Luther's great hymn, "A mighty fortress is our God."
FRATERNITY
This the most prized, perhaps, of all words in Masonry, harks back to the Latin
frater, which is so closely allied to "brother," as already noted in
the paragraph on that word. It gives us fra, frater, fraternize, and many other
terms of the same import. A fraternity is a society in which the members strive
to live in a brotherly concord patterned on the family relations of blood
brothers, where they are worthy of the tie. To be fraternal means to treat
another man as if he were a brother in the most literal sense.
GAGE
Gage (also spelled “gauge”) has an uncertain ancestry. Early French and English
peoples had gauger, gagen, etc., which referred to the measuring of wine casks;
some believe our “gallon” and “gill” to have been thus derived. Its meaning
became enlarged to include any kind of measuring, literally or figuratively.
The instrument used to do the measuring came to be called “the gage.” Among
Operative Masons it was used to measure a stone for cutting to the required “twenty-four-inch
gage” is such a measuring rod or stick marked off into twenty-four inches.
GEOMETRY
It is unfortunate that for most men schoolroom drudgery has robbed this
beautiful word of its poetry. The Greek geo (in compounds) was earth, land;
metron was measure. The original geometer was a landmeasurer, a surveyor, but
his methods became broadened and applied to many other kinds of problems, so
that at last his craft became a portion of the art of mathematics. Geometry,
that branch of mathematics which deals with figures in space, is associated in
every Mason’s mind with the immortal Euclid, who figures 50 prominently in all
the ancient Masonic manuscripts. It achieved its great place in Freemasonry
because of its constant and prime importance in the builders’ art. Symbolically
speaking geometry (to it the Letter G originally referred), consists of all
those fixed principles and laws of morality and of thought to which a right
char-acter and a true mind adjust themselves.
GRAMMAR
The Greeks had graphein, to write, or draw (from this we have graphic, engrave,
etc.) ; gramma was that which was written or drawn. Grammar now refers only to
the skeletonal framework of language, its parts of speech and their
combinations, hut formerly it included all forms of learning based’ on
language, such as rhetoric and what is now taught in the schools as English; by
the time our Monitor was written, however, grammar and rhetoric had become
differentiated, nevertheless the Monitorial portion of the Second Degree makes
it plain that a Fellow Craftis expected to be a literate man, knowing something
of the arts of language in both speaking and writing. In interpreting the
Second Degree this wide meaning of “grammar must be kept in mind.
GRAND
Grandis in the Latin meant great, large, awesome, especially in the sense of
imposing; it was afterwards applied to the aged, the ripe in experience, an
application easy enough to understand when one recalls the reverence paid by
the Romans to seniority, long experi-ence, etc. this latter meaning appears in
our grandfather, grandmother, grandsire, etc. In English the word developed in
two directions, one toward that which is great, large, awe-in-spiring, as in
“grandeur,” the other toward dignity, exalted power. Our own use of the term in
“Grand” Lodge, “Grand” East, “Grand” Master, harks back to the latter of the
two usages. The head of the Craft is called “Grand”’ Master because he is its
most exalted official.
GRIP
Grip, grope, grab, grasp, gripe came the same roots. The Anglo Saxon gripe
meant to clutch, to lay hold of, to seize, to grasp strongly. A grip means to
clasp another’s hand firmly; it differs from a mere hand. clasp, which may be a
meaningless formality. in that it is done earnestly, and for a purpose—for what
purpose in our fraternal system every Mason knows. A grip should be giver. as
if one meant it; half of its meaning lies in the way it is done.
HIGH TWELVE
The Latin nonus referred to the ninth hour of the day, that is, nine hours
after sunrise. In the Medieval church it referred to the middle hour between
midday and sunset, that is, about three o’clock P.M. In the course ot time it
came to refer to any part of the middle of the day, and finally to twelve
o’clock. The origin of our “High Twelve” is uncertain, but it is probable that
it goes back to a time before “noon" was generally used for twelve
o’clock; the “high” doubtless refers to the sun, which at that time was at its
highest point in the sky.
