Grand United Order of Moses
Ritual of the Initiatory or First Degree
Opening Ceremony
1905
The hour having arrived for opening the Order, the R.W.L. takes the Chair and
Calls for order by two raps.
R.W.L.: All officers will please take their proper places; you and
all members Clothing yourselves in regalia.
R.W.L.: All who are not entitled to remain will please retire.
R.W.L. raps three times. All arise and march around the room three times.
R.W.H.P. Sing "Battle Hymn of the Republic."
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord;
He is trampling down the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning with his terrible swift sword
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps:
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read his righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps
His day is marching on.
I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel:
"As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on."
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.
R.W.H.P. reads Exodus—2:1-10: And there went a man of the house
of Levi, and took in wife a daughter of Levi.
And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a
goodly child, she hid him three months.
And when she could not longer hide him site took for him an ark of bulrushes,
and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid
it in the flags by the river’s brink.
And his sister stood afar off, to wit that would he done to
And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river: and her
maidens walked along by the river’s side: and when she saw the ark among the
flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.
And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold the babe wept. And
she bad compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrew’s children.
Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a
nurse of tile Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee?
And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the
child’s mother.
And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it
for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed
it.
And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he
became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him
out of the water.
R.W.L.: The R.W.H.P. will now lead in prayer.
Prayer
R.W.H.P.: Most Glorious Lord, tile maker of heaven and earth, the
giver of every good and perfect gift, make us duly sensible of our duties to
this noble brotherhood, and to the human race. Draw us nearer to Thee who art
our only refuge in the time of need and trouble. Give us the gentle wisdom from
above. Lead us by the cloud and fire of thy Holy Spirit out of the land of
bondage, from task-masters of sin, through the wilderness and seas out of the
way of the wicked that troubles, into the land of promise and rest. Amen. Amen.
Amen.
An ode is sung.
R.W.L.: The R.W.G. will examine all who are present to see if they
are in Possession of the watch-word and properly dressed in regalia and report
to me all those without the word and regalia.
R.W.G. reports: R.W.L., officers and members, the Order is
purified or (as the case may be) not purified.
R.W.L.: All those who are not in possession of the watchword will
stand upon their feet until the word is given you by the Guide, if you are
entitled to it, and if you are not, please retire at once.
R.W.G. reports: R.W.L., officers and members, the Order is
purified.
R.W.L.: The R.W. Secretary will please call the roll.
Members answer: Present.
R.W.L.: The R. W. Secretary will read the minutes of last meeting.
R.W.L.: If there be no objections the minutes stand approved.
R.W.L. calls the officers who shall respond to their duties. Standing upon
their feet.
R.W.L.: R.W.L., what is your duty?
R.W.L.: It is my duty to enforce the laws, rules and regulations
of the Order.
R.W.L.: Vice R.W.L., what is your duty?
Vice R.W.L.: It is my duty to assist the R.W.L.
R.W.L.: R.W. Leaderess, what is your duty?
R.W. Leaderess: It is my duty to take charge of Lodge jewels and
regalia, also to assist the R.W.L. in keeping good order, giving excuses and
carrying out the rules and regulations of the Order.
R.W.L.: R.W.H.P., what is your duty?
R.W.H.P.: It is my duty to conduct the religious exercises of the
Order, and report to the Lodge the condition of the sick members.
R.W.L.: R.W. Secretary, what is your duty?
R.W. Secretary: It is my duty to keep an accurate minute of the
proceedings of the Order, and receive all fees, dues and fines and pay them to
the R.W. Treasurer, and take receipt for the same.
R.W.L.: R.W. Assistant Secretary, What is your duty?
R.W. Assistant Secretary: It is my duty to assist the K. W.
Secretary when necessary.
R.W.L.: R.W. Guide, what is your duty?
R.W. Guide: It is my duty to see that the Order is purified and
report the same to the R.W.L. before the transaction of any business.
R.W.L.: R.W.M., what is your duty?
R.W.M.: It is my duty to have charge of the inner door, act as
first sergeant in all marches and assist the R.W. Guide in taking the watch or
password see that members are properly dressed in their regalia and report in
the same manner.
R.W.L.: R.W. Sentinel, what is your duty?
R.W. Sentinel: It is my duty to have charge of the outer door and
see that none enter who are not entitled.
R.W.L.: R.W. Past, what is your duty?
R.W. Past: It is my duty to give counsel and fill vacancies of
higher offices.
