Court of the Dead

by John H. Yingling, MPS

Some men are baffled and discom-
forted by a Masonic ritual drama set in
the afterworld where a man is examined
and judged by ancient Egyptian Gods
and Goddesses who consider his be-
havior on earth and decide his final
destiny. They are uneasy and question
why a modern religious man would
turn backward and engage in such an
antiquated religious practice. "What
have we to do with a god with a birds
head and goddesses who marry their
brother?", they ask.

Early in a man's Masonic initiation he
is informed that Freemasonry is a beau-
tiful system of morals that are veiled in
allegory. That is to say great moral les-
sons are concealed in the ritual dramas.

When enacted they are superfical
scenes, not intended to be understood
literally, but to parallel and illustrate a
deeper more profound truth. As the
drama progresses some otherwise inex-
plicable spiritual truth becomes better
felt and understood.

Sacred Literature contains many ex-
amples of symbols, parables, metaphors
and allegories used to illustrate things of
the spirit. For example the 23rd Psalm.
The psalmist is not giving a lecture on
shepherd and sheep. It is poetry of un-
surpassable beauty and poignancy con-
taining allusions that resonate through
the being of the reader so he ex-
periences a joy and trust in God to a
degree not possible in other forms of
communication. In the Revelations of
St. John the Lord says "Behold, I stand
at the door and knock. If any man will
hear my voice and open the door I will
come into him and will sup with him
and he with me." Of course He is not
standing at a door knocking nor prepar-
ing to dine, but who can fail to sense
the abiding love and patience of God
waiting for a joyous meeting and com-
munion with a penitent man?

In this Masonic degree there is no at-
tempt made to express or encourage a
belief in some ancient form of religion,
but in the pageantry and solemnity of
that theater the need for self examina-
tion and the justice of answering for
ones behavior will permeate the feelings
of a man and hopefully alter his behavior.

In the words of the Venerable Presi-
dent in the Hall of Equity "We should
not confer this degree upon one who we
suspected would after passing through it
need an explanation of or a commen-
tary upon its ceremonies. It is wholly in
the lessons inculcate that the value of a
degree consists. The pomp and show
are but to give impressiveness to the
teaching."

Concerning the use of ancient Egyp-
tian concepts of divine justice to incul-
cate morality:

Albert Pike(1809-1891), an antiquar-
ian scholar, was one of the major figures
in the development of Scottish Rite
ritual. In the last paragraph of the pre-
face to his book Morals and Dogrna he
wrote "Of course the ancient theo-
sophic and philosophic speculations are
not embodied as part of the doctrine of
the Rite; but because it is of interest
and profit to know what the Ancient
Intellect thought upon these subjects,
and because nothing so conclusively
proves the radical differences between
our human and animal natures as the
capacity of the human mind to enter-
tain such speculations in regard to itself
and the Deity. But as to these opinions
themselves, we may say in the words of
the learned Canonist Ludovicus Gomez
[Opinions according to the truth of the
times become old and die. After a while
different opinions contrary to the above
truth arise and then arrive at matu-
rity.]". 1

The Scottish Rite ritual of today is
Pikes revision of an earlier one. That
ritual is now in the process of revision
again. It is the task of such great artists
in each succeeding age to restate in a
contemporary form truths that are
themselves universal and eternal.

Pike made an exhaustive inquiry into
the speculations of the sages, mystics
and prophets before the time of our era
in the relatively isolated areas of Egypt,
Mesopotamia, India, The Levant, Per-
sia and Greece. He believed that those
ancient truths run through the develop-
ment of doctrine and concept like a con-
tinuous thread in a garment. He did
not believe the more ancient the more
ignorant or that the statues or other
representations of Deity, so idolized by
illiterate masses, were intended by the
priesthood as objects of worship them-
selves, but were merely symbols of a
divine creative force.

The elements of mathematics dis-
covered by Pythagoras, Eudoxus, and
Euclid are still found in text books.
Modern philosophers stand on the plat-
form built by Aristotle and Plato in
order to leap out into new speculative
adventures. Mainstream Judaism,
Christianity and Islam who seek to cre-
ate lives suffused with holiness remain
wedded to the approach to holiness ex-
pressed in the visions of ancient Hebrew
prophets and lawgivers. The wisdom of
Egyptian priests, so sought after by other
learned men of the time, contained con-
cepts of divine justice, the need for self
examination, life after death and the
final judgement, all of which have been
incorporated and developed further by
later religions. All of these revelations,
discoveries and concepts are interwoven
into the fabric of our culture and cannot
be pulled out thread by thread without
damage to the cloth.

Even now there is a great flurry of
religious doctrinal development that is
taking into consideration recent histori-
cal and archeological discoveries, rea-
son, natural law, questions about the
gender of deity and sexual orientation
that may alter doctrines and present old
truths in a new form.

It seems appropriate for us to acknow-
ledge in Masonic ritual the contribu-
tions of those seminal men who laid the
groundwork for the ethical concepts
leading to moral behavior. It is said
that observing tradition is giving your
honored ancestors a vote. How can we
forget the patrimony settled on us and
which we are now spending.

After a Freemason has:
1. received all the degrees of all the
Rites

2. memorized all the proficiencies,
charges, and lectures
3. played all the roles in all the dramas
4. gone through all the chairs
5. received all the honors

6. formed an opinion on the origin of
speculative Masonry
7. developed expertise in the tech
niques of using stacked and stored in-
formation

He is still left with a legacy of opportu-
nity. The opportunity to peer behind
the obscure symbols and allegories to
reveal those universal and eternal
truths he can implement in his daily
living to become a man for all seasons.

Note:

1. This English translation of the
Latin quotation by Ludovicus Gomez
was rendered by

Jules Malachi Brady S.J.

Professor of Philosophy

Rockhurst College

Kansas City, Missouri

