Where are the Builders; Why Have the Lights Gone Out of the Temples?

I have wandered like a hermit through the abyss of darkness that is this world seeking the lights of wisdom and reason and though, I have seen their ghosts and heard their echoes in the books of the dead; etched in time by philosophers long since buried, their light no longer shines in the modern world. Even the temples of the mystery schools and secret societies; their appointed thrones, are vacant of their illuminating grace and the principalities of power; the sheperds and leaders of humanity, are ignorant of their teachings. They are like children aping the rituals and mimicking the signs and symbols of the ancients, seeking their power, but having no understanding of their true meanings and purpose. It was not always so sisters and brothers. Once, the mystery schools and secret societies and their members toiled with all their might and even risked their lives for the accomplishment of their and humanity’s great work. Which is nothing less then uniting humanity in fraternity and using their collective mindpower and musclepower, to build the Temple/Kingdom of God; a harmonious and efficient society and world, free of want, disease, old age and death, in this physical realm. Once it was so and it can be so again, because even though, the lights of wisdom and reason, have fled from the world and no longer shine, having been driven away by the false lights of profit, greed and control, they can never truly be extinguished and can always return to guide humanity in it’s darkest hours.

The Corruption and Restoration of Creation

The Lurrianic Kabbalists hold belief in the Shevirah; the breaking of the vessels, and the Tikkun Olam; the repairing of the world or physical creation. In brief these are the philosophical ideas, that through the fall of man, the process or act of creation itself, became broken and that still to this day it rests in a state of imperfection and incompletion. They believe that the world we see today, filled with suffering and strife, is not the one that was intended by God and it is only through the process of the Tikkun Olam that the world be repaired and the creation completed. Unfortunately for creation the Tikkun Olam has been left in the hands of humanity and it is up to us and only us to fix it.

Now the idea that the world we live in is flawed and that humanity must restore it does not belong to the lurianic kabbalists alone, but is an idea that stretches back to some of the most ancient of civilizations and is in fact the true root and purpose of all of the major secret societies of the world. The restoration, perfection and crowning of the physical creation is the very nature of their great work.

The Dionysian Artificers and the Great Work of the Ages

The Dionysian Artificers were the forerunners and forefathers of most of the secret societies of the modern era and it is from them that the esoteric organizations took most of their symbols and beliefs.

"The Order of the Dionysian Artificers originated among the Greeks and Syrians at some remote time before 1500 B.C. It was composed originally of skilled craftsmen, banded together in a guild to perpetuate the secrets of their crafts. Gradually the science of architecture took precedence and dominated the policies of the society. According to legend, when Solomon, King of Israel, resolved to build his temple according to the will of his father, David, he sent to Tyre and engaged the services of a cunning workman, Hiram Abiff, a master of the Dionysian Artificers. The members of this society held the exclusive right throughout the Greek states of designing the temples of the gods, the houses of government, the theaters of Dionysius and the buildings used for the public games.

It is certain that the Dionysians practiced secret rites and worshipped the gods under geometric symbolism; and that they possessed a body of lore which included mathematical secrets of proportion and design, certain knowledge concerning universal dynamics, and a philosophical, religious, moral and political conviction concerning the perfecting of human society. They referred to ignorant and uncultured humans as a rough ashlar, that is, an uncut stone as it comes from the quarry, unsuited to the purposes of building. Through the refinement which resulted from self-discipline and an addiction to the divine arts, man perfected himself; becoming square, upright, and true, thus forming the true ashlar, or the cut stone which could fit with others into a pattern of masonry. In their secret work the Dionysians thus were social and political temple builders, and the temple upon which they labored was the living temple of the Living God, "built of stone made ready before it was brought thither; so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house while it was in the building." This temple was human society perfected; and each enlightened and perfected human being was a true stone for its building."

The Secret Destiny of America, Manly P. Hall, chpt 7, pg 18 paragraph 6,7,11

The Roman Collegia of skilled architects were apparently a subdivision of the greater Ionian body, their principles and organization being practically identical with the older Ionian institution. It has been suspected that the Dionysians also profoundly influenced early Islamic culture, for part of their symbolism found its way into the Mysteries of the dervishes. At one time the Dionysians referred to themselves as Sons of Solomon, and one of the most important of their symbols was the Seal of Solomon--two interlaced triangles. This motif is frequently seen in conspicuous parts of Mohammedan mosques. The Knights Templars--who were suspected of anything and everything--are believed to have contacted these Dionysiac artificers and to have introduced many of their symbols and doctrines into mediæval Europe. But Freemasonry most of all owes to the Dionysiac cult the great mass of its symbols and rituals which are related to the science of architecture. From these ancient and illustrious artisans it also received the legacy of the unfinished Temple of Civilization-that vast, invisible structure upon which these initiated builders have labored continuously since the inception of their fraternity. This mighty edifice, which has fallen and been rebuilt time after time but whose foundations remain unmoved, is the true Everlasting House of which the temple on the brow of Mount Moriah was but an impermanent symbol.

