<\/p>\n
Freemasonry is a philosophy of life which calls into play all the forces<\/p>\n
of life in building that Temple of the soul as a symbol of the temple built<\/p>\n
by King Solomon, and in that building process Masonry has set out certain<\/p>\n
well defined principles and objectives as well as the ancient landmarks to<\/p>\n
be observed, wherein there is nothing inconsistent with civil, moral or<\/p>\n
religious duties and loyalties.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Its task and program consists in the growing and development of the soul,<\/p>\n
or in other words, making the rough ashlar more perfect, and in inculcating<\/p>\n
the highest principles in society and in the State.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 ‘A mason is a man and a Brother whose trust is in God.\u00a0 He meets you on<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n the level and acts on the square.\u00a0 Truth is his Compass and his is ever<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n PLUMB.\u00a0 He is loyal to his Order, and whatever his degree, his is MASTER of<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n himself.’<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n In the building of that Temple of Brotherhood there are certain<\/p>\n ingredients which take priority over all others – there are some which are<\/p>\n vital and one of them is CHARACTER.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Now character does not come cheap; nature has few bargain counters and<\/p>\n this appears to be true especially in the realm of morals.<\/p>\n Everyone knows it requires little energy to slide down hill and<\/p>\n drift unconsciously, but climbing ‘the winding stairs’<\/em><\/span> may test every<\/p>\n muscle and every ounce of conviction.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Character is what a man is in the dark.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Character is likened to the foundation of a house – that part which is below<\/p>\n the surface and which automatically gives that house strength and stability.<\/p>\n Character is what a man really IS, while one’s reputation is the record<\/p>\n we’ve made in our respective communities.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Horace Greenley once reminded his readers that Fame is a vapour;<\/p>\n popularity an accident; riches have the tendency to take wings and fly away;<\/p>\n those who cheer today may curse tomorrow.<\/p>\n Only one things endures – CHARACTER.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Character is a priceless asset.\u00a0 Some years ago at a State dinner given<\/p>\n in honour of Hon. Herbert Asquith, the chairman paid this tribute –<\/p>\n <\/p>\n “He has brought to the work of leadership the most priceless of all assets<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0– the asset of character. Believe me, however deceptive appearances may be, <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n it is and always will be the one sure passport to the respect and homage of <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n the British people.\u00a0 It is a happy assembling of qualities great in themselves, <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n but greater and rarer in their combination.”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Men everywhere respect and admire noble characters wherever they are found.<\/p>\n There is always something in right-being which attracts, moves, wins and compels.<\/p>\n Character is difficult to explain or define.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It is an element factor of life and is what God knows us to be.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It is something that exists entirely independent of the accessories and the<\/p>\n accidents of life.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n There is a story told of Sir Harry Lauder who, as a boy, worked in a<\/p>\n coal mine in his beloved Scotland.\u00a0 He possessed a fine voice and in due<\/p>\n time became a talented singer.\u00a0 For a generation he was before the public as<\/p>\n an entertainer and a singer of humorous songs.\u00a0 A few years later he was<\/p>\n knighted by King George and many people were surprised.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Why did the King so singly honour a public entertainer?\u00a0 It was because<\/p>\n of his rugged character, for amid all the temptations associated with and<\/p>\n connected with a music hall, he clung to the simple virtues taught him in<\/p>\n his youth; he kept himself pure; he was sober as well as thrifty; he always<\/p>\n observed the Sabbath and maintained his faith in God.\u00a0 His whole personality<\/p>\n is a shining example of what sterling character can be.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Measure of a Man<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n A man’s no bigger than the way he treats his fellow man<\/p>\n This standard has his measure been since time itself began.<\/p>\n He’s measured not by social rank when characters’ the test<\/p>\n Nor by his pomp and earthly show displaying wealth<\/p>\n possessed.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n He’s measured by justice and with right his fairness in his play<\/p>\n His squaredness in all dealings made his honest upright way.<\/p>\n These are man’s measures ever near to serve him when he can<\/p>\n For man’s no bigger than the way he serves his fellow man.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Author Unknown “Editorial”; Published in<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n THE TRACING BOARD, GRS; September, 1973<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Freemasonry is a philosophy of life which calls into play all the forces of life in building that Temple of the soul as a symbol of the temple built…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":76,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1872","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-educator"],"rttpg_featured_image_url":null,"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"MasterMason","author_link":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/author\/mastermason\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"The Educator<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":" Freemasonry is a philosophy of life which calls into play all the forces of life in building that Temple of the soul as a symbol of the temple built…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/76"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1872"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1872\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ashlarcollege.ca\/ashlar-archived\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n