Encyclopedia Masonica

This has been a subject of fertile discussion among Masonic jurists, although only a few have thought proper to deny the existence of such rights. Upon the theory which, however recently controverted, has very generally been recognized, that Grand Masters existed before Grand Lodges were organized, it must be evident that the rights of a Grand Master are of two kinds those, namely, which he derives from the Constitution of a Grand Lodge of which he has been made the presiding officer, and those which exist in the office independent of any Constitution, because they are derived from the landmarks and ancient usages of the Craft. The rights and prerogatives which depend on and are prescribed by the Constitution may be modified or rescinded by that instrument.

They differ in various Jurisdictions, because one Grand Lodge may confer more or less power upon its presiding officer than another; and they differ at different times, because the Constitution of every Grand Lodge is subject, in regard to its internal regulations, to repeated alteration and amendment. These may be called the accidental rights of a Grand Master, because they are derived from the accidental provisions of a Grand Lodge, and have in them nothing essential to the integrity of the office. It is unnecessary to enumerate them, because they may be found in varied modifications in the Constitutions of all Grand Lodges.

But the rights and prerogatives which Grand Masters are supposed to have possessed, not as the presiding officers of an artificial Body, but as the Rulers of the Craft in general, before Grand Lodges came into existence, and which are dependent, not on any prescribed rules which may be enacted today and repealed tomorrow, but on the long-continued usages of the Order and the concessions of the Craft from time out of mind, inhere in the office, and cannot be augmented or diminished by the action of any authority, because they are landmarks, and therefore unchangeable.

These are called the inherent rights of a Grand Master. They comprise the right to preside over the Craft whenever assembled, to grant Dispensations, and, as a part of that power, to make Freemasons at sight (see Doctor Mackey's revised Jurisprudence of Freemasonry).

The Encyclopedia Masonica exists to preserve the wealth of information that has been generated over the centuries by numerous Masonic authors. As Freemasonry is now Speculative and not Operative, the work of a Mason is now conducted in the quarries of symbolism, literature, history and scholasticism. Freemasonry encourages intellectual exploration and academic achievement in its members and many Masons over the years have taken up this calling. The result has been that an incredible amount of philosophy, symbolic speculation and academic insights have been created. However, as Freemasonry teaches, human knowledge is frail and fragile. It is easily lost in the turnings of the ages and unforeseen catastrophes can result in great setbacks to human knowledge.

For too long these great works have sat on forgotten shelves, gathering dust and concealing the light that could be shed on the darkness of our ignorance. The Encyclopedia Masonica has been created to act as an ark, sailing through time, to ensure that future generations of Freemasons have access to the same knowledge that inspired the Brethren that came before them. It will contain the works of such Masonic Luminaries as Albert G. Mackey, Manly Palmer Hall, G.S.M. Ward, Albert Pike and many others. The Encyclopedia Masonica is a living work and the volunteers of Universal Co-Masonry will continue to labor until the most comprehensive Masonic reference work the world has ever seen has been created. The Encyclopedia Masonica is open to any who wish to use it and will remain open so that the treasures contained within may increase the wealth of all those who seek its wisdom.