Aside from the operative aspect of their order, the Dionysiac Architects had a speculative philosophic code. Human society they considered as a rough and untrued ashlar but lately chiseled from the quarry of elemental Nature. This crude block was the true object upon which these skilled craftsmen labored--
polishing it, squaring it, and with the aid of fine carvings transforming it into a miracle of beauty. While mystics released their souls from the bondage of matter by meditation and philosophers found their keenest joy in the profundities of thought, these master workmen achieved liberation from the Wheel of
Life and Death by learning to swing their hammers with the same rhythm that moves the swirling forces of Cosmos. They venerated the Deity under the guise of a Great Architect and Master Craftsman who was ever gouging rough ashlars from the fields of space and truing them into universes. The Dionysians affirmed constructiveness to be the supreme expression of the soul, and attuning themselves with the ever-visible constructive natural processes going on around them, believed immortality could be achieved by thus becoming a part of the creative agencies of Nature.

The Secret Teachings of All Ages, Manly P. Hall,pg CLXXV paragraph 5,6

As, we can clearly see, the great work of the Dionysiac Artificers was the creation of a just, harmonious and perfected society, civilization and world; the building of the Temple of God on earth and it is to their philosophical children; the secret societies, that they bequeathed their symbols and charge.

Rosicrucians and the Great Work

The Rosicrucians continued to carry the charge of the Dionysiac Artificers into the later ages, caring for it like a treasure and though they clothed it in the symbols of alchemy instead of architecture, the true core of their great work remained unchanged.

The Fraternity of R.C. is an august and sovereign body, arbitrarily manipulating the symbols of alchemy, Qabbalism, astrology, and magic to the attainment of its own peculiar purposes, but entirely independent of the cults whose terminology it employs. The three major objects of the Fraternity are:
1. The abolition of all monarchical forms of government and the substitution therefor of the rulership of the philosophic elect. The present democracies are the direct outgrowth of Rosicrucian efforts to liberate the maws from the domination of despotism. In the early part of the eighteenth century the Rosicrucians turned their attention to the new American Colonies, then forming the nucleus of a great nation in the New World. The American War of Independence represents their first great political experiment and resulted in the establishment of a national government founded upon the fundamental principles of
divine and natural law. As an imperishable reminder of theirsub rosa activities, the Rosicrucians left the Great Seal of the United States. The Rosicrucians were also
the instigators of the French Revolution, but in this instance were not wholly successful, owing to the fact that the fanaticism of the revolutionists could not be controlled and the Reign of Terror ensued.
2. The reformation of science, philosophy, and ethics. The Rosicrucians declared that the material arts and sciences were but shadows of the divine wisdom, and that only by penetrating the innermost recesses of Nature could man attain to reality and understanding. Though calling themselves Christians, the Rosicrucians were evidently Platonists and also profoundly versed in the deepest mysteries of early Hebrew and Hindu theology. There is undeniable evidence that the Rosicrucians desired to reestablish
the institutions of the ancient Mysteries as the foremost method of instructing humanity in the secret and eternal doctrine. Indeed, being in all probability the perpetuators of the ancient Mysteries, the Rosicrucians were able to maintain themselves against the obliterating forces of dogmatic Christianity only by absolute secrecy and the subtlety of their subterfuges. They so carefully guarded and preserved the Supreme Mystery--the identity and interrelationship of the Three Selves--that no one to whom they did not of their own accord reveal themselves has ever secured any satisfactory information regarding either the existence or the purpose of the Order. The Fraternity of R.C., through its outer organization, is gradually creating an environment or body in which the Illustrious Brother C.R.C. may ultimately incarnate and consummate for humanity the vast spiritual and material labors of the Fraternity.
3. The discovery of the Universal Medicine, or panacea, for all forms of disease. There is ample evidence that the Rosicrucians were successful in their quest for the Elixir of Life. In his Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum, Elias Ashmole states that the Rosicrucians were not appreciated in England, but were welcomed on the Continent. He also states that Queen Elizabeth was twice cured of the smallpox by the Brethren of the Rosy Cross, and that the Earl of Norfolk was healed of leprosy by a Rosicrucian physician. In the quotations that follow it is .hinted by John Heydon that the Brothers of the Fraternity
possessed the secret of prolonging human existence indefinitely, but not beyond the time appointed by the will of God:

The Secret Teachings of All Ages, Manly P. Hall, pg CXLIII, paragraph 10,11,pg CXLIV paragraphs 1,2,3

It is clear for all to see that in the time of the Rosicrucians, their order shone like a beacon with the lights of wisdom and reason and they labored long upon the great work of the ancients.

