Ritual for the Messengers or the Order of the Black Cross

Ritual for the Messengers
Order of the Black Cross

1889

A messenger’s garment is of black material, and the cloak reach to his ankles, and appear as that worn by doctors. It has long and wide sleeves and a small erect collar, and is drawn together around the waist by a black belt. A messenger wears a black cross hanging in a black ribbon. His cap is a regular doctor’s cap, black and with a square pasteboard crown, and a silk tassel in the right corner.
The Cardinal has a white rosette in the front of the head band, and the First and Second messenger simply 1 and 2 in silver ciphers. The messengers have white gloves, collars and cuffs. At work in the hall the messenger is supported by a rod six feet long and one inch in diameter. Sitting or standing he places the rod before him with Left above right hand.
He moves the rod step by step as he walks, and as Jacob, also called Israel did, he leans upon it when he worships, and uses it otherwise when he works or presides in the hail or opens and closes the meeting of the congregation.
The doorkeeper cal]s the meeting to order by sounding a bell seven times. It may be situated in a small tower above the hall, or it may be a hand-bell placed on the altar. When the hell has sounded the presiding cardinal raps once with his rod against the floor, and the messengers become seated. The cardinal facing the congregation makes the sign of the cross with his right hand, and the meeting is opened with song, music and silent prayer. When a messenger address a brother or the congregation he always arise, and is seated again when he has finished his speech.
CARDINAL MESSENGER: Brother doorkeeper is the door guarded?
DOORKEEPER: The door is guarded Brother Cardinal.
CARD: How do you guard the door?
DOORK: By closing and locking it, and guarding the key in my possession.
The Cardinal raps twice on the floor with his rod, and all arise and give united the due guard and sign of a messenger, and are seated again.
CARD: Peace be with you. The peace of Messiah I give to you. The peace which the world cannot give and cannot take away from you. Even so does the Messiah greet his disciples. Hallowed be Thy Name, Thou our Father, who art in heaven!
THE CONGREGATION, united: Hallowed be Thy Name, our Father, Thou who art in heaven.
All are seated.
FIRST MES: Where two or three persons are together in the name of Messiah, there shall he also be in the midst of the congregation.
CARD: Surely He says to us, If you do not eat my flesh and drink my blood, you have no part in me, because my flesh is truly food and my blood is truly drink. Therefore let us be united as His body is united, that we may be flesh of His flesh as He walked in the flesh on earth, and be in the world as He was in the world, and follow after Him in the regeneration, or the new birth in the flesh. Amen. Brother First Messenger, what is your testimony to us?
FIRST MES: The testimony of Messiah, which is the spirit of prophesy, because His testimony is life eternal, and with the hosts of heaven does He come to us, and shall come to earth again.
CARD: What shall we do, Brother Second Messenger, to attain to such a blessed union?
SEC. MES: We shall commune with Him and His angels, when we break and eat of the same symbolic bread, for as the bread is one so is the body of the Messiah one, and the congregation one, and we are flesh of His flesh if we remain in Him.
CARD: So shall it be, Brother First Messenger, take the blessed bread from the altar and bring it before the congregation, and let us eat of it, that we may live in our earthly bodies as in His flesh, that we may remain in health and in His strength and peace.
The Cardinal raps once with his rod, and all arise. The First Messenger goes to the altar and blesses the bread by taking it in his left hand and making the cross over it with the right hand. Then he takes the bread to the Cardinal Messenger, who breaks a small piece from it and eats. Then the First Messenger eats, and he goes to the Second Messenger, who breaks of the bread and eats, and each messenger breaks of the bread and eats. When the ceremony is to an end, all become again seated. This is an emblem of the passover lamb which Israel was eating, standing with rods in their band, on the same night when they left Egypt. And the angel of death slew the firstborn in all houses where the blood of the lamb was not seen on the threshold.
CARD: The body cannot be sustained nor live except by the circulation of the blood. Neither can this congregation as the body of Messiah live and be sustained in His power except by His blood within us, because if we are flesh of His flesh, we must also have His blood circulating within us, and our blood shall be as His blood. How shall we, Brother First Messenger, attain to such a grace?
FIRST MES: By having the power of God manifested in our flesh and blood, when the Spirit is moving and directing our mortal bodies to the immortal inheritance with the Messiah. Amen.
CARD: What shall we do, Brother Second Messenger, to attain to such a blessing?
SEC MES: Let us receive the symbolic wine from the altar, and all drink thereof as a sacred memory about the blood of Messiah. And as his blood was one fluid in His body, so is the wine one fluid we all partake of as a symbol of our unity in His love, which is in His life, and is manifested to us as His glorious eternal life.
CARD: So shall it be Brother Second Messenger. Lift the cup with the wine from the altar and let us all drink of it, that our blood may be in unity with His blood in the flesh, because it is a great happiness for brethren to dwell together in the life of God. Amen.
The Cardinal gives one rap with the rod against the floor, and all arise.
The Sec. Messenger takes the wine from the altar with his left hand, and blesses it in the name of Messiah by making a cross over the cup with his right hand, and brings the cup to the Cardinal Messenger who drinks, and then to the First Messenger who drinks, and each of the messengers takes the cup and drinks, keeping the cup in the right hand and giving the due guard with the left hand at the same time they are drinking. When all have partaken of the wine, the Second Messenger places the cup on the altar, where the bread-plate also is placed after the eating of the bread.