HOODWINK
“Hood” goes back to old German and Anglo Saxon, in which it referred to head
covering, as in hat, hood, helmet, etc.; “wink,” in the same languages, meant
to close the eyes, “wench,” “wince,” etc., being similarly derived. A hoodwink
was therefore a headdress designed to cover the eyes. The popular use of the
word is believed to go back to the old sport of falconry, once so popular, in
which the falcon had a hood over its eyes until ready to strike at its prey.
INITIATION
The Latin initium means beginning, as in our initial”; initiatus, the
participle from the verb initiare, referred to any act incident to the
beginning or introduction of a thing. The word came widely into use in
mysteries and sacred rites, whence it has come into our 4Masonic nomenclature.
Back of it, as used by us, is the picture of birth, so that the Masonic
initiation means that a candidate has been born into the Masonic life, making
the same kind of beginning therein that a babe makes when born into the world.
INSTALLATION
Stallum was the Late Latin for place, or seat, or proper position, which
meaning is preserved in our English “stall.” To “install” therefore means that
one has been placed in his seat or station—the "in" meaning here the
same as in English. A Masonic installation is a ceremony by which an elected
officer is officially placed in the seat to which his brethren have elected
him.
LABOR
The Latin labor meant toil, work, the put-ting forth of effort; it appears to
be akin to robur, or strength, preserved in our “robust.” While labor and work
are used interchange-ably, the latter is a more generic word, and admits of a
much wider range of uses. Work may be either hard or easy but labor is always
hard; work is used of all sorts of effort; labor refers generally to muscular
effort, followed by fatigue. When labor is kept up unremittingly it is toil;
and when toil is uninteresting, uninspiring, and poorly paid it is drudgery.
When working, one’s ambition is to succeed with it; when laboring, one looks
forward to resting from it; hence, it is from labor that we seek refreshment, not
from work.
LANDMARK
In the early Anglo Saxon, German, or Scandinavian languages the noun “land”
meant the same as in modern English, although as a verb it meant “come to
land,” a meaning reflected in our custom of saying a man lands from a ship,
etc. “Mark” is found in almost all European languages, and derives from the
Latin margo, edge, boundary, whence our margin, mark, and cognate terms. A
“landmark” is some mark, line or object to indicate a boundary. The landmarks
of Masonry are those principles by which the Craft is bounded, that is, marked
off from all other societies and associations and with-out which it would lose
its identity.
LEGEND
The Greeks had legein, speak; the Latins legere, read; from these we have
legend, lecture, etc. In the early Christian church the legend was the
Scripture selection read in a church service; later the term became ap-plied to
stories about the lives of the saints, especially to their wonders and
miracles. The famous “Golden Legend,” a collection of such stories, was one of
the most popular books of the Middle Ages. Legend’, as now used, is a story
without historical foundations but told in the form of history, hence our
“Legend of the Third Degree,” a narrative in dramatic form that Masons have
long understood to be non-historical.
LEVEL
In Latin libra was a balance, the root of our libration, equilibrium; libella
was the diminutive form of the same word, and from it has come our level, an
instrument by which a balance is proved, or by which may be detected the
horizontal plane. It is closely as-sociated in use with the plumb, by which a
line perpendicular to the horizontal is proved. The level is that on which
there are no in-equalities, hence in Masonry it is correctly used’ as a symbol
of equality. “We meet upon the level” because Masonic rights, duties, and
privileges are the same for all members with-out distinction.
LIGHT
A candidate is “brought to light.” “Let there be light” is the motto of the
Craft. It is one of the key words of Masonry. It is very ancient, harking back
to the Sanskrit ruc, meaning shine. The Greeks had luk, preserved in many
English words, especially such as have leuco in their make-up, as in
“leucocyte,” a white blood corpuscle. The Latins had luc or lux in various
forms, whence our light, lucid, luminous, illumine, lunar, lightning, etc. The
word means bright, clear, shining, and is associated in its use with the sun,
moon, fire, etc. By an inevitable asso-ciation the word came into metaphorical
use to mean the coming of truth and knowledge into the mind. ‘When a candidate
ceases to be ignorant of Masonry, when through initiation the truths of Masonry
have found entrance into his mind, he is said to be “enlightened” in the
Masonic sense.
