Manual of the Lodge/Ancient Ceremonies of the Order/Dedication of Freemasons' Halls

by Albert Gallatin Mackey

SECTION VII.

DEDICATION OF FREEMASONS' HALLS.

N the day appointed for the celebration of the ceremony of dedication, the brethren are convened in a convenient room, adjoining to the place where the ceremony is to be performed, and the Grand Lodge is opened in ample form in the first degree. The order of procession is read by the Grand Secretary, and a general charge respecting propriety of behavior given by the Grand Master. The Grand Lodge then moves to the Hall which is to be dedicated, in the following form of procession:

Tiler, with drawn sword;
Two Deacons, with rods;
Two Standards (Faith and Hope);

Twelve Fellow Crafts, two and two;
Tiler, with drawn sword;
Entered Apprentices, two and two;
Fellow Crafts, two and two;
Master Masons, two and two;
Tiler, with drawn sword;
Two Deacons, with rods;
Two Standards (Charity and Wisdom);
Secretaries of Lodges, with rolls, two and two;
Treasurers of Lodges, with their badges of office, two and two;
Junior Wardens of Lodges, with pillars, two and two;
Senior Wardens of Lodges, with pillars, two and two;
Masters of Lodges, with hirams, two and two;
Past Masters of Lodges, two and two;
Masons of such of the higher degrees as are recognized by the Grand Lodge, in the form of their respective Orders;
Tiler, with drawn sword;
Two Deacons, with rods;
Two Standards (Strength and Beauty);
Grand Tiler, with drawn sword;
Grand Stewards, with white staves;
Music;
A Brother, carrying a gold pitcher, containing corn;
Two Brethren, with silver pitchers, containing oil and wine;
A Brother, carrying one of the Orders;
Four Brethren, carrying the Lodge, covered with white silk;
Four Brethren, carrying the other four Orders, two and two;
Architect, with square, level, and plumb;
Grand Pursuivant, with sword of state;
Grand Secretary, with a green bag;
Grand Treasurer, with his staff;
Bible, Square, and Compasses, on a crimson velvet cushion, carried by an aged Mason, supported by two Deacons, with their rods;
Grand Chaplain and Orator;
Past Grand Wardens;
Past Deputy Grand Masters;
Past Grand Masters;
Chief Magistrate and civil Officers of the place;
Junior Grand Deacons, with rods;
Grand Wardens;
Deputy Grand Master;
The Constitutions, carried on a crimson velvet cushion, by the Master of the oldest Lodge;
Grand Master;
Senior Grand Deacons, with rods;
Two Tilers, with swords drawn, close the procession.

Every officer must wear the jewel of his office. The Grand Marshal attends on horseback to regulate the procession and preserve order. In all Masonic processions, the brethren open to the right and left, as far as the Grand Tiler, and the Grand officers and regalia pass through—the brethren being uncovered.

When the procession reaches the Grand Master's chair, the Grand officers are separately proclaimed by the Grand Marshal, according to rank, as they arrive at that station, and when the Grand Master is proclaimed, a grand piece of music is performed, while the procession is made three times round the Hall. The Lodge is then placed in the center, and the Grand Master having taken the chair, under a canopy of state, the Grand officers and the Masters and Wardens of the Lodges, etc., repair to the places previously prepared for their reception. The five Orders are arranged near the Lodge, and the gold and silver pitchers, with the corn, wine, and oil, are placed upon it. Near it stands a pedestal, with the Bible open, and the square and compasses laid thereon, and upon another pedestal, the Book of Constitutions. These arrangements being made, the following Anthem, or some other appropriate one, is sung:

Hail, universal Lord,
By heaven and earth adore.
All hail, great God!
Before thy throne we bend,
To us thy grace extend,
And to our prayer attend;
All hail, great God!

O, hear our prayer to-day,
Turn not thy face away,
O Lord our God!
Heaven, thy dread dwelling-plat
Can not contain thy grace;
Remember now our race,
O Lord our God!

God of our fathers, hear,
And to our cry be near,
Jehovah, God!
The heavens eternal bow,
Forgive in mercy now
Thy suppliants here, O thou
Jehovah, God!

To thee our hearts do draw,
On them, O write thy law,
Our Saviour God!
When in this Lodge we're mo,
And at thine altar set,
O, do not us forget,
Our Saviour God!

The Master of the Lodge to which the Hall to be dedicated belongs, then rises, and approaching the East addresses the Grand Master as follows:

The brethren of . . . . . . Lodge, being animated with a desire to promote the honor and interest of the craft, have erected a Masonic Hall for their convenience and accommodation. They are desirous that the same should be examined by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge, and if it should meet their approbation, that it should be solemnly dedicated to Masonic purposes agreeably to ancient form and usage.