The wine should be unfermented, but when such cannot be secured the claret wine can be used, if it is mixed half with pure filtered rain-water, or with well-water which bas been boiled and cooled off again by being exposed to the free air.
After the ceremony is over all axe again seated.
CARD: My Brethren, even as we are one body in the Messiah, and flesh of His flesh and blood of His blood, so our lives are in an adoration of His suffering through life, and we are witnesses about the truth of God in ourselves. Thus we shall have His peace in our departure from earth, and as His love was manifested when He expired on the cross, so shall we meet Him in His second advent, and become one with Him in the same spirit, and receive among us on earth the testimony of Messiah, even the Spirit of prophesy. He shall give us victory over fear and death. He shall preserve our lives and conquer our enemies, because they are His enemies. He has bound up His clothes and treads the wine-press alone, and does His own work, and we do His work by Him. Brother First Messenger, are we prepared for such a blessing?
FIRST MES: We are, Brother Cardinal, by having His love manifested in our earthly lives, and by being one with Him in the same life as the branches are with the tree of life in God’s Paradise. His life is the life of the Father and the Spirit from eternity and to eternity. Amen.
CARD: Brother Second Messenger, how shall we apply ourselves, that we may attain to and live on earth in the manifestations of the Messiah?
SEC. MES: By a constant devotion in our heart, without cessation, praying always with countless applications in the Spirit for the grace of our Father in the name of Messiah, to be manifested as His testimony to His flesh and blood in our nature, so that we may live in Him, or in His flesh and blood, and have His spirit of prophecy living into us with gifts and powers from heaven.
CARD: In the commencement lived the first cause of all things, and the first cause is the life, and the life was made flesh and manifested in the world, and the world was made by it, but the world received it not from God. It came out from God and into the world, but as many as received the life of God received also the light of heaven to discern the light manifested in their flesh and blood, and they knew Him who lived and died for the love in that life which was from the commencement, that we might be sons and daughters of God. Therefore Brother First Messenger, instruct the congregation how we shall be prepared for such devotion.
FIRST MES: Brethren, there was silence in heaven for half an hour when the host of angels were in devotion before the glory of the Almighty, and the Seraphim sung: Holy! Holy! Holy! art Thou on the throne of eternity, to receive all praise and honor, because to Thee belongs the glory and the power and the kingdom from eternity and to eternity. Amen. And God was adored by the spirit of prophesy.
CARD: So shall it be among us, Brother Second Messenger. Salute this congregation, that it may know the half hour as the time for our devotion.
SEC. MES: The oceans covered the earth and darkness prevailed, and the Spirit of God moved upon the water, and the clouds divided, and it became light. And there was light on earth, and the waves of the ocean sung together for half an hour, as silverbells sounding in countless praises to the glory of God.
The Second Messenger goes to the altar and strikes the small bell seven times, and the congregation remains seated in silence, and each messenger speaks, exhorts or preaches, as he is moved upon by the Spirit of inspiration, one after another and in due order, either it he by prophesy, or gifts, or tongues, or interpretation, or for exhortation and edification.
When the half an hour is to an end, the Second Messenger strikes the bell once. This devotion can be shortened to less or extended to more than half an hour according to the testimony of the Spirit. The Cardinal Messenger can break the silence by a knock of his rod on the floor.
CARD: Brother First Messenger, where is the Cardinal Messenger’s place in the congregation?
FIRST MES: In the north, and opposite the entrance in the south.
CARD: Why is he seated in the north?
FIRST MES: Because the progressive life on earth was developed step by step from the north pole, and. the organic life in nature moved from the poles and towards the equator, even as the spiritual infusion of light from heaven entered the corresponding conditions on earth and the human mind from the northern hemisphere.
CARD: Where is your place in the congregation, Brother First Messenger?
FIRST MES: In the east.
CARD: Why in the east?
FIRST MES: Because as the earth moves from west to east, so are the eyes of the congregation turned to the First Messenger for instruction and light from the east.
CARD: Brother Second Messenger, where are you seated in the congregation?
SEC. MES: In the west.
CARD: Why in the west?
SEC. MES: Because as the sun, moon and stars set in the west, so does the Cardinal Messenger make his last appeal to the Second Messenger for help and assistance in waiting upon and serving the messengers of the congregation, and giving and distributing the latest light and knowledge.
CARD: Brother Secretary, where is the Secretary’s station in the congregation, and which are his duties?
SECRETARY: He is seated at the right hand of the Cardinal Messenger, and his duty is to keep account of the meetings, and transaction of business; keep a list of the members and visiting messengers, who comes and goes from the congregation; issue certificates; collect dues and have them paid over to the Treasurer, and lay the quarterly and yearly record before the congregation.
CARD: Brother Treasurer, where is your station in the congregation, and what is your duty?
TREASURER: To the left of the Cardinal Messenger is the Treasurer’s seat. It is his duty to receive the money belonging to the congregation, which is handed over to him from the Secretary. To keep account of who paid it in, and for what purpose it was paid out, and report to the congregation every month.
CARD: Brother Doorkeeper, where is your station in the congregation?
DOORK: At the entrance to the hall, in the south.
CARD: What is your duty there, and why in the south?
