Morning journal and courier., 1882-09-25
auurIta! arto Gonrter.
MOntay Morning. Sept. 25, 1882.
Freena SOnry.

at the George Street M. E. Church-A | Large Audience Ira Attendance-An
 Eloquent Discourse.
 Rev. William P. Corbit, pastor of the George street M E. church, preached a very able discourse on "Freemasonry" at his church last evening. The church was crowd ed to overhowing, many who could not ob- tain seats being obliged to stand in the aisles. 1
 After the usual Introductory exercises the | preacher, as the basis of his remarks, took | the words found in Matthew, 25th chapter. l 35th and Seth verses: ''For I was hum gered and ye gave me meat. l was thirsty 1 and ye gave me drink. I was stranger and ye took me in." ''Naked and ye clothed me- I sick and ye visited me. was in pris- on and ye came unto me-
 In his opening remarks the preacher said rise before you to night, my friends, with complex feelings. I @ minister of the Lord Jesus Christ, called by him to preach his gospel, and would not offer sentiment to disgrace the ministry the religion I profess. There are some things we admire because we know them, and there are cause we do not know them This rule applies to the order of Freemasons. One part of the world wonders how anyone can see anything beautiful or useful in Ma sorry, while the other part wonder why every body cannot see everything in it to love and admire. Sin and sorrow and suffering are the dividing forces of mankind. Now what I understand of Masonry after thirty years of study is that it is designed to unite the whole brotherhood of man. A Mason is & builder. How beautiful is the world in all it's proportions. As the Lord God is ''asun and a shield.' so it is the business of Mason ry to uphold Gods goodness and spread the brotherhood of man throughout the world. Look at your bodies, my brethren, how per feet they formed Now Masonry claim the futurity of intellect way down the ! past centuries, and Tubal Cain the first | great architect of the early ages. Our b. ssoth- CTS hammer was heard long before the great | architects of Egypt built their monuments. \ It has been said that Masonry has claimed to be more perfect than the gospel of Jesus Christ and this We pronounce false. The ! language of your father and mine is, come | and let us reason together. Christianity not \ only provides for life immortal, yet with all \ her power backed up by God the Father, God | the Son and God the Holy Ghost she often ! has to sit down and mourn because the charm of voice does not draw all men unto | her. Masonry professes to be 8 charitable ! this God given book of life. When 8 when he dies he is buried and l then the widow and orphans are visited and ! wept over by the brotherhood. Then hear I my anti Masonic brother say you have bad ! men among you. say let him that is with ! out sin cast the first stone. Judas sold the ! Saviour for thirty pieces ofksilver. There is no institution in the world so careful about receiving members as the Masons. Some times we are imposed upon, and when we get ! an unworthy member we sigh and groan to disown him. We defy the production of single person who WAS ever made worse as a father, husband, son or lover by becom ! ing Mason. From the three steps of Ma sonry 1t is only little way into the holy of holies. The objection that we have got bad l men among us applies to all institutions, not even excepting the church of God. We hear again that we are secret society, but ! lodges and chapters and councils and com. manderies are all open Cat proper times). Masons are all abroad in the community and embrace all classes. So when you hear that Masonry is a secret society you tell what is | partially true and part that is the ''other thing" God himself has his secrets. You ask him how it is possible to have three per sons in one Godhead and he won't tell you. Jesus Christ had his secrets and so with re- ligion. may stand here and tell you the 1 transcendent beauty of the religion of Jesus Christ, but what do you know about it until you have embraced it? Jesus must touch his blind eye before he can see. Again, is not
 
 | patient, secret society? And the lawyer who
 would reveal the secrets of his client or the physician who would reveal the
 ssni'i0a arum%sa o5 his out patient TSpa so~n ! Now give to you the secrets of Ma l sorry and it would be like bank president giving to the world the secrets of his banking l institution. In regard to the password I say
 it is, it is, it is, "never to be spoken outside I of the lodge" They talk to us about the thS <o1-a R,,k Fokh hao
 when he could swear by other swore by
 himself. l tell you, ladies and gentlemen,
 that there is nothing in Masonry to lead one
 away from his duty to his church or his fam fly. I tell you Masonry rejects vice in every ! form and put it where you will it will be
 true to God and true to the country. It has
 been said that Masonry is opposed to Chris
 tianity, but say that is false in every par
 ticular. Should 8 man love God supremely
 and love his neighbor as himself ? Then
 Masonry teaches all that. Her glory is in all
 lands of her noble deeds. Who goes
 to the grief stricken widow and comforts | her and her orphan children? Those per
 haps whom you have slandered all your life.
 Go burn down every Masonic lodge; let the
 gavel no more be heard let the sun no more
 shine in the east yet our enemies have done
 70 more than gnaw file. Let this earth dis
 solve; let ruin drive her ploughshare once
 more through creation, yet Masonry, hand
 in hand with Christianity, will flourish and
 shine through the ages, In con,
 clusion the preacher addressed himself
 to the ladies and said to them that because
 they were not admitted not because they
 were not worthy and well qualified, but it
 was on the ground of expediency and noth-
 ing else
 To you, Master Mason and way up to the
 thirty third degree. say walk humbly with
 God. Masonry has often walked without
 hardly a place for the sole of her
 foot but she has come out of
 the fire unharmed. Let the tongue of sian
 der wag, but angels will smile. Be true to
 your country and to God Masonry is grand
 and will do everything but regenerate mans
 human nature, and this is left to Jesus Christ.
 Except man be born again he cannot see
 the kingdom of God" May God bless you, l brothers and ali in this conprepatien