Masons and the Great Work

It was to the Faternal Order of the Masons, that the responsibility of carrying the symbols and the philosophy of the great work into the modern era, was entrusted. In fact one has to look no further then the symbols and rituals of the first three degrees to see that the Masons are supposed to be dedicated to giving their full effort and endeavor to the completion of the great work of the ages. The compass, the square, the gavel, the rough and untrue ashlar and the true ashlar are all borrowed from the Diyonsiac Artificers and hold the same esoteric meanings.

The FORCE of the people, or the popular will, in action and exerted,
symbolized by the GAVEL, regulated and guided by and acting within the
limits of LAW and ORDER, symbolized by the TWENTY-FOUR-INCH
RULE, has for its fruit LIBERTY, EQUALITY, and FRATERNITY,--liberty
regulated by law; equality of rights in the eye of the law; brotherhood with
its duties and obligations as well as its benefits.
You will hear shortly of the Rough ASHLAR and the Perfect ASHLAR, as
part of the jewels of the Lodge. The rough Ashlar is said to be "a stone, as
taken from the quarry, in its rude and natural state." The perfect Ashlar is
said to be "a stone made ready by the hands of the workmen, to be
adjusted by the working-tools of the Fellow-Craft." We shall not repeat the
explanations of these symbols given by the York Rite. You may read them
in its printed monitors. They are declared to allude to the selfimprovement
of the individual craftsman,--a continuation of the same
superficial interpretation.
The rough Ashlar is the PEOPLE, as a mass, rude and unorganized. The
perfect Ashlar, or cubical stone, symbol of perfection, is the STATE, the
rulers deriving their powers from the consent of the governed; the
constitution and laws speaking the will of the people; the government
harmonious, symmetrical, efficient, --its powers properly distributed and
duly adjusted in equilibrium.
If we delineate a cube on a plane surface thus:
we have visible three faces, and nine external lines, drawn between seven
points. The complete cube has three more faces, making six; three more
lines, making twelve; and one more point, making eight. As the number 12
includes the sacred numbers, 3, 5, 7, and 3 times 3, or 9, and is produced
by adding the sacred number 3 to 9; while its own two figures, 1, 2, the
unit or monad, and duad, added together, make the same sacred number 3;
it was called the perfect number; and the cube became the symbol of
perfection.
Produced by FORCE, acting by RULE; hammered in accordance with lines
measured by the Gauge, out of the rough Ashlar, it is an appropriate
symbol of the Force of the people, expressed as the constitution and law
of the State; and of the State itself the three visible faces represent the
three departments,--the Executive, which executes the laws; the
Legislative, which makes the laws; the Judiciary, which interprets the
laws, applies and enforces them, between man and man, between the State
and the citizens. The three invisible faces, are Liberty, Equality, and
Fraternity, the threefold soul of the State--its vitality, spirit, and intellect.

Morals and Dogma, Albert Pike, pg 4-6

The Square is a right angle, formed by two right lines. It is adapted only
to a plane surface, and belongs only to geometry, earth-measurement, that
trigonometry which deals only with planes, and with the earth, which the
ancients supposed to be a plane. The Compass describes circles, and deals
with spherical trigonometry, the science of the spheres and-heavens. The
former, therefore, is an emblem of what concerns the earth and the body;
the latter of what concerns the heavens and the soul. Yet the Compass is
also used in plane trigonometry, as in erecting perpendiculars; and,
therefore, you are reminded that, although in this Degree both points of
the Compass are under the Square, and you are now dealing only with the
moral and political meaning of the symbols, and not with their
philosophical and spiritual meanings, still the divine ever mingles with
the human; with the earthly the spiritual intermixes; and there is
something spiritual in the commonest duties of life.

Morals and Dogma, Albert Pike,pg 11-12>>

As we can clearly see the true great work of Masonry, like the Dionysiac Artificers, was the creation of a perfected world through the uniting and guidance of the collective mind power and muscle power of the people. The only disagreement I have with Pike in this regard is I would substitute the people for the state, because I believe one of the greatest obstacles to completing the great work has always been, that humanity doesn’t think it is their responsibility to build the temple, but instead leave it to their leaders and the state to guide them in it’s completion. Unfortunately when the states and leaders become corrupt with greed and power, there is noone left to guide the people and then it is up to humanity to grow up, set aside their differences and guide themselves to completing the great work on their own.