The Architect then addresses the Grand Master as follows, presenting to him the Square, Level, and Plumb:

Most Worshipful, having been intrusted with the superintendence and management of the workmen employed in the construction of this edifice, and having, according to the best of my ability, accomplished the task assigned me, I now return my thanks for the honor of this appointment, and beg leave to surrender up the implements which were committed to my care, when the foundation of this fabric was laid; humbly hoping, that the exertions which have been made on this occasion, will be crowned with your approbation, and that of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge.

To which the Grand Master makes the following reply:

Brother Architect, the skill and fidelity displayed in the execution of the trust reposed in you, at the commencement of this undertaking, have secured the entire approbation of the Grand Lodge; and they sincerely pray that this edifice may continue a lasting monument of the taste, spirit, and liberality of its founders.

The Deputy Grand Master then rises, and says:

Most Worshipful, the hall in which we are now assembled, and the plan upon which it has been constructed, having met with your approbation, it is the desire of the fraternity that it should now be dedicated, according to ancient form and usage.

The Lodge is then uncovered, and a procession is made around it in the following form, during which solemn music is played:

Grand Pursuivant;
Two Stewards, with staves;
A Past Master, with a light;
A Past Master, with Bible, Square, and Compasses on a velvet cushion;
Two Past Masters, each with a light;
Grand Secretary and Treasurer;
Grand Junior Warden, with pitcher of corn;
Grand Senior Warden, with pitcher of wine;
Deputy Grand Master, with pitcher of oil;
Grand Master;
Two Deacons, with rods.

When the Grand Muster arrives at the East, the procession halts, the music is silent, and the Grand Chaplain makes the following

CONSECRATION PRAYER.

Almighty and ever glorious and gracious Lord God, Creator of all things, and Governor of everything thou hast made, mercifully look upon thy servants, now assembled in thy name and in thy presence, and bless and prosper all our works begun, continued, and ended in thee. Graciously bestow upon us Wisdom, in all our doings; Strength of mind in all our difficulties, and the Beauty of harmony and holiness in all our communications and work. Let Faith be the foundation of our Hope, and Charity the fruit of our obedience to thy revealed will.

O thou preserver of men! graciously enable us now to dedicate this house which we have erected, to the honor and glory of thy name, and mercifully be pleased to accept this service at our hands.

May all who shall be lawfully appointed to rule herein according to our Constitutions, be under thy special guidance and protection, and faithfully observe and fulfill all their obligations to thee and to the Lodge.

May all who come within these consecrated walls, have but one heart and one mind, to love, to honor, to fear, and to obey thee, as thy majesty and unbounded goodness claim; and to love one another, as thou hast loved us. May every discordant passion be here banished from our bosom. May we here meet in thy presence as a band of brethren, who were created by the same Almighty Parent, are daily sustained by the same beneficent hand, and are traveling the same road to the gates of death. May we here have thy Holy Word always present to our mind, and religion, and virtue, love, harmony, and peaceful joy reigning triumphant in our hearts.

May all the proper work of our institution that may be done in this house be such as thy wisdom may approve and thy goodness prosper. And finally, graciously be pleased, O thou Sovereign Architect of the Universe, to bless the craft wheresoever dispersed, and make them true and faithful to thee, to then neighbor, and to themselves. And when the time of our labor is drawing near to an end, and the pillar of our strength is declining to the ground, graciously enable us to pass through the valley of the shadow of death, supported by thy rod and thy staff, to those mansions beyond the skies where love, and peace, and joy forever reign before thy throne.—Amen.

Response by the Brethren.—Glory be to God on high, on earth peace, good-will toward men.

The Junior Grand Warden then presents the vessel of corn to the Grand Master, who pours it upon the Lodge, saying:

In the name of the Supreme and Eternal God, the Grand Architect of heaven and earth, to whom be all honor and glory, I dedicate this hall to Freemasonry.

The public grand honors are then given.

A piece of music is then performed, and the second procession is made round the Lodge. When the Grand Master arrives at the East, the music ceases, and the Senior Grand Warden presents him with the vessel of wine, which he sprinkles over the Lodge, saying:

In the name of the Supreme and Eternal God, the Grand Architect of heaven and earth, to whom be all honor and glory, I dedicate this hall to Virtue.

The public grand honors are then given.

