Dimensions of the Ark

"And Bezaleel made the ark of shittim wood:  two cubits and a half was the length of it, and a cubit and a half the breadth of it, and a cubit and a half the height of it."

Exodus, 37:1

Intellectual Perception

"Let no one who hears us speak of the perceptive faculty of the intellect imagine that by this we mean that the glory of God appears to man visibly."

St Diadochos

Our Work Is Never Done

"We will turn from the reflections and memories of the day, to the stern duties of the future. The times are propitious; our opportunities are golden; our work is sublime. Grateful for the victories of the past, proud of the privileges of the present, and hopeful of an inviting future, let us go forth to win fresh laurels."

Proceedings of the One Hundredth Anniversary of the Granting of Warrant 459 to African Lodge, at Boston, Massachusetts, Monday, September 29,1884. Boston, 1885, pp. 23-27.

Prince Hall Founder of American Masonry

"The primary distinction for Prince Hall was that he was the Founder of Masonry, not by copying and imitating white American Masonry but by the application to and the approval of British Masonry in the period of the American Revolution when the rights of men were being tested. American masons had not invited nor considered black Americans for admission to their lodges, nor assisted in the separate organization of them."

Charles H. Wesley, Prince Hall Life and Legacy

Emblems and Symbols

"It has been found in all ages that emblems and symbols, expressing great truths by a few simple strokes appeal to the mind more strongly and are better remembered than words."

Sir John A. Cockburn, Introduction to "Freemasonry and the Ancient Gods" by JSM Ward.

Clothed in White

He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment;

Revelation 3:5

The duty of the Mason

"The duty of the Mason is to endeavor to make man think better of his neighbor; to quiet, instead of aggravating difficulties; to bring together those who are severed or estranged; to keep friends from becoming foes, and to persuade foes to become friends. To do this, he must needs control his own passions, and be not rash and hasty, nor swift to take offence, nor easy to be angered."

Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma

Visualised Religion

I do not endorse the following statement. However, I am collecting quotes on the subject in a study of eminent Masonic authors. This quote is taken from the introduction of the book "Freemasonry and the Ancient Gods," by J. S. M. Ward. The Introduction is written by the Hon. Sir John A Cockburn.

"The code of morality taught by Christianity can hardly be distinguished from that of Masonry. The new commandment of Brotherly Love is common to both. The difference lies not so much in the precepts as in the manner in which they are conveyed. Other cults communicate their lessons through the medium of written or spoken words. Masonry does so by means of symbols. It may be described as visualized religion."

Two Landmarks

"No man can be a Mason unless he believes in God and a future life; for these are the bases on all religions, as ancient as man himself; and these are two of the ancient landmarks of our order." JSM Ward, Freemasonry and the Ancient Gods

The Threshing Floor

The symbolism of the threshing floor deserves a mention. This is a place where wheat is separated from the chaff. The motif of fertile harvest, seed and bounty certainly adds to the significance that surrounds and envelops these verses. Redemption also is preceded by separation of good and evil. In our world, good and evil are inextricably intermixed. We might say that our reality is neither night nor day but a twilight, a time when light and darkness function together, when shadows appear solid and the real unreal. It is the task of man to separate light and darkness, to extract the good and join it to its ‘root’, so it can be redeemed. Then the evil will of itself perish and the good will be transformed into Godliness, as wheat becomes bread, as Boaz and Ruth become progenitors of the Messianic line. In Kabbalah this is known as Birur, or clarification, the first condition of Redemption.

Source: http://www.torah.org/learning/ruth/class27.html

Notre Dame Cathedral