The nations are not bodies politic alone, but also souls-politic; and woe to that people which,
seeking the material only, forgets that it has a soul. Then we have a race,
petrified in dogma, which presupposes the absence of a soul and the
presence only of memory and instinct, or demoralized by lucre. Such a
nature can never lead civilization. Genuflexion before the idol or the
dollar atrophies the muscle which walks and the will which moves.
Hieratic or mercantile absorption diminishes the radiance of a people,
lowers its horizon by lowering its level, and deprives it of that
understanding of the universal aim, at the same time human and divine,
which makes the missionary nations. A free people, forgetting that it has a
soul to be cared for, devotes all its energies to its material advancement.
If it makes war, it is to subserve its commercial interests. The citizens
copy after the State, and regard wealth, pomp, and luxury as the great
goods of life. Such a nation creates wealth rapidly, and distributes it
badly. Thence the two extremes, of monstrous opulence and monstrous
misery; all the enjoyment to a few, all the privations to the rest, that is to
say, to the people; Privilege, Exception, Monopoly, Feudality, springing
up from Labour itself: a false and dangerous situation, which, making
Labour a blinded and chained Cyclops, in the mine, at the forge, in the
workshop, at the loom, in the field, over poisonous fumes, in miasmatic
cells, in unventilated factories, founds public power upon private misery,
and plants the greatness of the State in the suffering of the individual. It is
a greatness ill constituted, in which all the material elements are
combined, and into which no moral element enters. If a people, like a star,
has the right of eclipse, the light ought to return. The eclipse should not
degenerate into night.

Morals and Dogma, Albert Pike, pg 12>>

The Hiramic Legend as an Allegory of Jesus and the Great Work

In the third degree of Masonry the initiate is presented with the ritual and legend of Hiram Abiff and it is in this legend that the great work of the Dionysian Atificers and the Masons are laid bare before the people. Hiram Abiff represents the guide and great architect charged with creating the blueprint and guiding the builders; humanity whole, in the building of the Temple of God; the perfected creation/world. The builders represent humanity as a whole and though they are the builders of the temple they are also the very stones of that temple as well. According to the legend a small group of humanity, represented by the three builders, in their greed and lust for power, rose up and slew Hiram Abiff, thereby halting the completion of the temple and though, in the legend Hiram Abiff is raised from the dead, he never completes the building of the temple himself, he instead leaves it for the builders to finish.

In this legend and it’s symbols I see an allegory to the Christ. Jesus like Hiram Abiff came to the world to guide humanity in the building of the Temple/Kingdom of God. Some of humanity in their greed, lust for power and their fear that a perfected world would be the end of their control, they crucified him. Also, like Hiram Abiff, after his resurrection Jesus did not remain long in this world and never completed the building of the temple, he instead left it for humanity to complete themselves. He however did leave a blueprint. One of perfect and beautiful simplicity, but even in it’s simplicity, humanity has still not followed it nor completed the temple, even though most know the message in their hearts. If humanity were to follow it and unite as brothers and sisters and work together, combining their mind power and muscle power, they could easily complete the temple, herald in the kingdom and restore the physical creation to it’s perfected state.

The Founding of America as an Operation of the Great Work

Having discussed the true nature of the great work of the secret societies, I will now cover one of the great operations that was undertaken as an attempt to set into motion it’s completion. That operation was none other then the founding of America. A grand occult operation first planned and implemented by Sir Francis Bacon.

Bacon quickly realized that here in the new world was the proper environment for the accomplishment of his great dream, the establishment of the philosophic empire. It must be remembered that Bacon did not play a lone hand; he was the head of a secret society including in its membership the most brilliant intellectuals of his day. All these men were bound together by a common oath to labor in the cause of a world democracy.
Bacon's society of the unknown philosophers included men of high rank and broad influence. Together with Bacon, they devised the colonization scheme. Word was passed about through secret channels that here in the Western Hemisphere was the promised
land of the future. Here men of right purpose could build a new way of life, free from the religious intolerance and political despotism that held Europe in its clutches.

The history books tell us that the colonists made the long and dangerous journey in small ships in order to find a place where they could worship God, each according to the dictates of his own conscience. There is however much more to the story than our historians have dared to suggest. Among the colonizers were some who belonged to the Order of the Quest, but it was not long before religious strife broke out in the colonies, for men do not change their natures merely by changing their place of habitation. Much of the intolerance of the old world came over to plague the beginnings of the new civilization. It was not easy to preserve high principles in pioneering a country. A lot had to be done before the philosophic empire could emerge out of the simple struggle for existence. And much has yet to be accomplished; we are still pioneering in the sphere of right thinking and right living.

Bacon's secret society was set up in America before the middle of the 17th Century. Bacon himself had given up all hope of bringing his dream to fruition in his own country, and he concentrated his attention upon rooting it in the new world. He made sure that the American colonists were thoroughly indoctrinated with the principles of religious tolerance, political democracy, and social equality. Through carefully appointed
representatives, the machinery of democracy was set up at least a hundred years before the period of the Revolutionary War.

Bacon's secret society membership was not limited to England; it was most powerful in Germany, in France, and in the Netherlands, and most of the leaders of European thought were involved in the vast pattern of his purpose. The mystic empire of the wise had no national boundaries and its citizenry was made up of men of good purpose in every land. The Alchemists, Cabalists, Mystics, and Rosicrucians were the incisive instruments of Bacon's plan. Representatives of these groups migrated to the colonies at an early date and set up their organization in suitable places.