DOORK: To serve the congregation, that no persons enter the hall, except truly and duly initiated and faithful messengers, belonging to our congregation, or such as are vouched for by one or several messengers of this congregation, that they are messengers belonging to other halls. To observe that every visil3ing messenger signs his name, and also the name of his congregation, in the book for that purpose in the ante-room, and before entering the hall, and that in entering he salutes at the entrance with the due guard and sign. That order and silence is observed in the anteroom and in the south, where the brethren from the world’s toil and work enter for refreshment and rest. That noise is not heard on the stairs or loud talk in the door-way, during the meeting of the congregation. Also to entertain candidates, and pass them over to the Second Messenger, who receives them at the entrance in the south.
CARD: Is there any Brother Messenger at the door, applying for admission?
DOORK: Yes, Four Messengers from N. N. congregation.
CARD: If they are qualified as such, please let them enter in due manner.
The Doorkeeper gives seven raps on the door with the foot of his rod. That is answered again by seven raps from without. The door is then opened, and the Messengers enter and give the due guard and sign, after which they walk up south of the altar and salute the Cardinal with the due guard and sign, to which he responds in a similar manner. The due guard is the open left hand over the region of the heart, and the sign is the right hand extended with the palm turned upwards. Then they pays over to the north side of the altar and give the same token to the congregation, and go to take seats among the messengers.
CARD: Is there any candidate praying for admission at the door, Brother Doorkeeper?
DOORK: Yes, Cardinal Messenger, Brother N. N. is waiting for admission.
CARD: Brother Second Messenger, it is my will that you shall receive the brother into this congregation in the usual form, and according to the regulations for a congregation of messengers.
The Doorkeeper now salutes with the due guard and sign, end goes outside the door. Seven knocks are heard on the door from the outside. They represent the seven days, the seven archangels, and the seven seals. The door is now opened. The candidate appears in the doorway, and the SECOND MESSENGER places the end of the rod against his left breast, and says the following words: All, Brother, blessed art thou, who comest in the name of the Lord.
The Doorkeeper now enters with the candidate, and leaves him in charge of the Second Messenger, and steps outside himself for to guard the door. The Second Messenger receives the candidate by giving him the right hand of fellowship, or the messenger’s grip, and address him, giving the due guard and sign.
SEC. MES: Welcome, Brother, in the hall of the Lord! Follow me! We all greet you with a brotherly love, because you came here directed by the Spirit of the Messiah, and of your own free will and desire.
They walk together up before the south end of the altar, where the Second Messenger salutes the Cardinal with the due guard and sign, and from there they walk directly east and north, and in passing the First Messenger he extends his rod across the candidate’s breast and says:
FIRST MES: Who is this man? In passing he compels me to salute him with this rod across his breast, which is to receive him in the love of Messiah.
SEC. MES: He is a Brother! I received him at the door in the south with the end of my rod on his left breast, which is to receive him in the faith of Messiah to follow me. That he has done by the permission of the Cardinal.
FIRST MES: He was received in faith and love. What can he further be seeking to attain by his travel?
SEC. MES: He is seeking by faith and love to be filled with charity and attain to wisdom.
FIRST MES: Then he must proceed further and follow you as his guide to the Cardinal.
The Second Messenger starts for to go with the candidate, when he suddenly is stopped by the First Messenger, who for the second time extends his rod across the breast of the candidate and says:
FIRST MES: Before you can advance any further I have to inquire whether the candidate has received the first principles of the Gospel of Messiah?
SEC. MES: He has.
FIRST MES: Has he been baptized in water by immersion in 13he name of Messiah, to the glory of his Father and our Father, and his God and our God?
SEC. MES: He has.
FIRST MES: Has he received by himself and upon his own person the baptism for the dead in the spirit of faith, love and charity?
SEC. MES: He has.
FIRST MES: Then he has been walking by faith, love and charity, and I presume been accepted by the Holy Spirit, and received the priesthood after Aaron and Melchizedek?
SEC. MES: He has,
FIRST MES: My Brother, I give you my permission to pass. Only one thing more. And I will ask him if be will promise to visit some sick man, woman or child during this month and give them aid, comfort, nursing, strength and blessing, and watch at the bedside, and serve them with deeds and words of life and healing, if the disease is not to death, and remain by them during some hours of the night. Will you do it in the name of Messiah as an act of charity, and you will lay up treasures for your soul in heaven?
CANDIDATE: I will.
FIRST MES: Then follow your guide and you shall find what you desire in your heart to attain and are seeking for, the golden wisdom of heaven enclosed in the black cross. But before you leave I will touch your heart with the symbolic sign of love, to give you strength, by passing this rod across your breast, touches his breast with the rod on your way as a messenger traveling to the spiritual Canaan. May you in mortal danger find protection and a shelter, and be guided by the Spirit of Gods love in your heart, and find R…
SEC. MES: J…
FIRST MES: So shall it be, and when the walls of superstition and mental obstruction shall fall to the ground and the captive of creeds shall be set free, and the freedom of the city shall be given to Israel, and those in bonds shall rejoice in the light of Messiah. Then shall you be grateful and thankful, and remember and protect R…
SEC.MES: J…
They both move on further, and when they stop before the Cardinal Messenger, and the Second Messenger greets as usual with the due guard and sign, then the Cardinal touches the candidate’s head with the top end of his rod, and says:
CARD: How does this Brother come here?
SEC. MES: In the strength of the Spirit of God after many trials in the faith of Messiah, and much suffering in his love to man, and by works of charity to brethren and sisters.
CARD: Then I hail thee, full of grace! Blessed art thou amongst men! To the Second Messenger If he comes to us with such good fortune from above and your recommendation, then I suppose he has obeyed the ordinance of the sponge-baths, because to be a saint is to be raised of God in the freedom of His Spirit, so that before his entering here he should have cleansed his body from the impurities and dust of the world.