LIBERTINE
Liber was the Latin for “free,” as in our liberty, liberal, etc. When the
Romans gave a slave his freedom he was called libertus, so that in Roman
history a libertine was a freed-man. In theology a libertine came to mean one
who holds loose views, a freethinker; in morality, a licenticus person, one who
flouts moral laws. Whether the early Masons used “libertine” to mean a
“freethinker” or a licentious man, is a point that has never been decided’; in
practice, they probably used it in both senses.
LODGE
This word comes from the Old French, English and Medieval Latin, and meant
gen-erally a hut, a cottage, a gallery, a covered way, etc.; our “lobby” had
the same beginning. How the Operative Masons came to employ the term, and just
what they meant by it, has never been determined; they had a symbolic Lodge,
their building was a Lodge, the group of members was a Lodge, an as-sembly of
Masons was a Lodge, and often times the whole body of Masons was called a
Lodge. In our own usage the word has three technical meanings; the place where
Masons meet, the assembly of the brethren duly congregated for labor, and a
piece of furniture.
MASON
This is a word from the Middle Ages, with an uncertain origin. The old Gothic
maitan meant to hew, or cut, and it is supposed the word carried that general
meaning through Medieval Latin, English, German, and in the Scandinavian
languages. If at first it was used only of a stone-cutter, it came later to
mean a builder. Why the Operatives were called “Freemasons” is still an
unsolved puzzle; the most likely view is that they were a society of builders
free to move from one place to another in contrast to the gild Masons who were
confined in their labors to one community. In our Fraternity a Mason is a
builder of manhood and brotherhood.
MASTER
The Latin root mag had the general meaning of great—as in “magnitude”; it was
the source of the Latin magister, head, chief, principal, the word of which
“magistrate” was made. During the Middle Ages it fell into use as a
conventional title applied to persons in superior rank, preserved in our own
familiar “mister,” always written “Mr”, a colloquial form of “master.” Also it
came to be used’ of a man who had overcome the difficulties in learning an art,
thereby proving himself to be greater than his task, as when it is said of an
artist who has overcome all the obstacles and difficulties of painting, “He is
a master.” A Master Mason is so called because be has proved himself capable of
mastering the work; also because he belongs to a Degree so named.
MONITOR
The Latin monere meant to warn; it was the root of our admonish, admonition,
etc.; a monitor was the man who did the warning. The term became widely used in
early school systems of the senior pupils in a class whose duty it was to
instruct his juniors; from this it passed to include the book, the blackboard
and other instruments used by him in his teachings. Our use of it carries this
last mean-ing; the Masonic Monitor is a book for teaching a candidate the
exoteric work.
MOSAIC
This word has nothing to do with Moses. Its root was the Greek mousa, a muse,
sug-gesting something artistic. The same root appears in our “museum,”
literally a place where artistic work is exhibited. Through the Latin it came
into modern languages and during the Middle Ages became narrowed down to mean a
pattern formed by small pieces of inlay, a form of decorative work much in
vogue during the time of the Opera-tive Masons. Our “mosaic pavement is so
called because it consists of an inlay pattern, small black and white squares
alternating to suggest day and night.
MYSTERY
This word is used in Masonry in two senses entirely different; indeed, though
spelled and pronounced the same, they are really two words. “Mystery” in the
sense of strange, unknown, weird, secret, hails from the Greek, .in which muein
meant to close the eyes, lips and ears; from this came musterion, a secret
ceremony or doctrine, appearing in Latin as mysterium. The word mystery, thus
derived, means secrecy, hiddenness, and is properly used of the esoteric
elements in Masonry. But in the phrase “arts, parts and mysteries” the word is
from the Latin ministerium, having the meaning of trade, art, craft,
occupation, etc., preserved in the familiar metier from the French, often used
as an English word, and the much more familiar “minister,” “ministry,” etc.; in
this sense -- the sense most often used in our Craft the “mysteries of Masonry”
are its workings, just as the mysteries of Operative Masonry were its trade
secrets known only to those trained and skilled in the building arts. In the
latter of the two senses “mystery” and “master” (see above) are closely
affiliated in origin, a master being one who has become completely skilled in
mysteries.
