The Old Past Master communicates truths and wisdom in simple, obvious ways we can all understand. Claudy’s young Masons present problems, sometimes a sort of straw man, and his Old Past Master proceeds to explain how to think about these issues while keeping the Masonic principles of faith, hope and charity in the forefront of the conversation. Especially important is that the lessons are never communicated in a harsh or pedantic style, but one full of warmth and brotherly love, communicated in a conversational tone.

The Old Past Master

Literature & Fiction

Claudy, Carl H.

Literary

Broken Column Press

Edgar Allan Poe’s poems are some of the most fascinating in the canon of American literature. Such classics as “The Raven” and “Annabel Lee” are taught in schools all over the country and are loved by readers for the demonstrated mastery of rhyme and meter. However, this mastery is simply a vehicle by which the reader is lured into committing part of his subconscious mind for the percolation of Poe’s works. The more they gnaw at your cortex, the more deeply entrenched they become. “The Raven” and “Annabel Lee” are but two of Poe’s most popular poems. This volume contains 54 of Poe's best-known poems and is a wonderful addition to any library.

The Raven and Other Poems

POE, EDGAR ALLAN

History & Criticism

A collection of Edgar Allan Poe's short stories.

The Tell-Tale Heart And Other Stories

United States

Roughing It Is the story of the Mark Twain’s trip to Nevada to join his brother, who had been named secretary of the territory. Twain writes: “My brother had just been appointed Secretary of Nevada Territory—an office of such majesty that it concentrated in itself the duties and dignities of Treasurer, Comptroller, Secretary of State, and Acting Governor in the Governor's absence. A salary of eighteen hundred dollars a year and the title of 'Mr. Secretary,' gave to the great position an air of wild and imposing grandeur. I was young and ignorant, and I envied my brother.” Although this story is based on his real experiences traveling as a young man, Twain makes good use of exaggeration and other rhetorical devices to relate his tales and keep them relevant to the reader, as well as developing them into singular pieces of a larger whole. His skill at relating stories is never in doubt, and it is no wonder that Twain is quoted as having said, “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.”

Roughing It

TWAIN,MARK

History

Washington’s Masonic correspondence as found among the Washington papers in the Manuscript department of the Library of Congress, affords an insight of the great esteem in which Washington held the Masonic Fraternity, of which since his early days he had been an honored member.  This is further shown by his great courtesy to the Brethren, in his replies to their addresses, no matter whether they were from a Grand or Subordinate Lodge. In this collection, were also found some of the original drafts of Washington’s replies, together with copies of the various masonic addresses and letters to him.

Washington's Masonic Correspondence

Sachse, Julius F.

Americas

Shakespeare’s sonnets are among the best-known and most-loved poems in the English canon. Shakespeare excels at describing the subtleties of human emotion and tying together a string of familiar sentiments that we can all relate to, regardless of our backgrounds. He speaks to the universality of love and longing, revealing us all as subject to the temperate and inclement nature of desire.

Shakespeare's Sonnets

Shakespeare., William

Dramas & Plays

The Regius Poem, also known as the Halliwell Manuscript, is a long series of rhyming couplets that make up what is thought to be the earliest of the Old Charges of Masonry. It was discovered in the British Museum by James O. Halliwell in 1838. While sometimes thought to have been written during the reign of King Athelstan (924-940 A.D.), the document actually dates to the late 14th century. Whether it is a derivative work based on a separate manuscript from Athelstan’s time is unknown. However, the Regius Poem is the cornerstone of the Legend of York, which is important in Masonry even today. This manuscript also outlines how Masons should act toward each other and toward the civil magistrate. It also talks about the history and philosophy of the order of Masons. Any Mason interested in the history of the Art should read this document and see how it compares to the various rules their grand lodges lay out for government of a lodge.

The Regius Poem or Halliwell Manuscript

Halliwell, James O.

Poetry

The Dhammapada is one of the great books of the Buddha’s teachings. The 423 passages are taken from the various teachings or suttas and represent the core teachings and principles of the Buddha. The collection was assembled probably in the third to fifth centuries CE and contains a number of verses that are organized by category. The passages are taken from longer works – various Buddhist parables – and represent the very core of a specific lesson. This is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in exploring Buddhism and learning more about the practice, but it also enumerates enough great lessons to keep the practiced adherent engaged. The small lessons are derived from the original collection of teachings the Buddha delivered. In this way, The Dhammapada serves as a handy compendium of the Buddha’s teachings, all the good stuff in one package.

The Dhammapada

Muller, F.Max

The Songs of Innocence and of Experience, and the poems from the Rossetti manuscript, are the poems of a man with a profound interest in human emotions, and a profound knowledge of them. The emotions are presented in an extremely simplified, abstract form. This form is one illustration of the eternal struggle of art against education, of the literary artist against the continuous deterioration of language.

Songs of Innocence and of Experience

BLAKE, William

The Symbolism of Freemasonry

Mackey, Albert Gallatin

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