Los Rituales de la Francmasonería Inglesa y la diferencia entre la Alto Consejo Masonico Madre del Mundo y la Gran Logia Unida de Inglaterra

Los dos rituales principales utilizados por la Gran Logia Unida de Inglaterra son los de Emulación y Estabilidad. Ambos rituales llegaron a Inglaterra a través de las logias Escocesas e Irlandesas que formaron la llamada Gran Logia de los “Antients” y practicaban una Francmasonería de origen Escocesa e Irlandesa, que son tradiciones totalmente diferentes de la masonería tradicional simbólica practicada desde tiempos inmemoriales en Inglaterra.
Las logias Inglesas, posterior a la unión del 27 de Diciembre de 1813 fueron obligadas a abandonar sus rituales tradicionales que eran mas hermosos, significativos y simbólicamente mas correctos que los rituales básicos y de no tanta exactitud que los rituales provenientes de Irlandeses y Escoceses.
En realidad esto es visto casi como una parodia de la historia de la Orden, sabiendo que la masonería en las Islas británicas se originó en Inglaterra como se puede apreciar en el Manuscrito Regius de 1390. Es en Inglaterra que la Masonería tiene su inicio, y es desde Inglaterra hacia Irlanda y Escocia que la Masonería se expandió.

ESTABILIDAD

Los rituales llamados Estabilidad fueron recibidos a través de la Logia de Investigación Estabilidad (aprobados por la Logia Estabilidad hoy Nº 217 y antiguamente perteneciente a la Gran Logia de los llamados “Antients”), que tenia entre sus 17 fundadores a 16 hermanos pertenecientes a los llamados “Antients” un año después que la Logia Reconciliación termino su labor. Tres miembros de esta Logia estaban entre sus fundadores y se afirma que enseñaron las ceremonias practicadas en ella. En total 8 miembros de la Logia Reconciliación fueron miembros de la Logia Estabilidad de Instrucción en varias ocasiones.

EMULACION

La Logia Emulación fue fundada seis años después de Estabilidad, en 1823, bajo los auspicios de una Logia en Londres de los llamados “Antients”, hoy Real Logia York de Perseverancia. Nº 7, pero en 1830 pasó a la jurisdicción de la Logia Unión Nº 256, de los “Modernos”. De los 21 fundadores, 10 pertenecieron al cuerpo de los “Antients”.

RITUALES PRACTICADOS POR LA GRAN LOGIA REGULAR DE INGLATERRA

La Gran Logia Regular de Inglaterra auspicia la práctica de los siguientes rituales basados en las enseñanzas de origen ingles de la francmasonería:

Rito Inglés (1730-40)
Rito Ingles Antiguo (1730-40)
Rito Clermont (1745)

La Gran Logia Regular de Inglaterra alienta una Gran Logia multi-ritualística donde se practican entre otros los siguientes ritos: Rito Escocés Rectificado (1783), (Significando que fue rectificado a la tradición inglesa mientras mantenía su influencia caballeresca), el Rito Antiguo y Primitivo, y varios otros ritos que cumplan con los requerimientos de la Francmasonería Inglesa Original.

Craft Degrees practiced under the MHC

The Craft is worked under the authority of the Masonic High Council .

The Craft is organized under several Symbolic Rites and Ceremonies that each Lodge works:

- Ancient York Rite

- Ancient English Rite

- Scottish Rectified Rite
- Ancient and Accepted Rite
- Ancient and Primitive Rite
- Schroeder Rite
- Swedish Rite
- Adoniram Rite
- Filosophic Rite
- And others Proper Masonic Craft Rites

Mark Mason

The degrees that the MHC confers and has jurisdiction over are:

Craft Freemasonry

1 - Entered Apprentice

2 - Fellow Craft

Complementary Ceremonies to the FC Degree Mark Man, Mark Mason

MARK MASON

The qualification for joining Mark is that of being a Master Mason.
The ceremony is called The ceremony of Advancement and chronologically follows that of the Fellowcraft. In fact it is often referred to as the completion of The Second Degree.
As in the Craft the meetings are held in a Lodge and the ceremony incorporates two ceremonies.
The candidate is first acknowledged as a Mark Man and then Advanced to the degree of Mark Master Mason.
The Degree relates to a period in the building of the Temple at Jerusalem prior to the Death of Hiram Abiff.
The Regalia of the Ceremony is an Apron and Jewel.