MYSTIC
In the Greek, muster was one who had been initiated. Originally, so Jane Harrison
believes, the root word referred to pollution; but inasmuch as the Greek
mysteries had for their aim the removal of moral pollution, the word became
generally associated with the mysteries themselves, and at last was used to
signify a man who had gone through them. Mystic in our own use of it, as in
“Mystic Tie,” refers not to the mysterious in Freemasonry, or to any mysticism
in it, but to the fact of our being a secret society, practicing initiaton.
OBLIGATION
Obligate and oblige are sister words, deriving from the same Latin root, ob, a
prefix meaning before, or about; and ligare, meaning bind, as in our ligament.
An obligation is a tie, or pledge, or bond’ by which a man is tied to his
fellows, or gives his word to perform certain duties. Accordingly we have
obliging, referring to one who is willing to bind himself to do something for
you, obligatory, etc. The obligation is the tie, or bond, itself; in Masonry a
formal and voluntary pledge on the candidate’s part by virtue of which he is
accepted as a responsible member of the family of Masons.
OBLONG
This has long been a puzzle word in Masonic nomenclature. How, it is asked, can
a square be oblong, when a square is equal on all its sides? The answer is that
in this connection “square” is used in the sense of rectangle; the angles are
squared, not the sides. Oblong is derived from ob, near, or before, and longus,
long; that is, it means something approximately long, so that the main axis is
much longer than the others, as a slender leaf, a shaft, etc. An “oblong square
is a rectangle of which two opposite sides are much longer than the other two.
The Lodge symbolically is an oblong square in this sense.
OPERATIVE
We distinguish Operative Masons, builders of the Middle Ages, founders of
Masonry, from Spectulative Masons, present members of the Fraternity, using the
builders’ tools as emblems and symbols. The Latin for toil, or work, was opus,
still used’ in that form in English to signify a musical or literary
achievement. Opus was the root of operari, to work, whence we have our operate,
operative, operation, opera, operator, and many others. The Operative Mason was
one who toiled at building in the plain, literal sense of the word.
“Speculative” will be explained farther down.
ORNAMENT
Ornare was the Latin verb meaning to adorn, to equip, of which the noun was
ama-men turn, trappings, embellishment, furniture, etc., from which was derived
our “adorn-ment” and “ornament.” In church usage “ornaments” was the name given
to all the equipment used in the services of divine worship. We speak of the
mosaic pavement, the indent-ed tessel, and blazing star as “ornaments of the
Lodge;” whether the term was used by Lodges originally because they were
considered to be adornments, or because they were part of the Lodge equipment
it is impos-sible to say, though the latter alternative ap-pears to be the more
likely.
PASSWORD
The Latin passus meant pace, step, track, passage; it contains the picture of a
path, road, aisle, or door through which one can make his way, hence our
“pass,” derived from it. From it also we have our word “pace.” A password is
any agreed word or counter-sign that permits one to pass through an en-trance
or passage otherwise closed.
PENALTY
It is significant that our “penal” derives from the Latin for pain, paena, the
root of our penance, penalty, penitence, penitentiary. punish, primitive, pine,
and a circle of similar English words. It has the meaning of pain inflicted for
the purpose of correction, discipline, or protecting society, never the
inflic-tion of pain for its own sake. Our own penalties are symbolical in form,
their language being derived from early English forms of punishment for heresy
and treason.