SEC. MES: He has done so.
CARD: Then he is welcome amongst us, and he may find what he is traveling for and obtain wisdom. Goes down to the candidate and extends the head of the rod for a moment to the top of the candidate’s head and says: Thus by balancing your life with the power and gifts of God shall you be victorious. What man knows is nothing in comparison with the knowledge of the Spirit. Fear God and keep His words, because His words in our hearts are the beginning to wisdom. Therefore are God’s ways and works justified by the children of wisdom, who are the children of the light of Messiah. Remain in the world as a traveler going to the east and coming from the west, even as the earth moves, and as the three sages traveled, who were seeking wisdom, and came guided by the eastern star over Bethlehem. On your journey over stony and rough roads preserve bodily strength and a refreshed spirit by using as often as convenient or as opportunity permits the daily sponge-bath, or bath in a tub, river, lake, or in the sea. The Cardinal touches again with the rod the candidate’s forehead. The Messiah bless you to keep His words in the freedom of the Spirit, and in the understanding of angels, that the letter of the law shall not condemn your heart. God’s promises belong to you in the freedom of Israel to remain in His spiritual strength of your entire being. May the Gospel of Freedom remind you daily before all things not to judge a brother or sister, or you shall be bound under the bonds of the law, and the spirit of freedom shall depart from your mind, because whosoever judge shall be judged, but whosoever shows mercy shall be shown mercy towards, and whosoever meets his brother or sister without faultfinding, him shall God love and honor in paradise. My brother, thou shall not speak evil of thy fellow-citizen because he does not see the light of Messiah. Thou shall walk in freedom by him and not in bondage. Thou shall not cast him away from thy favors, even as the church has done in her days of folly and hate. Therefore remember all these words and walk accordingly, and the Spirit of God shall give thee the heavenly manna, and no reproach shall be in thee. My Brother, in God’s love shall thou be perfect, and the adversary shall have no cause to come upon thee with reproach nor by any ill-saying or bitterness. The Almighty God shall deliver thy soul from the earthbound chains. Be firm, and protecting guardian angels will always be sheltering thee from danger. Before all things love the peace of God, and keep peace with all men. Every person shall bear his own burdens and work out his own soul’s salvation, that he may be born of the Spirit. The adversary will try to stir up all kinds of accusations against the work of Messiah, and the spirit of ignorance and malice will be rampant on earth, and the evil disposed, undeveloped world will never be tired from faultfinding and hypocrisy. Man’s selfrighteousness in the sight of God is only hypocrisy, as we owe God every thing and He owes us nothing, nor can He ever enter into any debt to us. In His grace do now approach the altar and receive the anointing of a messenger, but before I can allow thee to move one step further in that direction I must inquire if thou hast been served with the ordinance of foot-washing?
SEC. MES: He has not.
CARD: Then it is my will, that he shall be seated and expose his feet naked, and a basin of water and a towel shall be brought, and in the name of Messiah he shall receive the holy foot-washing.
The Second Messenger brings a chair and a basin of water and a towel, and the candidate seats himself and the Second
SEC. MES: Cardinal Messenger, the candidate is seated and expects your further instructions.
CARD, goes down to the candidate: My Brother, our Lord and Master says, If I do not wash your feet you have no part in me, but he that is clean needs nothing save to wash his feet and he is clean all over. Therefore in token of my position in this congregation, and according to the pattern of our Messiah I bend down on my right knee and commence to wash your feet. He blesses the water by making a cross over it, and washes the candidate’s feet and the Second Messenger helps to dry them.
CARD, arises: You call me the Cardinal and that I am, and I have washed your feet, and, even so shall it be your duty, when you preside to wash the feet of your brethren, because the Messiah said: Know ye what I have done to you? You call me Lord and Master and that I am. If then I have washed your feet, you, also, ought to wash each other’s feet, for I have set you an example, that you may follow after me and do as I have done. A servant is not greater than his master, but when he is perfect then he is like his master. He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me that sent him. My Brother, it is necessary for messengers, that they should serve one another in all things and by the symbolic washing of feet understand sincerely the necessity of walking with clean feet and hands through life, and without being guilty in the blood of men. The wrath shall come upon the world, even the wrath of the spirit of the world, and death shall sweep away the multitude in much bloodshed, but you shall avoid the temptations of wars, and plunder and the crimes of the world, and wash away the guilt of a brother even as God shall wash away your sins. You shall stop the mouth of the accusers of a messenger, and never be too proud to serve the least of your brethren by the ordinance of foot-washing. Remember that angels are always serving the elect of God, as the spirits of Israel are serving Israel, and the good spirits of the world are serving those living in the world. When enemies are filled with accusations against you, then angels are filled with charity and good works. Therefore pray always that your spirit may be counted among the angels. Arise, and your guide will direct your steps toward the altar. The candidate is placed before the altar and facing the south. This altar, our garments, this rod, this cross and the ensigns of this hall are black. The bell, the plates, and the cover of this book are all black. Why this is so will come to your mind, when you become a messenger, and you shall live constantly in communion with the suffering of our Master’s death, when your flesh and blood shall live in the emblems of His flesh and blood as a substantial part of your own being. You are not only baptized to Him, but you shall be a part of Him, so whomsoever reproaches you shall reproach Him. This is the Gospel of Freedom, that your life is hidden up in His life, when you enter this hall draped in mourning over the crimes of the world and the death of our Master on the cross.