R.W.L.: The R.W. Secretary will call the list of absentees of
officers and members. Each absentee shall state why
absent.
Initiation
In the ante-room the C. takes off wraps and with right hand upon the Bible,
takes the following solemn obligation: In
the name of God, Amen. I do solemnly affirm that it is the open desire of my
pure heart to become one of this noble brotherhood, if so be I am found worthy.
I promise to be true and honest; to visit the sick; and to stand by the G. U. O.
of M. and its members to walk uprightly in the order, and not to bring any mark
of reproach upon it; to keep the secrets thereof; to carry out its mandates, and
to live according to the principles of Industry, Unity, Morality, Temperance,
Charity and Brotherly Love; the Lord being my helper; and on penalty of the
seven plagues of Egypt if I fail in aught. Amen. Kiss
the book.
The Candidate is Blindfolded. If the Candidate is a male member he is made to
C. b. the P. e.
The Rope is wrapped around the arms and body of Candidate, tying them down.
The P. W. S. raps three times distinctly, and says at the same tune:
A lost child (or children ) is (are) found, seemingly a proper child, is found.
Will you care for him?
R.W.S. answers by two raps and says: I will seek and discover if
such can be done, provided he indeed be a proper child.
R.W.G. reports in the same words of the R.W.S. to the R.W.L.S. who reports to
the R.W.L. who inquires if the Candidate be found worthy and proper and if there
be any objections.
R.W.L.: Instruct the R.W.M. to go outside and bring in the
Candidate and caution him to be careful.
At this time the Lodge is called to rise by three raps on the gavel by the
R.W.L. and all sing the following ode:
Four hundred thirty years, O Lord,
In Egypt Israel dwelt,
Till thou didst hear thy people cry
And pity for them felt.
Up from the bulrush basket then
Thou callest Moses meek,
Made Pharaoh’s daughter save the child
Who should to Pharaoh speak.
By burning bush and serpent rod,
And sudden leprous hand,
Didst thou convince thy chosen one
That all thy words should stand.
With seven awful plagues, O God,
Thou broughtest Israel out
Through sea and desert, fire and sword,
To Canaan with a shout.
Now here behold a seeking child
Who would with Moses walk:
Giant to protect his feeble steps,
And deign with him to talk.
Keep back the Philistines that wait
Not far from this dread place;
Make this child strong for each degree,
And give him of thy grace.
The Candidate is brought in by the R.W.M. and marched around the room three
times and halted at the R.W.L.’s stand, and she reads: My dear
child, remember that, made from the dust, as Moses and all men are, God has
declared that thou shalt die, though thy sister watch over thee, thy mother
nurse thee, and even a royal princess claim thee. Be not led away by the Devil
into sin and lose thy soul; but cling to that which is good, like Moses of old.
Forget not God thou be lost forever.
Pause here and have B. and C. n. k. e. the C. n. and g. 5 times; then h. a
solemn ode. The R.W.L. raps 2 times. All come to order. The Candidate is marched
in front of the altar to the R.W.H P. who reads: My child, this world
is a great wilderness, a place of sorrow deep, woe unutterable and affliction
severe, and death inevitable. No friend is it to grace to help us on to God.
A Pharaoh leys burdens on every child of true blood. Moses and his fellows
found it thus, and so do we. I charge thee obey the Lord thy God. Love Him
supremely and thy neighbor as thyself. Shun evil associates; tell the truth;
live peaceably with all men; be true to God, and to thyself and to thy brother
and sister.
Candidate answers: This will I do the Lord so help and save me
from the wrath to come.
R.W.H.P. kneels with Candidate and all the lodge, and prays.
Prayer
To thee Jehovah and the great I Am, we present this child who knocks for
entrance to this mystic brotherhood. By warning in solemn word and ode we have
sought to impress upon his mind the weighty obligation he must take and carry.
Purge his heart and brace his soul that he may be worthy of deliverance from a
land that requires bricks without straw.
Amen, amen, amen.
Wouldst thou lead him out of the Goshen of sinful pleasure into the Canaan of
spiritual plenty. Establish thy covenant with us this night; rid us of our
burdens; redeem us with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments; give to
us each the heritage of promise. Give water from the rock, bread from the skies,
and write a law on the mountain tops that shall guide our feet in, the valleys.
Amen, amen, amen.
Establish thou in this lodge the passover from sin to righteousness and let
no stranger eat thereof; neither let it be carried abroad out of this house.
