by Midnight Freemasons Contributor
James E Frey, 32°
Part 3 of 3: The Word Revealed
In a Secret Vault, deep beneath the ruins of the
Temple there is a treasure. This treasure is not of gold, nor embedded with
jewels, it is a word that no mortal tongue can speak, spoken only in silence
and flame. It is a treasure of knowledge, the true name of God. This truth was
hidden away from those unworthy to know it. For this word belongs to the
master, which had fallen, this word hidden from those who have been taken into
captivity.
After King Cyrus, founder of the Persian Empire,
conquered Babylon and by means of a mysterious dreams he frees the captives to
return back and rebuild their temple. This was achieved through the actions of
a Prince Mason known as Zerubabel, who would lead his people back to the
Promised Land. The Knight Masons, York, and Scottish Rites have degrees, which
deal with the period in time in which Zerubabel led his people back to the
Promised Land and the rebuilding the Temple. During the rebuilding the
Samaritans kept attacking the builders causing them to labor with a trowel in
one hand and a sword in the other. It was not until Zerubabel traveled to
Persia to gain favor with King Darius, the new King of Persia after Cyrus, to
send an order out to protect and aid in the building of the Temple. Zerubabel
is challenged to a contest of philosophy in which he outwitted the wisest
satraps from the furthest reaches of the empire winning favor with the King
gaining his support for the construction efforts. (Ezra 6: 3-13)
It is soon after this time Zerubabel leads an
excavation effort to rebuild the temple and upon clearing the ruins of the old
Temple then discover a secret vault. Upon digging deeper they discover the lost
word and revere its glory. In Royal Arch Masonry the Name is composed of the
Hebrew Letters Yod Heh Vau Heh within a triangle encased by a secret codex to
preserve its secrets from the uninitiated.
To
seek the name of Divinity is to understand the ineffable. As Masons we strive
as men of different religions, races, social statuses, to unite in the search
for what unites us, our inner divinity. Upon receiving the word in this
Pinnacle point of Masonic teaching, the seeker must pass through the veils of
space and time itself. The Passing of the veils was first adopted in Scottish
Royal Arch Masonry but was soon spread as a strong experience for the Royal
Arch Mason who must pass through the veils of the temple. It is pointed as the
way the Tabernacle in the wilderness was situated with different compartments.
But this is rather symbolic of the nature of High Priesthood. The High Priest
would have to purify himself with ritualistic ceremony before beholding the Ark
of the Covenant in the Sanctum Sanctorum. These ceremonies involved the Priest
passing through the various furniture of the temple.
The First veil is engraved
with an Ox, which is representative of the Table of Shrew Bread, which the
Priest would partake of. This is also representative of the element of Earth as
found in part of the Cherubim found in Ezekiel’s vision. (Ezekiel 1) This also
has a astrological correspondence with Taurus the bull. The Second Veil that of a man, which
represented the Laver of Brass where the priest would ceremonially bath and
purify himself. This represents the water element within the Cherubim, and has
a strong astrological correspondence with Aquarius the water barer. The Third
Veil is the Eagle and is associated with the Altar of incense the Priest would
make a sacrifice on and burn the remains to smoke that would rise to the
heavens. This is related to the Air element within the Cherubim and is
associated with Scorpio the risen Eagle. The
Forth veil bears the Lion representative of the Twelve Branch Candle Stick the
Priest would meditate upon. This veil is associated with the Fire element of
the Cherubim and is associated astrologically with Leo the Lion.
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Each emblem is also representative of
a dominant tribe of Israel, such as the Tweleve Branch Candle stick represents
the Twelve Tribes of Israel. But astrologically this can be interpreted as the
four astrological seasons and the twelve zodiacs. It is interesting to note
that the what appeared on Mizram’s tablet taken from the ruin’s of Enoch’s
Stone Pillar is the rule “As Above, So Below” which means that the material
world is a reflection of the heavens primarily the astrological alignments to
express an ancient connection to the divine. This spiritual journey of the
Priest was to show his spiritual advancement to be worthy and balanced enough
to behold the presence of God to pray for the sins of his people.
“But only the high
priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without
blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed
in ignorance.” (Hebrews 9:7)
Now the Priest stood before the Sanctum
Sanctorum, to view with all connection to God the ineffable name and the Ark of
the Covenant in its fullest glory. This process was used as a metaphor to show
the divine connection we have through Jesus death this is representative to the
spiritual purity of the Christ to die for our sins just as the High Priest
would purify himself and pray for the sins of his people. “the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where
Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf.” (Hebrews 6:19-20)
To behold the name of
God in the climax of the Royal Arch is to follow in the steps of Christ, to
balance one’s true self between heaven and earth, the material elements and the
spiritual elements. As Christ is both man and God so must the Seeker of the
word recognize his inner divinity is a connect to God.
“For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of
the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence.
Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest
enters the Most Holy Place” (Hebrews 9:24-26)
The unity the Seeker discovers is represented by the cherubim atop
the Ark of the Covenant no long segmented into an ox, man, eagle, and Lion but
unified and represented as one angelic being which represents spiritual ether.
The Cherubim guard the Ark and the Word just as the Cherubim first guarded the
entrance to the Garden of Eden the Pathway to the Tree of Life, which has a
strong connection to Kabalistic principals. This unity of the spiritual and the
material is a great awakening within the Seeker of the word, clearly he now he
recognizes the unity of nature with God, now he sees the beauty of the living
arch stretching from the earth to the heavens.
James E Frey, 32° is
a Past Sovereign Prince and current librarian of Valley of Danville
AASR. Founder of the R.E.B.I.S Research Society he sits on two Blue
Lodge Education committees as well as a guest lecturer on Occultism and
Esoteric studies in masonry. He is also a Member of the Oak Lawn York
Rite, Medinah Shriners, and Golden Dawn Collegium Spiritu Sancti. He
also works as a counselor with emotionally and behaviorally challenged
children.