The light you see burning on the altar is a symbol of the one eternal, everywhere present, omnipotent God, whose light shines without end into the world with the everlasting light of intellegence, though the world do not comprehend Him. But those who comprehend Him in the light of Messiah has He given the power to be His witnesses in the Gospel of Freedom to all men. It shall be your study to store your mind with useful knowledge and be a teacher to mankind, working for the education of the youth by erecting schools, seminaries and
colleges, and, so to say, steal the hearts of the children into God’s work, as Messiah said, To such belong the kingdom of God, and baptize men and women who live in God’s faith and desire to do good, and bless them by laying on of hands for the Holy Spirit and the eternal power. Being a messenger you are an apostle, sent out into the word by Messiah to work according to your election and gifts from the Spirit. Let the light never get dark in your soul but preach the light in the spirit of the Gospel of Freedom or the life of Messiah. This is the new nature of God, that man may know His truth, and it shall make him free, so he indeed is free, even as the angels in heaven are free, because they live not under the bondage to the law but in the freedom of the Spirit. Therefore shall a small light burn in your homes all night from sunset and to sunrise, and the light shall not be extinguished before daylight,’ and there shall be no darkness in your homes.
The bell is a symbol of order, and admonishes us to use our time to the best advantage.
The bread and wine are symbols of the Lord’s last supper before His suffering and death on the cross, and are emblems of your unity with Him of which you will know more hereafter, when your soul is emerged into His Spirit even as the river is emerged into the ocean.
The basin of water and the towel you used only a short time ago, and the meaning was explained to you.
The cloak, the cap, the cross and the rod are according to the pattern, which is handed down from the congregations of messengers in heaven. The cloak signifies spiritual development and freedom from secterian narrow-mindedness and errors. The cap signifies protection, or to be shielded from the ignorance of man and the superstition of the man-made churches and their hate to the light from heaven. The doctor’s cap is an emblem of learning in the ways of God, as in the sciences of the world and in the philosophy of truth, because messengers are truly doctors of the heavenly laws, and doctors of the divinity in Messiah, with right to that title on earth and in heaven.
The rod signifies authority from God to act and officiate in the name of Messiah, and it is an emblem of power, because Moses dashed the earth with his rod in the name of Jehovah, and plagues came upon the people of Egypt; and he dashed the water of the Red Sea and it divided as a gang-way for Israel to walk through, and the water remained as two walls while the people were crossing; he reached out his rod against the water and it closed the walls together, and King Pharaoh and his host were drowned. By using the rod in faith as a messenger of God men conquered lions and bears, as Samson, and David did while a boy, with a rod in his hand. Power was given to God’s messengers by the rod to overcome evil and false authority, for when Korah and his fellow conspirators laid their rods together with Aaron’s rod, God gave Aaron’s rod power to bring forth leaves and flowers, but those who rebelled against the light from Sinai received no such testimony. Even Moses was condemned of the Lord for his want of faith, because he doubted in his soul when Jehovah commanded him to dash the rod against the rock, with the promise that he should strike water and bring forth a living stream for all Israel to drink from. This is the symbolic use of the rod, but strike always the rock without doubt in your heart when Israel is dying for thirst in the wilderness. Strike the eternal Rock of inspiration to give forth living water for all the people to drink.
Remember that the Almighty God did not spare Moses, but condemned him to be transfigured in the interior of the mountains, and not to enter Canaan, the promised land, for which he had suffered and toiled with Israel for forty years.
Now I wish you to reach out your right hand with the palm upwards. That is the due sign— (Moses prayed with both hands uplifted and the palms turned towards heaven.) Now I pour from this horn filled with the pure oil of Olive from Hermon Blesses it by the cross into your hand. Pours oil into the hollow of his right hand. Rub your hands together as with great joy, and anoint your head all over with the oil in the name of Messiah. Candidate does it.
Rejoice my Brother. Place your right hand over the left on the top of your head, saying, "Thou Lord of Lords, and King of Kings." This is the power and the divine authority to messengers of the black cross, by which they conquer in the struggle with danger, sickness or death. Candidate does it. Now drop your hands humbly down with the palms towards your limbs. This is the sign of humiliation, and such appeared Abraham and Moses, when standing or walking face to face in the presence of Jehovah. You have now received the holy anointing as a messenger in the service of the Messiah. Be in your entire being an embodiment of that truth in the Gospel of Freedom, which you bear to mankind, that the visible world is only existing to the senses and is a reflection from the Spirit, which govern supreme, and is the true life and the only life and God. Remain in your heart consecrated to the Holy Spirit, and your life shall be in spirit and truth, which shall never depart from you with the great glorious and heavenly light. Invoke God’s power to you by a continued silent prayer in the Spirit, and whenever you use the sponge and foot-bath. The oil by anointing shall convey to your being a never before known health and strength, and your mind shall be wrapt up in a great spiritual light, which shall give to you mental happiness and eternal development.
Spirit from above shall come to you as a baptism of fire, felt through every nerve, and Spirit shall penetrate your flesh and blood in the glory of Messiah. Spirit can preserve you from decay during sickness and decline, support the life to old ripe age, and eventually restore the vital law of living and give immortality to man in the coming of Messiah. We congratulate you upon your election and calling before other men to be a messenger from God to mankind, and we give you one after another our right hand of fellowship, the Cardinal and the First and Second Messengers give the grip and due guard and with brotherly love we confirm you a member of the congregation of Messiah. We seal also upon your head the spirit-power and ordained authority of an apostle or messenger, and bestow upon your head all three presiding Messengers place the end of their rods on the top of the candidate’s head the priesthood of Messiah, the Son of God, with authority to preach and officiate in the Gospel of Freedom.