3 - Master Mason

Complementary ceremonies to the Master Mason Degree given in a Lodge are:
Installed or Past Master

The Ancient English Rite

The Original and Ancient English Rite. This is a complete and beautiful Masonic Rite its manuscripts have been preserved in the libraries of European Aristocracy. The Rite is a proper and complete Masonic Craft system of Freemasonry as practiced by Ancient English Freemasonry. The Rite is one of the most symbolically correct Rituals in use by Craft Freemasonry Lodges. At the moment it is only practiced by the Regular Grand Lodge of England ( 1705 - 2005 ) and all Grand Lodges recognized by the Masonic High Council of England and Wales the Mother Masonic High Council of the World.

Schroeder’s Rite

Frederic-Louis Schroeder (1744-1816), Director of the Municipal Theatre of Hamburg and Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Hamburg, spent almost twenty years in shaping the final form of the Rite to which his name is attached. Allergic to the chivaleresque side which was characterising the symbolic aspects of most of the Superior Grades, he reformed the ceremonies of his Obedience with the idea of greater simplicity, in reinstalling the use of the ancient English Rite and in taking into consideration only the first three degrees. The Schroeder System was the most democratic of all Rites practised in Germany before World War II, which made quite naturally its success. At the moment, it is practised by the Grand Lodge of Ancient Masons Free and Accepted of Germany, by the Grand Lodge of Austria and by some Lodges of the Grand Lodge of Switzerland Alpina.

The Ancient and Accepted Rite

In 1732, a Lodge was founded in Bordeaux by three English Naval Officers and was given the name of The English Lodge. In 1766, it applied for and received a Warrant from the Grand Lodge of England, eventually becoming No. 204 on their Register. It is now La Loge Anglaise (204), No. 2 on the Register of the Grande Loge de France.
From this Lodge sprang several others, at least one of which worked some, probably not more than fourteen, of the ‘higher degrees’ that were created in France in the second quarter of the eighteenth century. The Mother Lodge confined itself exclusively to the three craft degrees and was hostile to the newly-invented ones.

The Scottish Rite Rectified

The origins of this Rite go back to the System of Strict Observance, founded in 1756 by Baron von Hund, initiated in Paris in 1754 in the Superior Grades Chapter of Clermont by Charles-Edouard Stuart. This Rite invoked of course, as most of the Systems of the Superior Grades at that time, the Temple filiations.

On the death of Baron von Hund in 1776, the System of Strict Observance, constituted in Scottish Directories, was growing and was gong to define its objectives during the Conventions in Lyon, 1778, and in Wilhelmsbad, 1782, under the presidency of its new Grand Master, the Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick. Since then, the System took the name of Scottish Rite Rectified and is composed of Lodges of St. Andrew, on the one hand, corresponding to the Scottish Master Grade, and the interior Order, on the other hand, comprising of “Ecuyers Novices” and the charitable Chevaliers of the Holy City (CBCS). A Grand Priory organised into “Commanderies” and Prefectures, directed the whole system.

The Scottish Rite Rectified is practised in England, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal and Spain.

NOTE: Concerning the so called Emulation Workings

Created in 1813 by Peter Gilkes. It gets its name from the Lodge of “Emulation of Improvement” which met for the first time in October 1823 in Freemason’s Hall in London. The Emulation Workings are a weak and a distant form of what a Masonic Rite should be.

THE FOUNDATIONS OF REGULAR CRAFT RITUAL

In 1740 throughout Europe was circulating a Masonic oath written on a pamphlet invoking that the Freemason will protect and preserve the Traditions, Uses and Costumes of the Craft.

In order to preserve and avoid losing the original meaning and to prevent any further deviation and other foreign innovations from taking place, forced upon us by those not knowing the Traditions of the Craft, its uses and customs of Ancient Freemasonry, the Masonic High Council the Mother High Council issues the following Craft Document under the name and title of “The Foundations of Regular Craft Ritual”, to be used as the guidelines of Ancient and Regular Craft Masonry constituting the basic requirements for the perpetuation of Regular Craft Freemasonry.

1. All Craft Freemasonry Rituals had their origin in England.

2. That there be no debarment from membership because of nationality, of race, of colour, of sectarian or political belief; that a belief in the G.A.O.T.U. and His revealed will shall be an essential qualification for membership.

3. That all initiates shall take their Obligation on or in full view of the open Volume of Sacred Law, by which is meant the revelation from above which is binding on the conscience of the particular individual who is being initiated. At all times the book of Kings must be present as this is where the record of the building of Solomon’s Temple is first given and constitutes the base of the Craft legend.

4. That the Grand Lodge shall have sovereign jurisdiction over the Lodges under its control, i.e., that it shall be a responsible, independent, self-governing organisation with sole and undisputed authority over the Craft or Symbolic Degrees (Entered Apprentice, Fellow Craft, and Master Mason) within its jurisdiction; and shall not in any way be subject to, or divide such authority with, a Supreme Council or other Power claiming any control or supervision over those degrees.