The Secret Destiny of America, Manly P. Hall, chpt 13, pg 33-34>>

The early years of the 18th Century brought with them many changes in the social and political life of the American colonies. By this time most of the Atlantic seaboard was dominated by the English. Cities had sprung up, important trade flourished with the mother country, and the colonial atmosphere was in small counterpart that of the English countryside.
By this time most of the important secret societies of Europe were well represented in this country. The brotherhoods met in their rooms over inns and similar public buildings, practicing their ancient rituals exactly according to the fashion in Europe and England. These American organizations were branches under European sovereignty, with the members in the two hemispheres bound together with the strongest bonds of sympathy
and understanding. The program that Bacon had outlined was working out according to schedule. Quietly and industriously, America was being conditioned for its destiny--leadership in a free world.

The Secret Destiny of America, Manly P. Hall, chpt 13, pg 34>>

Many times the question has been asked, Was Francis Bacon's vision of the "New Atlantis" a prophetic dream of the great civilization which was so soon to rise upon the soil of the New World? It cannot be doubted that the secret societies of Europe conspired to establish upon the American continent "a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal." Two incidents in the early history of the United States evidence the influence of that silent body which has so
long guided the destinies of peoples and religions. By them nations are created as vehicles for the promulgation of ideals, and while nations are true to these ideals they survive; when they vary from them they vanish like the Atlantis of old which had ceased to "know the gods."

In his admirable little treatise, Our Flag, Robert Allen Campbell revives the details of an obscure, but most important, episode of American history--the designing of the Colonial flag of 1775. The account involves a mysterious man concerning whom no information is available other than that he was on familiar terms with both General George Washington and Dr. Benjamin Franklin. The following description of him is taken from Campbell's treatise:

"Little seems to have been known concerning this old gentleman; and in the materials from which this account is compiled his name is not even once mentioned, for he is uniformly spoken of or referred to as 'the Professor.' He was evidently far beyond his threescore and ten years; and he often referred to historical events of more than a century previous just as if he had been a living witness of their occurrence; still he was erect, vigorous and active--hale, hearty, and clear-minded--as strong and energetic every way as in the prime of his life He was tall, of fine figure, perfectly easy, and very dignified in his manners; being at once courteous, gracious and commanding. He was, for those times
and considering the customs of the Colonists, very peculiar in his method of living; for he ate no flesh, fowl or fish; he never used for food any 'green thing,' any roots or anything unripe; he drank no liquor, wine or ale; but confined his diet to cereals and their products, fruits that were ripened on the stem in the sun, nuts, mild tea and the sweets of honey, sugar or molasses.

"He was well educated, highly cultivated, of extensive as well as varied information, and very studious. He spent considerable of his time in the patient and persistent conning of a number of very rare old books and ancient manuscripts which he seemed to be deciphering, translating or rewriting. These books and manuscripts, together with his own writings, he never showed to anyone; and he did not even mention them in his conversations with the family, except in the most casual way; and he always locked
them up carefully in a large, old-fashioned, cubically shaped, iron-bound, heavy, oaken chest, whenever he left his room, even for his meals. He took long and frequent walks alone, sat on the brows of the neighboring hills, or mused in the midst of the green and flower-gemmed meadows. He was fairly liberal--but in no way lavish--in spending his money, with which he was well supplied. He was a quiet, though a very genial and very interesting, member of the family; and be was seemingly at home upon any and every topic coming up in conversation. He was, in short, one whom everyone would notice and
respect, whom few would feel well acquainted with, and whom no one would presume to question concerning himself--as to whence he came, why he tarried, or whither he journeyed. "

quote continued and cited next post because of the new character restrictions on threads

By something more than a mere coincidence the committee appointed by the Colonial Congress to design a flag accepted an invitation to be guests, while in Cambridge, of the same family with which the Professor was staying. It was here that General Washington joined them for the purpose of deciding upon a fitting emblem. By the signs which passed between them it was evident that both General Washington and Doctor Franklin recognized the Professor, and by unanimous approval he was invited to become an active member of the committee. During the proceedings which followed, the Professor was
treated with the most profound respect and all of his suggestions immediately acted upon. He submitted a pattern which he considered symbolically appropriate for the new flag, and this was unhesitatingly accepted by the other six members of the committee, who voted that the arrangement suggested by the Professor be forthwith adopted. After the episode of the flag the Professor quietly vanished, and nothing further is known concerning him. Did General Washington and Doctor Franklin recognize the Professor as an emissary of the Mystery school which has so long controlled the political destinies of this planet? Benjamin Franklin was a philosopher and a Freemason--possibly a Rosicrucian initiate. He and the Marquis de Lafayette--also a man of mystery--constitute two of the most important links in the chain of circumstance that culminated in the establishment of the original thirteen American Colonies as a free and independent nation. Doctor Franklin's philosophic attainments are well attested in Poor Richard's Almanac, published by him for many years under the name of Richard Saunders. His interest in the cause of Freemasonry is also shown by his republication of Anderson's Constitutions of Freemasonry, a rare and much disputed work on the subject.