Now salute the congregation. The candidate salutes with the due guard and sign. I present you in the name of Messiah with the rod of a messenger. May you use it with honor to our Master and with pleasure and comfort to yourself, and to a blessing for all Israel.
Brother Second Messenger, please clothe the candidate in the attire of a member of this congregation. The Second Messenger dresses the candidate. My Brother, we congratulate you with, much joy in our midst, and as the Cardinal Messenger I extend to you the right hand of fellowship, giving you the true grip, and with my left hand covering the region of the heart. May this sign always remind you of the utmost fidelity due to your brethren in the sincerity of your entire heart not to divulge to strangers, or to the world, nor to your brethren of the churches the working order and word of the Messengers, because only by passing through the degree of the black cross belonging to the last supper shall it be known to them. Nor shall you remove the black book from the hall, nor shall you give it to enemies, nor present it to the world, or persons not messengers nor duly initiated to bear the black cross, By a strict obedience to the will of Messiah in all the regulations given to messengers shall you possess His Spirit, and whatever truth or light you shall receive in this hall, and will in the future receive from the Lord are you allowed to present before the world, remembering the words of our Master, That which I have told you in the secret, shall you preach from the rostrums, and that which I have whispered to you, shall you halloo out as with bassoons.
The due guard is given in connection with the sign, grip, prayer or embrace. In prayer the left hand drops from the heart and both hands are extended, uplifted with the palms upwards. But in embrace the left hand drops from the heart and both hands are extended with the palms resting mutually on the middle of each brother’s upper arm, as a sign of fraternal love. The hand over the heart signifies sincere love and obedience, and the angels of God’s mansions in heaven approach the Messiah giving that sign, and in the same manner is He approached in the order of messengers on earth. It is also the sign by which the Cardinal and presiding officers are saluted when acting in the name of Messiah. Because in the Order of the Black Cross affiliated with the. Order of Messiah, is the due guard of affection and obedience also given to the generals and presiding officers of that Order, signifying the willingness of the entire heart to do the work of God.
The sign of a messenger is the right hand extended and the palm turned upwards, as in the moment you received the oil for anointing with prayerful and an inspirational devotion.
The grip of a messenger you were received by in entering this hail and at the door, when the Second Messenger received you with the thumb of his right hand resting in the palm of your right hand. That is the sign which Thomas, the apostle asked of Messiah, that the apostle might believe in His resurrection and transfiguration, or to place his finger in the wound of the Messiah. My Brother, may the wounds of the crucified Messiah always be found in the hands, feet and side of every messenger and may they feel the wounds from the cross in each other’s hands as often as they meet and salute each other.
The sign of secrecy or warning is given during meetings in the world, when danger arise among crafty enemies, who should come upon the assembled messengers or show violence against the speaker. The sign is given with an uplifted left hand, where the thumb is enclosed within the hand. When a messenger in the assembly should suddenly arise and give that sign, then danger is approaching, and time is given to disband the meeting. My Brother, when you place the nail of the thumb of your right hand on the closed lips of your mouth and look around for help, it is the sign of distress. Shows it. It can be used in meetings, where assistance against a mob becomes - necessary, and a messenger will understand the meaning. It shall only be given in emergencies, as it alludes to the event, when the servant of the chief priest struck Messiah on His mouth because He spoke the truth, also it shall be given when the world gives blows instead of thanks for your good effort in serving mankind with the truth from heaven. We are wishing you to advance on the path now entered upon. Therefore place your rod firmly on the ground for assistance from God whenever you are tired out, or prostrated from overwork, and receive new strength in the spirit and light from the Messiah. Be powerful in God, when you preach repentance before the world, but be weak as a child in your own strength, and pray always in your heart that the thunder and lightning from Sinai may not sound in the Gospel of Freedom, but the divine grace shall be the silent whisper of God’s love to the human soul. May your voice sound into the wilderness of the world’s despair, and your breath be as a fragrance from the flowers in paradise. Bring salvation to those perishing in the world and lift up the downtrodden in the soul, and tongues of spiritual fire shall baptize your words in the Light of Messiah and endow your mind with the eloquence of angels in the power of God and in the name of Messiah.
Administer to the sick in silent sittings at the bedside, and invoke the angels to do the healing in God, and to assist your effort according to your best knowledge about the law of cure or the soul of things to operate with upon soul, because Spirit is everlasting, and is the controling power of flesh and blood. Do not recommend persons not worthy or without love in their hearts to join this congregation, but allow those to come who are sincerely obeying the love of Messiah, and come by the spirit of free will and desire, and the blessing of our Father in the name of Messiah rest upon you from now and forever, Amen.
The Cardinal Messenger now salutes the candidate with the due guard and sign, and gives him the fraternal grip and sign of distress and secrecy which Jehovah gave to Moses on Sinai. The candidate responds by exchanging all signs. When the Cardinal is seated again, he gives a rap with his rod on the floor and all arise.
CARD: Brother First Messenger, have you a secret?
FIRST MES: I have!
CARD: How do you have it?
FIRST MES: On my lips.
CARD: Will you give it to me?
FIRST MES: I cannot give it by words, and only in danger and distress.
CARD: How will you give it?
FIRST MES: By sign.