4.1 That preserves, works and performs the complement ceremonies of the Mark Man, Mark Mason to the Fellow Craft Degree and Installed or Past Master Ceremonies to the Master Mason Degree, of which all this workings or ceremonies of Ancient Craft freemasonry must be used in complement to all Regular Craft Rituals of EA, FC and MM.

4.2 That no Master Mason shall be allowed to take the Chair of the WM of a Regular Craft Lodge if he has not been installed.

5. In accordance with earlier Craft English ritual the three Lesser or Movable Lights of the Lodge being the Sun, First Quarter Moon and the Worshipful Master shall always be on display when the Grand Lodge or its constituent Lodges are at work; to light man to, at, and from their work, the chief of these being the Worshipful Master.

6. That the three Great Lights of Freemasonry shall always be on display when the Grand Lodge or its constituent Lodges are at work: the Square, Compasses and the chief of these being the Volume of Sacred Law, these being the fixed lights of the Lodge.

7. As per the usage of the Grand Lodge of London (1717-1723) the two Wardens are situated in the West of the Lodge, and represent the two pillars at the entrance of King Solomon’s Temple, and the Brethren must always enter the Lodge between this two pillars, that the Masonic Delta with or without the all seeing eye must be placed above the altar or table of the Worshipful Master, (no other altar or extra altar exists in Craft Freemasonry).
Only wax candles are used on the altar or desk of the WM, SW, JW, Secretary, Orator, and around the Tracing Board of the Lodge.
The Sword a Masonic symbol its use must be preserved and maintained.
The Tracing Board must always be placed in its traditional place the centre of the Lodge.

8. That the principles of the Ancient Charges, Customs, and Usages of the Craft shall be accordingly observed.

8.1 That the Grand Officers and Officers of a Craft Lodge must be elected every year.

9. Master Masons Aprons can also be painted depicting the symbols of the Craft Freemasonry.

10. That a Grand Lodge must be multi-ritualistic.

10.1 That a Regular Craft Ritual has to have a Opening an Initiation and a Closing;
that it must make allusion to the G.A.O.T.U.;
that it must have at least the book of Kings must be present as this is where the record of the building of Solomon’s Temple is first given and constitutes the base of the Craft legend;
that the Legend is of the Craft Degrees is that of Hiram Abif or Adoniram and of no other.

11. That all Freemasons must believe in the Fatherhood of God, Brotherhood of Man and the immortality of the Spirit.

11.1 That the Ancient custom of Masonic Songs in Lodge should be encouraged and be maintained has it serves to further strength the Spirit of the Fraternity and deepen the Bonds of Brotherly Love among all Masons.

12. That the discussion of religion and politics within the Lodge shall be prohibited.

These Masonic principles constitute the Foundations of Regular Craft Ritual.

Lastly, this our Regulations shall be Recorded in our Registry, to show posterity how much we desire to revive the Ancient Craft upon true Masonical principles.

www.rgle.org.uk

Gran Logia Regular York de México

Despues de la renuncia a la Jurisdicción de la York Grand Lodge of Mexico, el 24 de Junio del 2006, 3 Respetables Logias Simbolicas ubicadas en la ciudad de Cuernavaca, Morelos, México se constituyen la Muy Respetable Gran Logia del Rito York en Mexico Antiguos, Libres y Aceptados Masones, trabajando el Rito York, con jurisdicción en todos los Estados Unidos Mexicanos y como idioma oficial el español, en esa misma Gran Asamblea, una cuarta Logia solicita autorización para constituirse en la ciudad del Distrito Federal.

Desde el año 2007, la Gran Logia Regular de Inglaterra bajo la dirección, asesoramiento y apoyo del RH Rui Gabirro, esta Gran Potencia y nuestra Gran Logia iniciaron una serie de platicas e intercambio de documentación, los cuales finalizarón con el reconocimiento oficial de nuestra Gran Logia, y de esta manera la Gran Logia Regular de Inglaterra otorga su autorización para la constitución del Alto Consejo Masónico de México, y el reconocimiento de la ahora renombrada Gran Logia Regular York de México.

En el mes de febrero del 2008, despues de haberse constituido el Alto Consejo Masónico de México, auspiciado por el Alto Consejo Madre de Inglaterra y Gales; reconoce a esta Gran Logia, misma que se reconstituye y renombra como M. R. Gran Logia Regular York de México, Antigua y Honorable Fraternidad de Libres y Aceptados Masones, teniendo su jurisdicción territorial todos los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, y acepta ser multiritualista, esto es, sus Logias Simbolicas presentes y futuras, podrán adoptar el Rito Masónico Regular aceptado por ellos y avalado por el Alto Consejo Masónico de México.