PILLAR
The Latin pila was a pile,—such as a pile under a house—a pier, a pillar, or a
mole,— the last named a massive stonework enclosing a harbor. In ancient times
pillars were used for all manner of religious and symbolical purposes, as when
Jacob erected a pillar at a grave, or Solomon set up two great pillars— the
prototype of ours—on the Porch before his Temple. (See in connection with this
the notes on “column” given above.)
PLUMB
Plumbum was the Latin for lead, and was used also of a scourge with a blob of
lead tied to it, of a line with a lead ball at its end for testing
perpendicularity, etc., the source of our plumb, plumber, plunge, plump,
plumbago, plummet, etc. A plumb-line is accordIngly a line, or cord, with a
piece of lead at the bottom to pull it taut, used to test vertical walls with
the line of gravity, hence, by a simple expansion of reference, an emblem of
uprightness.
Up means up, right means straight; an upright man is one who stands straight up
and down, doesn’t bend or wabble, has no crooks in him, like a good solid wall
that won’t cave in urnkr pressure.
PROFANE
This has a technical meaning in Masonry, nevertheless it adheres closely to the
original significance of the word. Fanum was the Latin for temple; pro meant
“before,” in the sense of “outside of.” It is the picture of man standing on
the outside, not permitted to enter. It has tlfis same sense in Masonry; the
“profane” are those men and women who stand outside of Masonry. The word here,
of course, has nothing to do with profanity in the sense of sacrilegious language.
QUALIFICATION
Qualify comes from the same word as quality. The root of it is the Latin qua,
preserved in our “what.” The quality of a thing was its whatness, the stuff of
which it was made, its nature. The fy in “qualify” is from facere, to make, so
that “qualify” means that a thing is made of the required stuff; and
qualification means the act by which a thing is made of the required nature, or
is declared to have it. The candidate for the Degrees of Masonry must possess
certain characteristics in his nature; must be a man of lawful age, etc., and
these are his qualifications.
QUARRY
The Latin quadratum was a square; originally, quadrate and quarry meant the
same. The word became applied’ to the pit from which rock is hewn because the
principal task of workmen therein was to cut, or square, the stones; hence,
literally a quarry is a place where stone-squaring is done. In Masonry “quarry”
sometimes refers to the rock pits from which Solomon’s workmen hewed out the
stones for his Temple; at other times it refers to the various arenas of
Masonic activities, as when it is said of an active Lodge member that “he is a
faithful laborer in the quarry.”
RAISE
In the Anglo Saxon arisan was used of any motion up or down, but in English it
became used only of an upward motion, as in arise, rising, raise, rear, etc.
Raise means to hoist, or carry, or lift, a body upward in space. There is no
need to explain to a Mason why it is said of a candidate who has completed the
Third Degree that he has been “raised,” or why the climactic ceremony in that
Degree is described as “raising.” One is “initiated” an Entered Apprentice,
“passed” a Fellowcraft, “raised” a Master Mason.
REFRESHMENT
Friscus, or frescus, in the Latin had the meaning of new, fresh, recent; the re
meant again; so that refresh means to renew, to make over, to undo the ravages
of use and time, in Shakespeare’s phrase, “to knit up the raveled sleeve of
care.” To “pass from labor to refreshment” is to find rest and recreation so as
to undo the wearing effects of toil, as when a laborer knocks off at noon to
eat his lunch and have a rest.
REGULAR
The Latin rex, king, sovereign, ruler, was a root from which many words have
sprung, regal, royal, etc.; the Latins themselves had regula, or rule, and regere,
to rule or govern. From this source has come our “regular.” It means a rule
established on legitimate authority. In Masonry “regular” is applied to those
rules which have been established by Grand Lodges and Grand Masters. A “regular
Lodge” is one that conforms to Grand Lodge requirements; a “regular Mason” is
the mem-ber of such a Lodge who conforms to its laws and by-laws.
RIGHT
This, one of the noblest words in the English language, is also one of the
oldest, being found in the very ancient Sanskrit in the form raj meaning rule.