It was during the evening of July 4, 1776, that the second of these mysterious episodes occurred. In the old State House in Philadelphia a group of men were gathered for the momentous task of severing the last tie between the old country and the new. It was a grave moment and not a few of those present feared that their lives would be the forfeit for their audacity. In the midst of the debate a fierce voice rang out. The debaters stopped and turned to look upon the stranger. Who was this man who had suddenly appeared in their midst and transfixed them with his oratory? They had never seen him before,
none knew when he had entered, but his tall form and pale face filled them with awe. His voice ringing with a holy zeal, the stranger stirred them to their very souls. His closing words rang through the building: "God has given America to be free!" As the stranger sank into a chair exhausted, a wild enthusiasm burst forth. Name after name was placed upon the parchment: the Declaration of Independence was signed. But where was the man who had precipitated the accomplishment of this immortal task--who had lifted for a moment the veil from the eyes of the assemblage and revealed to them a part at least of the great purpose for which the new nation was conceived? He had disappeared, nor was he ever seen again or his identity established. This episode parallels others of a similar kind recorded by ancient historians attendant upon the founding of every new nation. Are they coincidences, or do they demonstrate that the divine wisdom of the ancient Mysteries still is present in the world, serving mankind as it did of old?

The Secret Teachings of All Ages, Manly P. Hall,pg CC>>

The symbols and spirits of the great work of the secret societies can easily be seen in the foundation and structure of the democratic republic of America. Even the layout and buildings of it’s capital city are filled with the symbols and signs of their great operation. Unfortunately, looking at the world today it is obvious that their great and illustrious operation has ground to a halt under the weight of political and corporate greed and corruption. But, just because the operation has been stopped, it does not mean that it has been dissolved, it can easily resume again when the lights of wisdom, reason and fraternity are restored to humanity and then, the generation of that day may finally see the completion of the great work of the ages in their lifetime.

The Great Seal of the United States as a Symbol of the Great Work

In an earlier thread, I tried to show the reader that the great seal of the united states, was in fact a symbolic representation of the great work of the ages, but I failed, so now I will let Manly P. Hall speak for me. Hopefully his words can sway the hearts and minds of the people since mine did not.

Here is represented the great pyramid of Gizah, composed of 13 rows of masonry, showing 72 stones. The pyramid is without a cap stone, and above its upper platform floats a triangle containing the All-Seeing Eye surrounded by rays of light.

This design was not pleasing to Professor Charles Eliot Norton, of Harvard; he summed up his displeasure in the following words. "The device adopted by Congress is practically incapable of effective treatment; it can hardly (however artistically treated by the designer) look otherwise than as a dull emblem of a Masonic Fraternity." The quotation is from The History of the Seal of the United States.

If incapable of artistic treatment, the great seal is susceptible of profound interpretation. The Pyramid of Gizah was believed by the ancient Egyptians to be the shrine tomb of the god Hermes, or Thoth, the personification of Universal Wisdom. No trace has ever been found of the cap of the great pyramid. A flat platform about thirty feet square gives no indication that this part of the structure was ever otherwise finished; and this is appropriate, as the Pyramid represents human society itself, imperfect and incomplete. The structure's ascending converging angles and faces represent the common aspiration of humankind; above floats the symbol of the esoteric orders, the radiant triangle with its all-seeing eye. The triangle itself is in the shape of the Greek letter D, the Delta, the first letter of the name of God--the divine part of nature completing the works of men. The 72 stones are the 72 arrangements of the Tetragrammaton, or the four-lettered name of God, in Hebrew. These four letters can be combined in 72 combinations, resulting in what is called the Shemhamforesh, which represents, in turn, the laws, powers, and energies of Nature by which the perfection of man is achieved.The Pyramid then is the Universal house, and above its unfinished apex is the radiant emblem of the Great Architect of the Universe.

There is a legend that in the lost Atlantis stood a great university in which originated most of the arts and sciences of the present race. The University was in the form of an immense pyramid with many galleries and corridors, and on the top was an observatory for the study of the stars. This temple to the sciences in the old Atlantis is shadowed forth in the seal of the new Atlantis. Was it the society of the unknown philosophers who scaled the new nation with the eternal emblems, that all the nations might know the purpose for which the new country had been founded ?

The Secret Destiny of America, chpt 18, pg 46>>

As you can see the obverse side of the great seal of the U. S., which is on every single one dollar bill in circulation, is a symbolic testament to the great work entrusted to humanity to complete. I tell you now sisters and brothers, one day through the lights of wisdom, reason and fraternity and using the tools of science and technology, humanity will build that better world, free of want, disease, old age and death, they will bring to fruition the that great work of the ancient philosophers and complete the Temple of God. Then all humanity will live in peace, harmony and fellowship and the true will of God will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Heaven and earth will be one.