Amen, amen, amen.
Let fear and dread fall upon us, O God; let thy people pass over; let thy
people pass over, let thy people pass over.
Bring thou them in, plant them in the mountain of thy inheritance; in the
place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in; in the sanctuary, O
Lord, which thy hands have established.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
All rise: Amen, Amen, Amen.
Candidate is escorted to the stand of R.W.L.; turns face to the altar of the
R.W.H.P. who reads Exodus
2: 1-10:
And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of
Levi.
And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a
goodly child, she bid him three months
And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes,
and daubed it with slime and with pitch and put the child therein; and she laid
it in the flags by the river’s brink.
And his sister stood afar off; to wit what would be done to him.
And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her
maidens walked along by the river’s side: and when she saw the ark among the
flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.
And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept.
And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.
Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a
nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee?
And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the
child’s mother.
And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it
for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed
it.
And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and be
became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him
out of the water.
Closing the Book the R.W.H.P. then says: My child, you have
traveled thus far well; but remember you have just made a step into the portals
and principles of our noble order. Beauty, law and love await you further on. We
shall feed you with the word of truth, water you with sympathy, and care for you
with vigilance lest you fall. Hear the word of God and your soul shall live.
R.W.M. loosens the bandage and gives light to the Candidate and unties the
Knot.
R.W.M. then conducts the Candidate to the R.W.P.L. who reads: My
dear one, we make you welcome to our grand Order. May you be faithful to God and
to us. Let the light of Jesus Christ shine into your soul, and may you keep your
eye upon the bright Morning Star; living the life that you may die the death and
meet in the Grand Lodge above where parting is no more.
All shake hands and sing an ode of joy. Put regalia on the Candidate and give
him the g. and p. w.
G.F.F. pressed tightly on each others pl. Other than this the usual grasp of
the hand.
R.W.L. gives three raps. All arise and form a around the Candidate.
R.W.L. asks the Candidate: Where do you stand?
Candidate answers: Within a circle.
R.W.H.P.: What is your guide?
Candidate: The Book, Rod and Staff.
R.W.L.: Friend, which way are you traveling.
Candidate answers: I am traveling from Egypt to Canaan.
The whole lodge says: Amen, Amen, Amen, and
marches around singing the ode.
‘Tis the promise of God, full salvation to give
Unto him who on Jesus, his Son, will believe.
Cho.—Hallelujah, ‘tis done I believe on the Son;
I am saved by the blood of the crucified one;
Hallelujah, ‘tis done! I believe on the Son;
I am saved by the blood of the crucified one.
Tho’ the pathway be lonely, and dangerous too,
Surely Jesus is able to carry me through.
Many loved ones have I in you heavenly throng
They are safe now in glory, and this is their song:
There’s a part in that chorus for you and for me,
And the theme of our praises forever will be:
End of Initiation
R.W.L.: What is the condition of our members? Are any sick or in
distress?
R.W.L.: Are there any applying for degrees?
R.W.L.: Has any one anything for the Moses Old Folks’ Home?
R.W.L.: Is there any who wish to subscribe for ‘Our Leader’.
R.W.L.: Unfinished business.
R.W.L.: Has any one anything to offer for the benefit of the
Order?
R.W.L.: The whole Lodge will join in prayer with the R.W.H.P.
Closing Exercises
R.W.L.: Right Worshipful Marshal, notify the R.W. Sentinel that we
are about to close.
R.W.M.: R.W.L., the Sentinel has been notified.
R.W.L. raps three times, all rise: Fellow travellers in the Moses,
we are about to quit the sacred work and mix again with the affairs of life
common to all. Let us not forget our pledge, do good to all.
The whole Lodge shall say: Within the circle we shall stand with
our eyes fixed upon Christ our bright and morning star. The Bible as our guide,
and the Staff as the support of divine power. Our promises are within the Ark of
the Covenant, that shall safely lead us through the seas of troubles into the
Canaan of rest.
R.W.L. raps twice. The whole Lodge sings:
Rock of ages, cleft for me!
Let me hide myself in thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From thy wounded side that flowed,
Be of sin the double cure
Cleanse me from its guilt and power.
R.W.L.: Members will look well to the closing signs.
Point three times to the East, three times heavenward. Clap the hands
together.
R.W.L.: I declare this lodge to be closed.
All the Lodge: Yea, Lord, so let it be.