It appeared in Latin as rectus, meaning direct, straight, a rule,— rule being
used in the sense of our ruler, a device for drawing a line which is the
shortest distance between two points. Such words as regent, rail, direct,
rector, rectify, rule, came from this Latin term. Right means “straight,” as in
a “right line,” a “right angle,” etc.; through a familiar metaphorical
application it has come to stand for conduct in conform-ity with moral law. Our
“rights” are those privileges which strict law allows to us. A “horizontal” is
a right line on the level; a perpendicular” is a right line up and down, or at
right angles to the horizontal. “Right” and “regular,” discussed just above,
origi-nally were close together in meaning.
RITUAL
A ritual is a system of rites. “Rite,” like “right,” is very old; it has been
traced to the if Sanskrit riti, meaning usage, which in turn was derived from
ri, meaning flow, suggesting the regular current of river. In Latin this became
ritus meaning in general a custom, more particularly a religious custom, or
usage. In taking over this word the church applied it to the acts in solemn
religious services which had to be performed according to strict rules. In
Masonry the ritual is the prescribed set of ceremonies used for the purpose of
initiation. It should be noted that a set of ceremonies does not become a
ritual until it has been prescribed by some official authority.
SEAL
This, like our words “sign” and “insignia,” is derived from the Latin sigillum,
diminu-tive of signum, meaning a mark, or sign. It is some kind of device
affixed to a document in place of a signature or in close connection with a
signature for the purpose of showing that the document is regular or official.
A document bearing the seal of a Lodge shows that it is officially issued by
the Lodge, and not by some irresponsible person or persons. The word is also
used of the tool by means of which the device is stamped into wax, or whatever
similar material may be used for the purpose.
SECRECY
From Se, apart, and cernere, separate, the Latins had secretum, suggesting
something separated from other things, apart from com-mon kndwledge, hidden,
covered, isolated, hence “secrecy.” There is a fundamental difference between
“secret” and “hidden,” far whereas the latter may mean that nobody knows where
a thing is, nothing can be secret e without at least one person knowing it. The
secrets of Freemasonry are known to all Masons, therefore are not hidden; they
are secrets only in the sense that they are not known to profanes. A similar
word is “occult,” which means a thing naturally secret, one, as it were, that
secretes itself, so that few can know about it. See also the paragraphs on
“clandestine” and “mystery” in the preceding pages. There is also another less
familiar word in Masonry meaning hidden, covered up, concealed, secret; it is
pronounced “hail” but is spelled “hele.”
SECRETARY
The present use of this word has departed widely from its original meaning. The
Latin secretus meant secret, private; secretarium was a conclave, a caucus, a
council behind closed doors, consequently a secretarius was some very
confidential officer, and was used of a secretary in our sense, of a notary, a
scribe, etc. Since the handling of correspon-dence and the keeping of records
is usually a confidential service the man who does it has come to be called a
secretary. The secretary of a Lodge cares for all its correspondence and its
records.
SIGN
This comes from the Latin signum, a word which appears in a dozen or more
English words, as signature, signet, signify, consign, countersign, resign,
etc. Where a seal is used principally on documents and for the purpose of
showing them to be official, sign is used much more variously and widely; it is
some kind of gesture, device, mark, or design which indicates something, or
points to something, and which often has a meaning known only to the initiated.
Masonic signs are gestures that convey a meaning which only Masons understand,
and which most frequently are used for purposes of recognition.
SPECULATIVE
The Latin specere meant to see, to look about; specula was a watchtower, so
called because from it one could look about over a wide territory. It came to
be used metaphorically of the mental habit of noting all the aspects of a
subject; also, as applied to theo-retical knowledge as opposed to practical
skill. “Speculative Masonry” was knowledge of the science, or theory, of
building; “Operative Masonry,” trained skill in putting that knowledge into
practice. ‘When Operative Masonry was dropped out of the Craft in the
eighteenth century, only the speculative ele-ments remained and these became
the basis of our present Fraternity. It is for this reason that we continue to
describe it as Speculative Masonry. The word has nothing to do with
philosophical speculation, or with theorizing merely for its own sake.