CARD: Give it to me!
FIRST MES: It can be shown by none else but by the Cardinal Messenger.
CARD: Why so?
FIRST MES: Because the sign is the Messiah in His humiliation and distress, and cannot be given without cause except by the Cardinal, that no blasphemy shall be shown to the congregation.
CARD: So shall it be, and always be observed among messengers. Gives the sign, by placing the nail of the thumb of his right hand upon the closed lips. It is the distress of Messiah. Amen.
THE CONGREGATION: Amen! All are seated.
CARD: Brother Second Messenger, place the candidate in position south of the altar and facing the north.
SEC. MES does it: The Candidate is waiting.
CARD: Brother Candidate! This is the first time in your life that you are united with us in giving the symbolic signs, the due guard of God’s love, and the sign of your prayerful devotion. You were warned not to use the sign of distress except in extreme danger, but only a little while ago you gave that same sign in the midst of this congregation, and after having received it only a few minutes before. Please state the nature of your distress? ……
Very well, my Brother, when that sign is given shall no brother spare his life for to save a distressed messenger. Are you willing to render such an assistance on such an appeal and put aside all your own convenience for your brother’s sake?
CANDIDATE: Yes.
CARD: Therefore the sign is only shown in mortal danger and extreme self-defence, but there is another sign which we have used frequently this evening, and it is the sign of the cross. Before you are qualified to enter on the journey to the east and enter the city of the New Jerusalem, it will be necessary for you to be adorned with the cross. Do you have the cross in a black ribbon hanging a-round the neck?
CANDIDATE: No!
CARD: Therefore we presume, that without knowing why, you gave the sign of distress. The world is in distress without knowing why, and the entire nature is in a mortal distress from birth to death. May you remove that distress by the light of the cross, because all suffering and death is only a transitory state in the eternal pilgrimage of the spirit, but nothing of man’s or woman’s true life is perishable or will die into any eternal oblivion. Our Lord and Master was born into the distress and suffering of mankind, that He could have compassion with us, and save the lost tribes of Israel, wipe away the tears from the eyes of Rachel and fulfill God’s promises to Abraham; and you are now initiated as a fellow workman in His toil and suffering on earth. Therefore as a symbol of being engaged in His work to mankind I have the honor to approach you goes to the candidate and in the name of Messiah bestow upon you sinks the rod on the right shoulder of the candidate the Sir Knighthood of the Black Cross. Our Lord of Lords and King of Kings be your shelter and protection, and prepare your way across the battle-field of Jehovah into the Order of Messiah. My Brother Messenger, I invest you hereby in the name of Messiah, with the insignia of our Order, or the Black Cross hanging in a black ribbon around your neck or pinned on your left breast. Let this symbol of suffering in a dark and ignorant world always remind you of constant invocations to God for assistance. Invoke His holy angels to give you aid and power from the high heaven. In being a Knight of the Black Cross you are a Lord of the temple of the Messiah at Jerusalem as at Independence on this continent. Preach the Gospel of Freedom, and when the deliverer comes He shall deliver Israel from bondage and give freedom to the captive, and before His presence shall darkness be scattered by light, and creeds shall vanish away with priestcraft, social thraldom and political despotism. Go out in all the world and preach repentance to God and faith in His work, and baptism, and spiritual gifts by laying on of hands for the Spirit and healing and countless gifts from God. Gather up donations and free contributions for the building of the central temple at Independence, and the work to be done in this generation. Peace be with you. Rachab!
THE CONGREG: Jericho!
CARD: For a second time you listen to these words. Moses sent messengers as spies into the land of Canaan. They were surrounded by enemies and in danger of being killed. Rachab gave protection to them and in return she was honored and protected and became a woman in Israel after Jericho fell in the hands of the host of the Lord. Be not too great in your own estimation, but enter the low huts, and visit the lonely, forsaken, despised and suffering in the world as you would do the rich and great people on earth, because the Spirit of God do not judge according to external circumstances, but judge a true judgement according to the human heart. Therefore harlots, publicans and sinners shall enter the kingdom of God and be justified in the spirit of a contrite heart, and the elite who condemned shall be condemned; because my Brother, God’s paradise shall prove to be too narrow a place for the greatness and selfrighteousness and vanity of the world. Study the royal line of generations from where the Messiah came, and teach the spirit and truth of the tiding of freedom, and on your way as a Knight m the world governed by the spirit of the world you shall be known by the word Rachab.
It designates protection and good luck on a dangerous journey. It is given in the dark by night and on travels, where the due guard and sign cannot be given. The answer by a brother messenger is Jericho or success, and the Lord thy God be with thee. Amen.
The Cardinal Messenger goes to his seat and gives from there the due guard and sign which is responded to by the new messenger, and he is by the Second Messenger conducted to a seat and place in the congregation.
CARD: Brother Doorkeeper, do you have any news at the door or in the ante-room?
DOORK: Nothing at the door or in the ante-room. If there is any he tells it.
CARD: Brother First Messenger, do you have any message to bring before this congregation?
FIRST MES: Nothing. Or he says it.
CARD: Brother Second Messenger, what have you to say or bring before this congregation?
SEC. MES: Nothing or he says it Brother Cardinal, but what is your message from the Lord?
CARD: Nothing in the north from the high heavens or he says it but peace from God and the coming of our Lord the Messiah.
CONGREG: So mote it be!
CARD: Has any Brother a message or things to relate before this congregation?
SEC. MES: No response Brother Cardinal. If nobody answers.
