PERFECT MISTRESS 4

 
Dit rituaal is een amerikaanse vertaling van het franse rituaal, zoals dat halverwege de
negentiende eeuw gebruikt werd..

Although Adoptive Masonry is complete in three degrees, yet it has been found necessary after
the model of the Craft to establish a Chapter, consisting of two degrees, and which takes rank
with the Senate of the A. and P. Rite. These ceremonies are never worked but are conferred by
communication after the usual interval.
Decoration, Clothing, etc. The hangings are of crimson cloth, the throne dais seat of the same
with gold lace and fringe. The Chapter represents the interior of the Tabernacle which Moses
constructed in the Wilderness. Below and a little in front of the throne are two twisted columns.
That on the side of Africa represents the column of fire which led the Israelites by night. It is
hollow and made lumin6us. The column on the side of America represents the cloud which
protected the Israelites during the day. These columns are so constructed as to appear to be lost
at the ceiling in waves of light, an image of the heavens, and the summits appear to be joined by
an arched rainbow under which is the dais. At one angle is the Altar of Firs, the Emblem of
Truth, upon which are several antique vases; in the middle is a brazier of perfume and before it
a plate to receive the offerings. Upon a bench at the side are a mallet and chisel as in the third
degree, but instead of a heart is a tablet with these words thereon Amana (Ernenoth) Hur,
Cana, or the Greek word Eullos (Truth, Liberty, Zeal, Prudence). On the floor is the Tableau or
Painting on which is: 1. Pharoahs dream of the seven fat and seven lean kine. 2. Joseph
reconciled to his brethren. 3. Several men with trowels to cut the earth for brick. 4. Moses
exposed in a basket with Pharoah’s daughter drawing him out. 5. (in front) Moses and Aaron at
the head of the Israelites at the time when the Egyptian army was submerged in the Red Sea.
The clothing of Wor. Master and Senior Warden is the dress of a High Priest. The Brothers and
Sisters as in the Third Degree. The Sisters have each a wand. The jewel is a golden mallet. Each
Sister receives a ring on which is engraved the S.W. The garters are of white taffeta, or blue
satin, upon which is embroidered a heart in gold with the device upon one “Virtue unites us” on
the other “Heaven recompenses us”.
 
 
OPENING
 
The Wor. Master represents Moses. Wor. Mistress his wife Sephorah (Hebrew Teophorahavis,
daughter of Raguel or Jethro, priest of the Midianites). The Sen. Warden represents
Aaron (Heb. Aaron, Montanus, Son of Amron, Son of Cabath, Son of Levi and brother of
Moses).
High Priest: What hour is it?
Sen. Warden: It is sunrise.
High Priest: What signifies that hour?
Sen. Warden: The hour when Moses entered the Tabernacle of Alliance to place there Gods
commandments to the Israelites.
High Priest: It is in allusion to it that we now assemble. Inform the Brothers and Sisters that the
Chapter is open. Knocks 6 - 6 and 1; Wardens repeat and declare Chapter open.
 