SQUARE
As noted in the paragraph on “quarry” the Latin quad ratum was a square.
Quatuor meant “four;” from it we have square, four, quad, quadrangle, squadron,
etc. In geometry I a square is a four-sided straight-lined figure having all
its sides equal and all its angles right angles; and since early carpenters and
Masons had to use an instrument for proving the angles to be right, they fell
into the habit of calling that instrument a square. In Ma-sonry the square is
used in at least three distinct senses; as a sharp instrument, as a working
tool, and as a symbol, the last named when used with the compasses on the Holy
Bible. As a symbol it refers to the earth, for so long a time supposed to be
square in shape; as a working tool, it refers to all those forces by means of
which one prepares himself to fit into his own proper place in the Brotherhood,
like a Perfect Ashlar in a wall.
STEWARD
This came into general use through the church, in which it was adopted as the
name for an important official and also for an important theological doctrine;
the doctrine of stewardship. The word itself had a peculiar origin. In Anglo
Saxon stigo was a sty or place in which domestic animals were kept; I weard
(see “warden” on following page) was a guard, or keeper; therefore the steward
was the keeper of the cattle pens. Its meaning became enlarged to include the
duties of general over-seer, one who is in charge of a household or estate for
another; and still more generally, one who provides for the needs for food,
money, and supplies. In the history of Ma-sonry the office of steward has
performed a variety of functions; the caring of funds, distribution of charity,
preparing for banquets and similar services.
SUBLIME
Sublimis, in Latin, referred to something high, lofty, exalted, like a city set
on top of a hill, or an eagle’s nest atop some lonely crag. It refers to that
which is eminent, of superlative degree, moral grandeur, spiritual exaltation.
Inasmuch as the Third Degree is at the top of the system of Ancient Craft
Masonry, it is known as “The Sublime Degree.
SUMMONS
Like the word monitor, explained some pages back, summons is derived from the
Latin term of which the verb was monere, meaning to warn, or to remind, as in
“admonish ;“ the “sum” is the combining form of sub, under, or privy to, in the
secret of, as in the old phrase “sub rosa.” A summons is an official call sent
out by persons in authority to some person acknowledging that authority to
appear at some place, or to perform some duty; in other words a person who is
“on the inside,” who is a member, is admonished by his superiors, and must obey
under penalty. The duty involved and the penalty attached distinguishes a
summons from a mere invita-tion. A Lodge, Grand Lodge, or some official issues
a summons; a fellow Mason not in official position makes a sign; a Mason is
under obligation to respond to either, if it be due, official, or regular.
SYMBOL
It is interesting to compare this word with “emblem” with which it is so often
confused. The Greek symbolon was a mark, or sign, or token, or tally; it is
derived from sun, togeth-er, and ballein, put, or throw, from which we have
ball, ballistics, etc. Symbolon indicated two things put together, thrown
together, or matched together. If, for example, the numeral 9 is matched to a
pile of marbles, one to one, the 9 is a symbol of the number of marbles. From
this came the custom of calling a symbol some object, device, design, picture,
etc., used not for its own sake, but for the purpose of referring to some
other, and per-haps very different, thing with which it has been associated. It
is any visible, audible, or tangible object used to typify some idea, or truth,
or quality, as when a wedding ring is made the symbol of marriage, the square
is made the symbol of the earth, or the cross is made the symbol of
Christianity, the crescent of Mohammedanism, etc.
TEMPLE
The Greeks had temenos, a sacred enclosure, a plot of ground marked off to be a
holy place; the Latins had templum, a consecreated place. A temple is a
building set apart because it is holy, dedicated to religious uses. It has its
place in Masonry largely because of the prominence of Solomon’s Temple in the Ritual.
It is interesting to note that in Masonic nomenclature the ideal life, here and
hereafter, is described metaphorically as a temple, one of a thousand examples
of the extent to which Freemasonry is saturated with religious language and
emotions.
