Page 31 - MML - Journal - Centenary Edition - Vol. 01 / 2023

Ceremony of Raising: Hair Raising or Uplifting ?
By R W Bro. Bharat V. Epur, OSM, P.DY.G.M., P.R.G.M.
Brethren, during the preceding weeks, I have had an opportunity to share some of my thoughts and ideas regarding the first two Degrees of Craft Masonry, namely, the Ceremonies of Initiation and of Passing. I have also spoken about some topics related to Freemasonry in general. I believe it is now time to share some of my ideas on the Third Degree, the sublime Degree of a Master Mason, also commonly referred to as the Ceremony of Raising.
I shall approach this subject in three parts, namely, examine how and when the Third Degree came into existence; explore briefly the main theme of the Degree; and, finally, probe a bit deeper into some of its aspects. I must here state that this is by no means the definitive treatise on the subject. It is merely my own interpretations of some of the elements in the story.
1. How and when did the Third Degree come into existence?
It is common knowledge today that the Craft consists of the Three Degrees of the Craft Masonry in all the jurisdictions. Most of us just accept this and think nothing about how this all came about. The Three Degree system had not existed from time immemorial. On the other hand, it had been affirmed that pure Masonry consisted only of two Degrees. Dr. Anderson in his “Constitutions” of 1723 does not mention about three Degrees or about the Hiramic Legend, which came to be included in the rituals over a long period of time and in a somewhat laborious manner. The whole change was not an overnight arrangement, but rather grew up over a period of years. To be more exact in the language of the great Masonic scholar Joseph Fort Newton, "But the fact is that the Third degree was not made; it grew—like the great cathedrals, no one of which can be ascribed to a single artist, but to one Order of men
working in unity of enterprise and aspiration". In fact, the early years of this change were times of great turbulence. Many of these historic events have been shrouded in mystery and confusion. The eventual sorting out of the period by our Masonic historians was done in the face of minimal historical evidence, a large amount of reasonable assumption and with some pre- conceived notions. Even today, some Masonic writers still find it a common ground on which to agree to disagree. And because of this lack of historical evidence, it would be safe to say that the perplexing questions of the existence and growth of the three Degrees will remain a point for Masonic discussion for centuries to come.
One thing is reasonably certain: prior to the early eighteenth century, two Degrees were worked – the Entered Apprentice Degree and the Fellow Craft Degree. This is confirmed by the ancient manuscripts, the Edinburgh Register House Ms. Of 1696 and the Sloan Ms. Of 1659, which refer to two Degrees, whilst the Trinity College Dublin Ms. Of 1711 and the Graham Ms. Of 1726 refer to Three Degrees. We can only speculate as to the sequence of events in the early 18th century that led up to the establishment of the three Degree system in our Order.
As our Masonic historians have agreed to disagree on the interpretation of much of the evidence, there is of course no over-riding authority available to say as to who is correct. Let us first look at the word "Degree". In its primitive form the word was used by the Operative Masons as a method of acquiring different grades of skills, which usually consisted of Apprentices, Journeymen and Masters. It is pointed out here that later in the sequence of events, one of the big events that caused confusion centered on the
Madras Masonic Journal Vol. 01 / 2023 - Centenary Year Edition
A Publication of Madras Masters Lodge No. 103, GLI 30