The musisc is resumed, and the third procession is made round the Lodge. When the Grand Master arrives at the East, the music ceases, and the Deputy Grand Master presents him with the vessel of oil, which he sprinkles over the Lodge, saying:

In the name of the Supreme and Eternal God, the Grand Architect of heaven and earth, to whom be all honor and glory, I dedicate this hall to Universal Benevolence.

The public grand honors are then given.

The Grand Chaplain, standing before the Lodge, then makes the following

INVOCATION.

O Lord God, there is no God like unto thee, in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants, who walk before thee with all their hearts.

Let all the people of the earth know that the Lord is God; and that there is none else. Let all the people of the earth know thy Name, and fear thee. Let all the people know that this house is built and consecrated to thy name.

But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens can not contain thee; how much less this house that we have built!

Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O Lord my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer of thy servant, and thy people,

That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place consecrated to thy name.

And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people; and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place; and when thou hearest, forgive. For they be thy people, and thine inheritance. For thou didst separate them from among all the people of the earth to be thine inheritance.

Response by the Brethren.—The Lord is gracious, and his mercy endureth forever.

The Grand Chaplain then pronounces the following

BENEDICTION.

Blessed be the Lord that hath given rest unto his people. The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fathers; let him not leave us, nor forsake us: that he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he has commanded.

Response.—Glory be to God on high, on earth peace, good-will toward men.

The Lodge is then covered and the grand honors green, when the Grand Master retires to his chair.

The following Anthem is then sung:

When Solomon, with wond'rous skill,
A. temple did prepare,
Israel with zeal his courts did fill,
And God was honor'd there.

Celestial rays of glorious light,
The sacred walls contain'd;
The pure refulgence, day and night,
With awful force remain'd.

O may thy presence, gracious Lord,
In our assembly be;
Enlighten us to know thy Word,
That we may honor Thee.

And when the final trump shall sound,
To judge the world of sin,
Within thy courts may we be found,
Eternally til'd in.

An Address is then delivered, by some Brother appointed for the occasion, after which the following ode is sung:

ODE.^[1]

At dawn of creation, when bright beams of morning
Broke through the regions of clmos and night,
And angels rejoic'd at the glory adorning
The framework of nature with order and light;
Soon as the brilliant ray,
Symbol of endless day,
Suffus'd with its blush the earth and the sea,
Then on the new-born man
Beam'd the grand mystic plan
Of Masonry's Orders, accepted and free.

From caves of old ocean, whose deep rolling fountain
Gush where foundations of earth darkly lie,
Grand colums rise into ice-cover'd mountains,
To prop up the arch of the star spangled sky.
His was the shrine of love,
Who, from His throne above,
Ancient of days! gave the sovereign decree;
And from the corner-stone
Were all the virtues shown
Of Masonry's Orders, accepted and free.

A cherub there came of beauty in vision,
Whom mortals have call'd by Faith's holy name;
Beside her next stood Hope, pure and elysian,
As ever appear'd in the first dream of fame;
And whilst immortals there,
Charity, gracious fair!
Daughter of heaven! burnt incense to thee;
Swell'd anthems glorious!
Triumph victorious!
Of Masonry's Orders, accepted and free.

And here have we built, as a shelter from danger,
A temple to friendship and virtue combin'd,
Where the orphan, the widow, and destitute stranger,
A Mason's compassion and favor may find.
Far from deceit and art,
Freely with hand and heart,
Welceme the brother, whoever he be!
Here may the pilgrim guest
Find the sweet home of rest,
Of Masonry's Orders, accepted and free.

May the Grand Master whom, all things possessing,
The heaven of heavens can never contain,
Crown this good work with His favor and blessing,
And Charity's fabric in mercy sustain!
Till as the courses rise,
Up to the radiant skies,
In that Grand Lodge may all mankind agree;
And in the reign of peace,
Only with time shall cease
Great Masonry's Orders, accepted and free.

A collection is then made by the Grand Stewards, for the relief of distressed Masons, their widows and orphans. The grand procession is resumed, and after marching three times round the hall, with the Lodge, as at entrance, during which a grand piece of music is performed, the procession returns to the place whence it set out, where the laws of the Order are rehearsed, and the Grand Lodge is closed in ample form.

Note—When the distance is such that the Grand Master with his Grand officers can not conveniently attend, he may depute some skillful Past Master to represent him, who may call other worthy brethren to his assistance, and the form of proxy therefor is the same as that contained on page 124, for tin Constitution of a Lodge, with the necessary verbal alterations.

1. This ode, written by Brother St. John Phillips, M.D., was substituted by, the Grand Lodge of South Carolinain 1841, on the occasion of the dedication of Masonic Hall in Charleston, for the one formerly used.