 
RECEPTION
 
Mistress of Ceremonies, goes to the Candidate and conducts her to the Chamber of Reflection;
upon the table is a plate over which a perforated vase is turned containing a bird. The Mistress
of Ceremonies questions the Candidate on the preceding degrees, and impresses upon her the
necessity of practising the virtues which she has learnt and then says: My Sister, this vase which
you see encloses a profound secret and is a sacred deposit confided to you by the Perfected, in
order to prove your discretion and the high estimation formed of you. I leave it in your charge,
but must impress upon you, that the least appearance of curiosity as to its contents will render
you liable to forfeit the august degree to which you aspire.
After this, the candidate is left to herself and if she resist; the templation to lift the vase, the
initiation proceeds, but if she yields she is reprimanded and the Degree is refused to her, until
by patience and virtue she show; she is worthy but if continuing, the Mistress of Ceremonies
knocks 6 - 6 and 1. Reports are again given within.
Sen. Warden: At the door of the Chapter is a Mistress who seeks admission to the august degree
of a Perfect Mistress.
High Priest: Has she fulfilled the necessary duties, and is she worthy to enter the Chapter?
Sen. Warden: Very Venerable, our respected Sister, by her zeal and virtues has passed the last
proofs and makes her demand to be admitted to the Degree of Perfection.
The High Priest orders her admission after the Jun. Warden has taken the place and vase at the
door.
High Priest: As I am but the first among my equals, this request can only be complied with by
the assent of the Brothers and Sisters. If you are willing to perfect thc Aspirant you will make
the accustomed acclamation. (All 1 – 22 – 1 – 22). Let the Aspirant be admitted. The Assembly
put the left knee on the floor and the Aspirant is introduced without any bandage, in the ordinary
manner. The High Priest and Priestess have a wand in their left hands and the brethren a sword
in the right. The orator passes a polished iron chain over the arms of the Aspirant and gives the
end to the Sen. Warden.
Sen. Warden to Aspirant: Will you give the proof that you have obtained the Degree of
Mistress? She gives the sign, grip and word.
Sen. Warden: Very Venerable, our Sister has finally satisfied us that she has, by happy
inspiration, come to Masonic initiation, tasted the mysterious fruit, labored in the Ark, mounted
the Mystic Ladder, and now her final desire is to join the Brothers and Sisters who are entering
the Land of Promise.
High Priest: My Brothers, we cannot refuse her request with. out injustice, equip the Sister for
the voyage and cause her to cross the sea. The Senior Warden gives her a wand, the High Priest
strikes 5 equal blows: At the 1st, all rise, 2nd, the Brothers hold up their swords; 3rd, lower the
points horizontally; 4th, all raise their wands; 5th, Cross them over their swords, forming an
arch under which the Aspirant advances. The Sen. Warden now leads her to the Altar, where the
High Priest cause; her to kneel and detach the chain.
High Priest: My dear Sister, it is time to break your bonds and liberate you from slavery, for the
engagement which you come here to contract demands entire liberty. The errors and prejudices
of your Masonic career have disappeared, before the clear light which our symbols have shed
upon them even as the light of truth vanquishes the fog of falsehood and error. You will now
take the solemn Obligation of this august degree. Repeat your name and surname and say after
me. I. ..., promise and swear before the Creator of the Universe, preserver of all beings, and the
avenger of crime, in presence of my Brothers and Sisters, never to reveal the grade of Perfection
now conferred on me, to any Apprentice, Companion or Mistress; to practice the prescribed
virtues and shun those proscribed under the penalty of being regarded by virtuous Masons as a
perjurer who merits indignation and contempt. So be it. (Raises her). My dear Sister, the first
step which you ought to take amongst us, should be one of benevolence, raise the vase and enjoy
the pleasures which all virtuous souls feel in giving happiness. (She does so and the bird is set
free.) You behold that liberty is a blessing which the Creator of the Universe has made common
to all beings, and that nothing can be deprived of it without extreme injustice, and that the
strong, who makes slaves of the weak, merit the indignation of mankind. Conduct the Sister to
the Sacred Altar of Truth.
The orator conducts the Aspirant to the Altar of Fire or Truth and addresses her: My dear
Sister, I lead you to the Altar of Truth, that you may learn the grand and inviolable secret of
Masonry. It is to practice in silence the duties of religion; a virtuous heart should be sensible and
compassionate; there are many unfortunates on the earth, and these are our Friends, our
Companions, our Brothers, whatever may be their country or their form of worship; May I hope
that they will find in you succour and a friend, and that you will give of ybur goods to the poor,
for he who giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord.
The Hospitaller offers the plate for alms, and if the Aspirant puts in any considerable sum, the
orator returns it, saying: My dear Sister, we content ourselves now with this assurance of your
sentiments, and leave you to put them in practice, whenever you find the occasion; such benefits
given from the heart are as pure as the sacred fire which you see on the altar.
Then the Senior Warden takes the mallet and giving 5 blows on the box, opens it, shows the
words on the tablet and explains them to the Aspirant. He then conducts her to the High Priest
saying: The Aspirant has inspired a portion of the Sacred Flame from the Altar of Truth.
High Priest: My dear Sister, it is with extreme pleasure that I admit you to the august degree
which your wisdom hath merited, receive these marks of our favor, they are the prizes of
virtue. (Insignia) The name of Perfect Mistress which we give you in. this degree teaches that
we ought never to neglect our duty. Receive also these bands, they are the gage of our eternal
alliance. (Garters). The sign by which we recognize you is that which God gave to Moses upon
Mount Horeb. (The signs are explained). You will now conduct the Sister to the Officers that
she may make herself known as a Perfect Mistress. (Done as before and she is placed at left of
High Priest).
 