Closing

In closing I would like to say that when I first came to ATS and began posting my threads in an attempt to stir the hearts and minds of the people and nudge them towards the completion of the great work, I was met with apathy more then anything else, and it is with that and also the fact that the secret societies have devolved into social clubs that do a little charity on the side, that I once again ask, “Where are the builders: why have the lights gone out of the temples?

Peace be with you
Eheieh Elohim, Anoo Elohim

Well I guess that about sez it all except for one thing
Second line.

Some things will never go away.
Many are still here,
Hiding in plain sight,
Like a Chameleon,
Changing it's skin to better blend,
With the environment it finds itself in.

"Then one more year becomes one more year..."

reply to post by themessengernevermatters

Closing

In closing I would like to say that when I first came to ATS and began posting my threads in an attempt to stir the hearts and minds of the people and nudge them towards the completion of the great work, I was met with apathy more then anything else, and it is with that and also the fact that the secret societies have devolved into social clubs that do a little charity on the side, that I once again ask, “Where are the builders: why have the lights gone out of the temples?

Peace be with you
Eheieh Elohim, Anoo Elohim

The great work can be summed up here:

Galatians 1:6-9

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

---Freemasonry is a perverted gospel of works based on the mixing of vain philosophies of men.

Colossians 2:8

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

John 1:14 ESV / 4 helpful votes

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

1 John 4:1 ESV / 3 helpful votes

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

1 Timothy 4
1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons...

6 If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters,[a] you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. 7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. 8 For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. 9 This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. 10 That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.

1 Cor 11

12 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.

reply to post by SuperiorEd


Nothing like a good slaughter to wake up to:

skepticsannotatedbible.com...

And from the same person who brought you the 10 Commandments:

bible.cc...


The deterrent with most (if not all) religion... God surely wouldn't need that many lines to get the point across.

reply to post by themessengernevermatters


The Epistle of Barnabas explains this clearly. The Masons have been busy with their great work building a temple by the works of men. The answer to this great work is, instead, the building of the temple in the heart by cutting away the stone and replacing it with a hear to flesh. If you wonder where all the Masons went, they have figured this out and are seeking the true Gospel. Love God and love your neighbor (even your enemies). Luke 10

Barnabas 16:1
Moreover I will tell you likewise concerning the temple, how these
wretched men being led astray set their hope on the building, and not
on their God that made them, as being a house of God.

Barnabas 16:2
For like the Gentiles almost they consecrated Him in the temple. But
what saith the Lord abolishing the temple? Learn ye. Who hath
measured the heaven with a span, or hath measured the earth with
his hand? Have not I, saith the Lord? The heaven is My throne and
the earth the footstool of My feet. What manner of house will ye
build for Me? Or what shall be my resting place? Ye perceive that
their hope is vain.

Barnabas 16:3
Furthermore He saith again; Behold they that pulled down this
temple themselves shall build it.

Barnabas 16:4
So it cometh to pass; for because they went to war it was pulled down
by their enemies. Now also the very servants of their enemies shall
build it up.

Barnabas 16:5
Again, it was revealed how the city and the temple and the people of
Israel should be betrayed. For the scripture saith; And it shall be
in the last days, that the Lord shall deliver up the sheep of the
pasture and the fold and the tower thereof to destruction. And it
came to pass as the Lord spake.

Barnabas 16:6
But let us enquire whether there be any temple of God. There is; in
the place where he himself undertakes to make and finish it. For it
is written And it shall come to pass, when the week is being
accomplished, the temple of God shall be built gloriously in the
name of the Lord.

Barnabas 16:7
I find then that there is a temple, How then shall it be built in
the name of the Lord? Understand ye. Before we believed on God, the
abode of our heart was corrupt and weak, a temple truly built by
hands; for it was full of idolatry and was a house of demons, because
we did whatsoever was contrary to God.

Barnabas 16:8
But it shall be built in the name of the Lord. Give heed then that
the temple of the Lord may be built gloriously.

Barnabas 16:9
How? Understand ye. By receiving the remission of our sins and
hoping on the Name we became new, created afresh from the beginning.
Wherefore God dwelleth truly in our habitation within us. How? The
word of his faith, the calling of his promise, the wisdom of the
ordinances, the commandments of the teaching, He Himself prophesying
in us, He Himself dwelling in us, opening for us who had been in
bondage unto death the door of the temple, which is the mouth, and
giving us repentance leadeth us to the incorruptible temple.

Barnabas 16:10
For he that desireth to be saved looketh not to the man, but to Him
that dwelleth and speaketh in him, being amazed at this that he has
never at any time heard these words from the mouth of the speaker,
nor himself ever desired to hear them. This is the spiritual temple
built up to the Lord.

reply to post by Americanist


Your post seeks to deny God by painting Him as the harbinger of atrocity. Let me untie your mind and point out the truth. You reference two passages.