The Cardinal Messenger knocks three times on the floor with the foot of his rod, and all arise and give united the due guard and sign.
Song or Music.
CARD: In the name of Messiah may we keep faithful to each other and trustworthy to that we have in truth, and obedient to the generals and superior in God we honor, that we may know what the world cannot know, but we know by the Holy Spirit, one with God eternally. Amen. I declare now this meeting of Messengers of ... congregation of … closed, and we will meet again by the will if God next Thursday evening, at eight o’clock sharp, as the time in the week when the last supper was eaten, before the crucifixion of our Master and Lord. Peace be with you, the peace of Messiah which exceeds all understanding rest upon all of you. The Cardinal makes the cross before him with his right hand, and with his left hand resting on the region of the heart.
We shall now again be entering the domain of this world, and I beseech you to let all missionary work be filled with caution and prudence, even as spies on the promised soil of the spiritual Canaan. Do not trust in wealth nor in favors shown by mighty men on earth, but trust in the favors of the God of Israel. He will guide you where His intelligence in the Spirit shall give you the right of way, either it be in the palaces of kings and rulers, or in low huts among toiling workmen, either it be among the destitute poor and the outcast among women, or in the fashionable parlors of a mentally perverted and hypocritical world. Bend down low your heads in the service of God, for to enter the door as Saviors of Rachab.
CONGREG: Jericho.
CARD: So shall it be! Light, knowledge and power from God our Father in the name of Messiah. Amen. Gives one rap on the floor and the meeting closes.

Conclusion and Discipline.

1. For not to encumber space during the printing of the Black Book, it must be understood when a templehall is occupied by Ladies, that "he" in the ritual about a messenger is substituted by "she," and the word "Knight" by "Lady."
2. The inauguration of a congregation of novices to be messengers, can only lawfully be executed by a duly initiated messenger, who received his high authority from Messiah by any of the generals, colonels, captains or knights belonging to the Order of Messiah, or such officers can also perform the initiation.
3. The twelve Lady colonels of the First council of generals of the Order of Messiah constitute the presidency for the Ladies’ congregations of messengers. Even as the twentyfour generals of the First council of the Order of Messiah constitute the presidency for the male congregations of messengers, with the third general as the officiating inspector general. A knight of the Black Cross cannot enter a congregation of Ladies of the Black Cross, nor can a Lady enter a congregation of knights during their work in the templehall, but they can mingle at social gatherings, processions, and in the work at ANNUAL GRAND UNION TEMPLEHALL SERVICES. A congregation of Ladies of the Black Cross can only be inspected by its own presidency of Lady colonels, over which the colonel at Independence, Mo. is presiding, but the congregations of Lady messengers are under supervision of the First council of generals to which the Lady colonels belong for instruction, correction and guidance if requested by initiations in the templehall. The cardinal for a congregation of Ladies has the power to extend invitation to any knight of the Order of Messiah or officer of the First council of generals for assistance in attending the meeting.
4. Every Messenger duly initiated or officer of the Order of Messiah, has a legal right to organize a congregation of messengers, and he or she can apply for and receive the necessary seven Black Books and a charter for the congregation. The copies of the Black Book shall after each service be preserved by the doorkeeper, and not be removed from the templehall, where they only can be seen and read by the messengers, and by special permission from above can strangers visit the place, and look at the book, but the doorkeeper will be responsible for that the Black Book is not stolen, nor taken away from the altar as it was done from the congregation of messengers in the Spirit. Such permissions for visits can be gained in the silent prayer circles during the silent half hour devotion, from the Messiah or His angels and administering spirits of the Order of Messiah, or by the generals of the same Order, or through the cardinal of the templehall.
5. Because the will of God and harmony must be adhered to on earth as in heaven, it becomes necessary that all work in the name of Messiah must obey His Order and His regulations. Therefore the First council of generals and any of its members, general or Lady colonel, has the authority in absence of the Third General and his secretary to issue charters on applications properly qualified to any congregation of novices headed by a duly initiated messenger or officer belonging to the Order of Messiah. Any appointment in the Order of Messiah is only subject to initiation of the degree of which he or she is a honorary member with right to preside over and conduct the work of; inferior degrees.
6. Every congregation of novices has a presiding Elder and a secretary, and because all its members are one ordained priesthood of elders and priests, seven of them headed by a messenger can make the application for a charter. Those seven sign their names on the charter below the general’s and secretary’s name, and frame it and hang it on the wall in the eventual fitted up templehall. Those seven novices receive the title of charter messengers with rank of cardinals, and right to bear the rosette on the headbands of their caps. Officers in a congregation of messengers are elected every year. Every retired cardinal continues to bear his rosette.
7. The secretary’s duty is to collect the small monthly dues agreed upon among the novices to defray expenses by which the congregation has to respond to for the rent of a templehall, chairs, altar, books, rods, garments, crosses, caps and other small things, and to assist the poor and needy among brethren and sisters, and help the traveling priesthood on their way coming and going preaching before the world.
The novices are coming from the different churches and the world into the fulness of the gospel, accepting the first principles and the priesthoods, and moving under the ribbon of the Black Cross into the gospel of freedom they receive the light of Messiah in its perfection and holiness, that knowledge and wisdom from spirits in the Messiah may come and commune with us on earth. In serving mankind and angels they shall be perfected to be served by angels in the Order of Messiah, and finally to receive the King, when Messiah comes with the hosts of His angels to His kingdom.

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