 
LECTURE
 
Q.: Are you perfected?
A.: Guided by the Eternal I am delivered from slavery.
Q.: What do you understand by slavery?
A.: The captivity in which many people lanquish, symbolised by the Israelites in Egypt. True
Masons, in this world, look upon themselves as in a strange land; the profane groan in captivity
and aspire not after their true country.
Q.: Subdued as you are by this weak body, how can you say that you are free?
A.: Masonry encloses lessons of wisdom and religion. Initiation into our mysteries has dazzled
my eyes. I have shook off the yoke of the passions, reason has enlightened me, and the light, in
piercing the veil, has shown me the mark of vice and revealed all its horrors.
Q.: How did you acquire this high degree of Masonry?
A.: By constancy, wisdom and charity.
Q.: What should a Mason be?
A.: The enemy of crime, the friend and disciple of virtue.
Q.: Then all human beings who are wise and just are Masons?
A.: Without doubt, they but lack the sacred signs by which we prove ourselves, signs all the
more necessary, that thcy protect us from false hearts and the slaves of fortune and the senses.
Q.: What do you understand by Lodges?
A.: An assembly of virtuous persons, who are above pride and prejudice, and have no worldly
distinctions amongst them, governed by wisdom, justice and humanity, and practising in silence
the natural law.
Q.: Where was the first Lodge held?
A.: In the terrestrial paradise by Adam and Eve during their state of innocence.
Q.: When was the second held?
A.: During the deluge of Noah, when he was in the Ark with his family.
Q.: When was the third held?
A.: When God deigned to send three angels to visit Abraham and his wife.
Q.: When was the fourth held?
A.: After the burning of Sodom, when the Angels who had saved Lot and his daughters visited
them in the cave to which they had retired.
Q.: When was the fifth held?
A.: When Joseph had found his dear brother, Benjamin, and received his brothers at this table.
Q.: Have they this instruction in all the Lodges?
A.: No, it is only in the fifth; Joseph preferred Benjamin five times above his brothers; he gave
him five robes and presented five of his brothers to Pharoah; it is owing to this that the number
five is sacred among Masons; and that they consider it a title of honor, as the five robes
designate the 5 Masonic grades.
Q.: How did this patriarch attain to so high a degree of glory?
A.: By prudence and wisdom which reigned in all his actions; so each of us ought to aspire to
the same happiness and march always in sentiments of virtue.
Q.: What was his recompense?
A.: Pharoah promoted him to the second place in Egypt, and committed to him his royal signet;
we preserve the remembrance of it by giving the Perfected a ring.
Q.: Who, after Joseph, distinguished himself in this fifth lodge?
A.: Moses, elect of God, who broke the Israelites’ fetters.
Q.: Give me the explanation of the Painted Carpet of the Degree?
A.: 1. The four parts of the world signify that all beings are equally the work of the Creator of
the universe, wherever found, and that they ought to cultivate virtue as the most agreeable
homage which they can render to the Creator. 2. The dream of Pharoah represents the seven
principles which we ought to practice, and the seven vices we ought to oppose. 3. The
reconciliation of Joseph to his brethren and the kiss of peace, teaches us that goodness is the
inseparable essence of the Creator, whose work we are, and that we ought by this example to
add to pardon a perfect and durable friendship. 4. The brickmakers represent the Israelites in
Egypt after the death of Joseph, meriting, by the patience with which they bore their unjust
humiliation, the regards of providence. These tools are the origin of our Masonic trowels and
hammers. 5. Moses escaped in a cradle to the mercy of the waters, is an emblem of the
feebleness of our existence and the hazards to which we are exposed. 6. The daughter of
Pharoah in preserving Moses teaches us Supreme Providence which protects us against the
machinations of our enemies. 7. Moses and Aaron at the head of the Israelites after having
traversed the Red Sea, rcp resents a Masonic Lodge, in which the Brothers and Sisters have
thrown off the yoke of the passions; and the submerged army of Pharoah indicates the desires
which have been overthrown.
Q.: Whom does the Grand Master represent?
A.: Moses. the conductor of the Israelites.
Q.: Whom does the Grand Mistress represent?
A.: Sephorah, the wife of Moses.
Q.: Whom does Brother Senior Warden represent?
A.: Aaron, brother of Moses.
Q.: Whom does Sister Sen. Warden represent?
A.: Miriam, sister of Moses.
Q.: What does the ring of a Perfect Mistress allude to?
A.: The ring given by Pharoah to Moses.
Q.: Give me the Signs, and Words of a Perfect Mistress. (Done.)
 
