Chapter 6 · Study

The Three Great Lights

Print study sheet Read first, then practise.

Vocabulary · 10

Great Lights: The three principal furnishings of every regular Lodge: the Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses. Together they distinguish a Masonic Lodge from any other assembly.
Volume of the Sacred Law: The book of sacred writ recognized by the candidate as binding upon his conscience; in Anglo-American Craft Masonry the Bible is most commonly used, but the obligation rests upon whatever volume the candidate holds sacred.
Square: A right-angled instrument of the operative builder, adopted in speculative Masonry as a symbol of morality: the rule by which we test the squareness of our actions toward all mankind.
Compasses: A pair of dividers used by the operative craftsman to circumscribe and lay out the workman's plan; in speculative Masonry, a symbol of the duty to keep one's desires and passions within due bounds.
Furniture of the Lodge: The Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses: the indispensable furnishings of every regular Lodge. So called because no Lodge can be opened, closed, or duly furnished without them.
Lesser Lights: Three lights, placed about the altar, said to represent the Sun, the Moon, and the Master of the Lodge. They are distinguished from the three Great Lights which are placed upon the altar itself.
Altar: In a Masonic Lodge, the central pedestal upon which the Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses rest while the Lodge is at labor.
Speculative Masonry: The Masonry of moral and symbolic instruction, as distinguished from the operative Masonry of the builder's trade from which it took its forms.
Operative Masonry: The actual craft of building in stone, the medieval guild trade that supplied speculative Masonry with its tools, terms, and ceremonial framework.
Regular Lodge: A Lodge holding a warrant or charter from a recognized Grand Lodge and working in accord with the Ancient Landmarks and the laws of that Grand Lodge.

Sequences · 2

Furnishing the altar before labor

The order in which the three Great Lights are commonly arranged upon the altar when a Lodge is opened.

Place the Volume of the Sacred Law open upon the altar
Lay the Square upon the Volume of the Sacred Law
Lay the Compasses upon the Square
Position the points of the Compasses according to the degree in which the Lodge is to labor

Compass-point progression by degree

How the points of the Compasses are arranged in each of the three Craft degrees, as set out in the published monitor.

Entered Apprentice: both points beneath the Square
Fellow Craft: one point above, one point beneath the Square
Master Mason: both points above the Square

Practice questions · 8

Which three furnishings are known as the Great Lights of Masonry?
- a. Sun, Moon, and Master of the Lodge
- b. Volume of the Sacred Law, Square, and Compasses ✓
- c. Apron, Gavel, and Trowel
- d. Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty
What does the Square symbolize in speculative Masonry?
- a. The control of one's passions within due bounds
- b. Morality: the rule by which we test our actions toward all mankind ✓
- c. The fellowship of the brethren
- d. The light of the Sun at meridian
The Compasses are emblematic of which Masonic virtue?
- a. Keeping one's desires and passions within due bounds ✓
- b. Squaring one's actions by the rule of right
- c. Diligence in the daily labor of life
- d. Hospitality to the stranger and traveler
Upon what book is the candidate's obligation rested in a regular Lodge?
- a. Anderson's Constitutions
- b. Mackey's Encyclopaedia of Freemasonry
- c. The Volume of the Sacred Law recognized as binding by the candidate ✓
- d. The book of the local Grand Lodge bylaws
Where are the three Great Lights placed when a Lodge is at labor?
- a. Upon the pedestals of the three principal officers
- b. Upon the altar at the center of the Lodge ✓
- c. Around the four corners of the Lodge room
- d. Upon the Master's pedestal alone
What are the three Lesser Lights said to represent?
- a. Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty
- b. Faith, Hope, and Charity
- c. The Sun, the Moon, and the Master of the Lodge ✓
- d. The Master, the Senior Warden, and the Junior Warden
Which term refers to the moral and symbolic Masonry of today, as distinct from the medieval builder's trade?
- a. Operative Masonry
- b. Speculative Masonry ✓
- c. Allied Masonry
- d. Concordant Masonry
What makes a Lodge a regular Lodge?
- a. Holding a warrant from a recognized Grand Lodge and working in accord with the Ancient Landmarks ✓
- b. Meeting on a fixed night of the month
- c. Possessing a hall built of stone
- d. Having at least twenty Master Masons on its rolls