TILER
Also spelled “tyler.” In the Latin tegere (from which came “thatch”) meant
cover, roof; tegulae were the tiles, pieces, slabs, used for roof-coverings. A
tiler, therefore, is one who makes, or fastens on, tiles. Since in Operative
Masonry the tiler was the workman who closed the building in, and hid its
interior from outside view, the guardian of the entrance to the Lodge was
figuratively called by this name. It was once supposed that “tiler” came from
the French tailleur, a cutter, a hewer (from whence we have “tailor”), and it
was accordingly spelled “tyler;” that, however, is incorrect, “tiler” being the
correct spelling.
TOKEN
This is from the Greek deigma.. meaning example, or proof—the origin of the
word “teach,” and in its orginal sense had much the same meaning as sign and
symbol, for it was an ob5ect used as the sign of something else. It is
generally used, however, in the sense of a pledge or of an object that proves
something. In our usage a token is something that exhibits, or shows, or proves
that we are Masons—the grip of recognition, for example.
VOUCH
This harks back to the Latin vocare, to call, to summon, and is the origin of
voice, vouchsafe, vocation (in the sense of a “calling”), vocal, etc. To vouch
is to raise one s voice in testimony, to bear witness, to affirm, to call to
witness. If we vouch for a brother we raise the voice to testify that we know
him to be a regular Mason.
WAGES
Wage, of which wages is the collective plural, remotely descended from the
Latin vas, having the meaning of pledge, security, pawn, or a promise to pay
backed up by security. After it entered into modem languages it had a peculiar
history; it became “gage,” a pledge or pawn, appearing in our engage,
disengage, etc., but having no relation with gage, one of our Working Tools;
“wager" in the sense of a bet; in another context it became “wed,” the act
of marrying, so called because of the pledges given; and “wage” in the sense of
compensation for service given. An “allowance” is a one-sided form of payment,
depending on the will of the giver; a “stipend” is a fixed sum, usually
nominal, and is supposed to be paid as per a permanent arrangement; a “salary”
(from sal, or salt, the old pay given soldiers) is an amount fixed by contract,
and estimated over a relatively long period of time, year or month; “wages” are
paid to laborers over short periods of time, or at the completion of the
required task. In Speculative Masonry the Master Mason symbolically receives
“wages,” rather than salary, because they represent the rewards that come to
him as rapidly as he does his work; and, as the etymology of the word suggests,
they are certain, something one may bank on.
WARDEN
“Ward” is of Medieval origin, having been used in early English, French,
German, etc., always in the sense of to guard something, a meaning preserved in
warden, guard, guardian, wary, ware, ward, etc. A warden is guardian of the
west gate of the
WARRANT
This also derives from the same source, and carries the general meaning of “to
de-fend,” “to guard.” Warrant is sometimes used as a pledge of security; in
Masonry it is a document officially issued to authorize the formation of a
Lodge, and consequently acts as the pledge, or security, for the future activity
of it.
WORK
The idea behind this noble old word is one that has powerfully appealed to all
European peoples and is found in nearly every Euro-pean language. The Greek
ergon meant work, organ on. was the instrument by which work was done; from
this source we have energy, organ, erg, and it appears in combination in such
words as metallurgy. To work means to put forth effort in order to accomplish
something; play is also a putting forth of effort, but in that case the effort
is its own end, and is done for its own sake. Work has an end beyond itself.
The official ritual of the Lodge is called the Standard Work; it came to be so
called by analogy, the ritual of Speculative Masonry corresponding to the daily
labor of the Operative Masons.
WORSHIPFUL
The Anglo Saxon worth was something honorable, deserving of respect, a meaning
that shows up in worth, the value of anything, also in worship, which is
deference paid to some object or person of great importance. Worshipful
describes something full of the qualities calling for such deference. It was
used in Medieval times of one’s parents, officers of the state, prelates, etc.,
signifying that such persons were of high station or entitled to deferential
respect. It is so used in our term, “Worshipful Master.”
|
(We hope you enjoy these pages about
Freemasonry) |
|