Morning journal and courier., 1893-12-26
GRAND ENCAmPmKNT, X. T.


The Response OF the Grand Master to |
tho Christmas Toast Drank to Him
Yesterday.
The following Is the full text of the re-.
sponse of Grand Master Hugh McCurdy of
the grand encsmpment of Knights Templar,
U.S.A., to the toast drank to him at noon,
eastern standard time, on Christmas:
HEADQUARTERS OF THE GRAND
MASTER OF KNIGHTS TEMPLAR,U o. S.A.,
CoRuNNA, Mich, Dec. 25, 1898.
To all Knights Templar-Grssting:
heaven for the privilege which He has
vouchsafed to us in permitting us to again
assemble on this gladstone day around our
mystic triangle, and with hearts strung In
sweetest harmony with the new life of this
gracious day, we thank you for the toast
you offer us-"To our Most Eminent
Grand Master MoCurdy: A hundred thou
sand Knights Templar send greetings, wish
ing him a Merry Christmas, with peace,
health and happiness"
Christmas, the day of days, the birthday
Of Him whose coming gave new meaning
to the words of your Christmas greeting,
peace, health and happiness. OF each of
these, and of every word dear to mans
heart His life must forever stand as the
true exponent. He defined words by Hv-
ing them. To know His definitions and to
live them, this alone is life-this alone ID
templarism.
To the true Templar, the incarnation is
the centre and heart of all worship, obed-
fence, morality; words which are only
the names for peace, health and happiness.
For Him at Bethlehem's cradle peace, health
and happiness had their birth-there every
thine hok old In, ond-avaPv-
thing that was new had its beginning.
Thus Knights Templar must ever give to
Christmas day with its song of peace and
good will to men q sovereign place. Ina
manuel, God with us, this ia the essence of
peace, health and happiness-this the
magic word which opsns wide the doors
to the grandest possibilities of human ma
ture. God with us as man with heart
human In its sympathy and brotherhood.
This new presence signifed new knowledge,
new hopes, new powers, new laws.
To us the Christ child was born to en-
able each to reach the perfection for which
he was made. My fratsrs, is this great
truth to us doctrine, a tradition, phil
osophy, or Ia 1t life as His life vast Are
We so learning this truth that our man
hood is developing into q complete self
The more like Him we become, the more
ourselves are we. We are only truly manly
when we share the completeness of His
character.
From q hundred thousand Knights Tenn
plar, to whom the story of the cradle, the
Cross, the sepuloher and the Mount of As
cension Is as familiar as dear household
words-from q hundred thousand manly
men comes to me once again the Christ
mas greeting of peace, health and hsppi-
ness.
It is the life men Iva that gives value to
their wishes and words. In this your good
wish for me, it Ia not you who speak, 1t is
the manger at Bethlehem speaking of life
larger, nobler, more divine, of character
kingly, of service filled with its gifts of
gold, frank-incenss and myrrh. A good
wish has valus only as it embodies the
principles wrapped In the manger. It has
thus it's highest value when coming from
men, who in their earthly pilgrimage, are
guided by the star in the east, as were the
wise men of the Orient, bringing their best
offering to the Christ-chlld. A life of
peace, health and happiness Is the best
wish that man can offer for his brother
man. Such life is continual Christmas
Knight Templsr to live. That this is your
aim Sir Knights, is to me your best wish
for my Merry Christmas, peace, health and
happiness.
| "Ihe greatest gift hero leaves his race
Is to have been hero"
The best wish for a brothers peace and
happiness is mans own peaceful, health
full, happy life.
t'Tis that compes the elements aud wrIngs
A human music from the Indifferent air."
The best offering that the son of mar
made for man was His peaceful, happy
healtbful life. His was the most peace
full, most healthful, happiest life eve
lived on earth. To live such life, Sil
Knights, is to WELD your swords in de-
fence of the Christian religion. If ever,
man who wears the Christian armor viii
60 forth from the cradle at Bethlehem
thus to plead the cause of the Christ. child
l whose love steals into the heart of man q,
the balm of flowers into the pulses of
summers evening, we shall soon see tn
enemies of mans peace, health and happi
ness put to flight. 1t is only under tn
benign influence of such warfare that me,
are to beat their swords into plowshares
their spears into pruning hooks and to lear,
not only we'll wishing, but we'll doing is
colossal virtue, an age in which
cit is the heart, and not the brain,
That to the highest doth attain
Like the pilgrim in Dante, who climbed
up mountain on whose sides there was
mysterious music, ever growing sweeter
And thus, as We 60 on through life greetip
one another each Christmas day, we learl
more and more the truth that the kingdom
over which the heart is king, il an owe
expanding kingdom-the greatest king
dom upon earth. Earth's greatest gospe
Is mans love for his brother man. Neithe
ocean nor mountain, nor lapse of time cal
separate man from his fellows. Let u
hasten to invade this kingdom, and maste
1t. 1t is a goodly land As we go up tt
possess 1t, following in the footsteps of on
Divine Lord from His cradle to the Mount O
His Ascension, We shall, as faithful pill
grims, hear that angel song of peace an
good will to men ever growing sweete,
until at last we reach the height of al
heights, the hope of all hopes, the joy o
all joys-the Supreme God, in whose en-
pire of boundless good will to men n
faithful human heart can cherish a wieh o
peace, health and happiness too blessed t,
be true.
There above noise and danger,
Sweet peace sits crowned with smiles,
And one born in Manager
Commands the beauteous files
Sir Knights, have the honor to propos
this toast and ask you to participate.
To the valiant Sir Knights of the nine
teenth century, one hundred thousan,
strong: Noble sons of illustrious anc sstors
whose knightly lives shed increasing lustr
upon glorious past and illume the pref
emit with the inspiring hope of a brighte
future. HUGH McCURDY,
Grand Master.
ISUNDAv SCHOOI cRurnu arunu