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From the Grand Lodge No. 1 Manuscript

LK600

LK600

Premium Member
Excerpt from the Grand Lodge No.1 Manuscript (1583)

EVERY man that is a Mason take right good heed to these Charges, and if any man find himself guilty of any of them, that he amend himself before God. And in particular, you that are to be charged, take good heed to keep these Charges right well, for it is of great peril and great danger for a man to forswear himself upon a Book.
1. - The first Charge is that you shall be true men to God and the Holy Church, and that you use neither error nor heresy in your own understanding, and be discreet and wise men in each thing.
2. - You shall be true liegemen to the King of England without any treason or any falsehood; and if you know of any that you amend it privately, if you can, or else warn the King and his Council of it by declaring it to his officers.
3. - You shall be true to one another, that is to say to every Mason of the Craft of Masonry who are allowed Masons, and do unto them as you would they should do unto you.
4. - You shall keep truly all the counsels of your fellows whether [expressed] in the Lodge or in the Chamber, and all other counsels, that ought to be kept by the way of Masonry.
5. - Also, that no Mason shall be a thief, or otherwise, as far as he may know.
6. - Also, you shall be true to each other, and to the Lord, or Master, that you serve; and truly see to his profit and advantage.
7. - And also, you shall call Masons your Brethren or fellows, and use no foul name.
8. - And also, you shall not take your fellows’s wife in villainy, nor desire ungodly his daughter, nor his servant, nor put him to any discredit.
9. - And also, that you pay truly for your meat and drink wherever you go to board, and also that you do no wrong in the place where you go boarding whereby the Craft might be slandered.
THESE are the Charges in general that concern every Mason, which have to kept by both Masters and fellows.

I have no reason to post this other than I was looking over it again, and I find comfort in it. So... I thought I would share. ;)
 
Bloke

Bloke

Premium Member
You might also be interested in this

The Grand Lodge No. 1 Manuscript was written in 1583 on a scroll of parchment – 5.08 x 109.5 in. long. France and England were at the time going through profound religious changes. In France, Henri III (1551-1589), the last of the Valois Kings, was on the throne while throughout most of Europe, Calvinist Protestant and Catholic forces were at war over their theological differences. In England, the Virgin Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603), was determined the religious warfare would not break out in her country. The last of the Tudors, strong-willed and uncompromising, she worked hard to create a Church of England, which she described as the via media – the middle way.

Despite many attempts at destabilization and outright conquest by the then Pope and foreign Catholic powers, England remained relatively peaceful and stable by comparison to Europe. There must be no doubt about it, religion, in the end, had little effect on the course of work and life of the Masons and stonecutters. They were involved on both sides of the Channel in an architectural revival, abandoning religious building of Gothic style for the construction of sumptuous princely and aristocratic homes.

The document - The Grand Lodge Manuscript, so named because it was acquired and preserved by the United Grand Lodge of England, is today considered as the third oldest of the English Old Charges, after the Regius (1390), and Cooke Manuscripts (1410). As in the other recognized Charges, especially those that belong to its family, it includes a definition of the seven Liberal Sciences, an evocation of the Craft history from the land of Egypt to that of England, and finally a statement of Regulations which must be strictly observed by Masons.

Modern transcription into Modern English from Early English.
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From http://theoldcharges.com/chapter-12.html

And http://theoldcharges.com/summary.html

Always remember, "historians" and myth makers often have a barrow to push, especially trying to prove the "antient" nature of our Craft and you often need to be skeptical about claims and tenuous links made.
 
LK600

LK600

Premium Member
Bloke said:
Always remember, "historians" and myth makers often have a barrow to push, especially trying to prove the "antient" nature of our Craft and you often need to be skeptical about claims and tenuous links made.
Click to expand...

Absolutely! I (have learned) to take most things eluding to the history of Freemasonry with a grain of salt, but whether it's found to be true or not, I must admit I thoroughly enjoy both none the less. The history of Freemasonry is highly important to me, but the mystique is also important imo to! :)

Thank you for the links above!
 
Warrior1256

Warrior1256

Site Benefactor
LK600 said:
I (have learned) to take most things eluding to the history of Freemasonry with a grain of salt,
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Kind of like when a Brother is trying to make his point he will say "It's in the Masonic Constitution". More often than not it isn't, lol.
 
LK600

LK600

Premium Member
Warrior1256 said:
Kind of like when a Brother is trying to make his point he will say "It's in the Masonic Constitution". More often than not it isn't, lol.
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Yes sir lol. I am also learning that these documents hold different levels of importance depending who your talking to. I must admit, this has been a great surprise to me.
 
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