 
DISCOURSE

Very Illustrious and Dear Sisters: Were I only permitted to be here as a man of the world, I could have done
no more than express to you the lively pleasure which we all again feel in receiving you amongst us. As it is,
I shall without further compliments proceed to say that as you are the most exquisite and perfect portion of
creation, so the most precious benefits of life emanate from you. It is to you that we owe the cares of
infancy, the chaste delicacy of pure love, the sweets of married life, the benefits of paternity, the
consolations of old age and finally the calmness of our last moments. It is from you that all the joys of the
heart proceed, all the hopes and realities of happiness, all the alleviations of pain and evil inseparable from
humanity; all the compensations and recompense of the labor to which man is condemned here below. I will
say, in short, that it is through your influence that we become better and happier men. But if in holding this
complimentary language to you, although I only speak the truth, I fear I am transgressing that Masonic
austerity which prohibits flattering words; for you are worthy of a homage which is complete and sincere. In
order to render you that homage which you merit, I hope I may be permitted to add a word to the sketch
which I have thus lightly made of the magnificent portion which the eternal has accorded you. The word
which I would add your hearts are formed to hear; it is, that if to so many attractions and charms, so many
sweet gifts and qualities, is not added an enthusiasm for virtue, all ideas of perfection vanish and there no
longer remains for you a beautiful destiny upon earth but only a vain and fugitive illusion. Virtue, my dear
Sisters, is the flower, which cultivated by your beautiful hands, will never fade; behold the beauty which
perishes not! Behold the true secret of your power and the immutable base of your empire. Virtue! It was for
the purpose of attaching us to it that you were created; to render it more love-able in our eyes by your
example; more persuasive to our hearts by your high inspirations; to render the practice more sweet by the
desire of pleasing you; and the sacrifices which it sometimes commands, more easy by the noble hope of
obtaining the hand of beauty; even if you desired, could you depart from such an august mission? No! In
entering this Temple which is dedicated to virtue, you bring into it the most estimable sentiments. Be
pleased, then, to receive from us this expression of the Masonic esteem with which you inspire us. But I
must conclude for I hear around me a murmur of impatience, which is to see your Worshipful Mistress
occupy that throne when all hearts call her. Come, new Esther, seat yourself there, and place the Masonic
family under the powerful shield of wisdom and beauty.