1) Deut 21

Matthew Henry puts this into context clearly. LINK

2) The killing of women and boys must be in context to the entire narrative. To know for sure, you must consult the entire context of the story. It is clearly presented here. LINK Also realize this: "You must be born again" is not an option. We are them and they are us. Who are you as you judge God?

The Lord tells Moses to treat the Midianites as enemies and to kill them (Num 25:17), and to carry out the Lord's vengeance against them (Num 31:3).

One question to ask is whether Moses extended God's order to include the killing of the women and boys as well as the men? The soldiers certainly thought that only the men should be killed, they are rebuked by Moses, for not killing the woman. We should note that there is no mention that God disproved of Moses action, it is therefore probably reasonable to infer that God approved of Moses actions. It was the Lord's vengeance they were carrying out.

Even Jesus came to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God. We are living in the year of the Lord's favour, but there will be a day of vengeance in the future.

(Isa 61:2 NIV) to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,

Originally posted by SuperiorEd
reply to post by Americanist

 

Your post seeks to deny God by painting Him as the harbinger of atrocity. Let me untie your mind and point out the truth. You reference two passages.

1) Deut 21

Matthew Henry puts this into context clearly. LINK

2) The killing of women and boys must be in context to the entire narrative. To know for sure, you must consult the entire context of the story. It is clearly presented here. LINK Also realize this: "You must be born again" is not an option. We are them and they are us. Who are you as you judge God?

The Lord tells Moses to treat the Midianites as enemies and to kill them (Num 25:17), and to carry out the Lord's vengeance against them (Num 31:3).

One question to ask is whether Moses extended God's order to include the killing of the women and boys as well as the men? The soldiers certainly thought that only the men should be killed, they are rebuked by Moses, for not killing the woman. We should note that there is no mention that God disproved of Moses action, it is therefore probably reasonable to infer that God approved of Moses actions. It was the Lord's vengeance they were carrying out.

Even Jesus came to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God. We are living in the year of the Lord's favour, but there will be a day of vengeance in the future.

(Isa 61:2 NIV) to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn,

edit on 22-9-2011 by SuperiorEd because: (no reason given)

C'mon... You can do better.

Just as in the golden calf incident (Exo 32:35) the Lord judged his people with plague when they indulged in sexual immorality and became idolatrous. It is evident from verses 6 and 15 that a high ranking Midianite woman was also involved in this affair (Cozbi daughter of Zur, a tribal chief). What is significant about this incident is that 40 years earlier, as they came out of Egypt, the people bowed down to the golden calf. Here we find their children, 40 years later, just as they are about to enter the promised land, bowing down to foreign gods.

And in later years they put people to death for any ol' reason including devil marks (i.e. moles on the skin). All you've provided is an excuse to commit murder and violate children In The Name of The Father.

If you're referring to 'born again' as reincarnation, I might by that story. But as far as vengeance is concerned, save it for Westboro Baptist. They do a better job of twisting things than the Roman Catholic Church.

You're fighting an uphill battle with me. I don't judge God. I dispel the myths and faux pas of religion. If you want to get SeriousEd, we should turn our attention to the Nag Hammadi.

reply to post by Americanist

And in later years they put people to death for any ol' reason including devil marks (i.e. moles on the skin). All you've provided is an excuse to commit murder and violate children In The Name of The Father.

If you're referring to 'born again' as reincarnation, I might by that story. But as far as vengeance is concerned, save it for Westboro Baptist. They do a better job of twisting things than the Roman Catholic Church.

You're fighting an uphill battle with me. If you want to get SeriousEd, we should turn our attention to the Nag Hammadi.

God makes it clear in the Bible that He is in control of the destiny of men to show his glory to them. The judgments of God are just. The judgments of man (even in the name of God) are mostly unjust. Our walk in the wilderness is an education. We have been here before and divine justice is clearly stated as being born into other lives, times and places. The entire Bible is written to us and not them. There is no them in the past or future. We are here in the 'now' of each created moment of time. LINK We can only reflect our past forward to our future. Temporal transition is an illusion of our education.

We are being show the way to live in the kingdom of God. If we learn the lessons and find a love for God, then we can take our exodus from this life into the promised land of God's kingdom. Deuteronomy is the guide for the soul of man from here to there. The entire Bible uses parable and allegory to point our minds by symbol to truth. The paradox that is hard to understand is this: Parable and allegory actually happened.

Originally posted by SuperiorEd

God makes it clear in the Bible that He is in control of the destiny of men to show his glory to them. The judgments of God are just. The judgments of man (even in the name of God) are mostly unjust. Our walk in the wilderness is an education. We have been here before and divine justice is clearly stated as being born into other lives, times and places. The entire Bible is written to us and not them. There is no them in the past or future. We are here in the 'now' of each created moment of time.

If this post isn't a great plug for Richard Dawkins' "The God Delusion", then I don't know what is.