Knights of the Christian Mark, and Guards of the Conclave
This Conclave is governed by an Invincible Knight of the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, a Senior and Junior Knight, six Grand Ministers, Recorder, Treasurer, Conductor, and Guard.
Opening.—“Sir Junior Knight, are all convened in a secret place, and secured from the prying eye of the profane?”
“We are, Invincible.”
“Sir Senior Knight, instruct the Sir Knights to assemble in form for the purpose of opening this Invincible Order.”
The members kneel on both knees in a circle, each with his right hand on his heart, his left on his forehead.
Prayer.—“Eternal source of life, of light, and perfection, Supreme God and Governor of all things, liberal dispenser of every blessing! We adore and magnify Thy holy name for the many blessings we have received from Thy hands, and acknowledge our unworthiness to appear before Thee; but for the sake, and in the name of Thy atoning Son, we approach Thee as lost and undone children of wrath; but through the blood of sprinkling, and the sanctification of the Holy Ghost, we come imploring a continuation of Thy favors, for thou hast said, that he who cometh to Thee through faith in the Son of Thy love, Thou wilt in no wise cast out; therefore, at the foot of the cross we come, supplicating pardon for our past offences, that they may be blotted out from the book of Thy remembrance and be seen no more, and that the remainder of our days may be spent as becometh the followers of the Holy One of Israel; and graciously grant that love, harmony, peace, and unity may reign in this Council; that one spirit may animate us—one God reign over us—and one heaven receive us, there to dwell in Thine adorable presence forever and ever. Amen.”
The Invincible Knight takes the Bible and waves it four times over his head, saying, “Rex regnantium, et Dominus dominantium;” [that is, King of kings, and Lord of Lords;] kisses it and passes it on his right; it goes around until it comes again to the Invincible Knight, who opens and reads, Matthew v. 3-12, 16.
Always interlace the fingers of the left hand, draw your sword and present it to the heart, and say, “Tammuz Touliumeth, I pronounce this Convention opened in ample form. Let us repair to our several stations, and strictly observe silence.”
Preparation.—The candidate is shown into the anti-chamber by the conductor, who clothes him in a gown of brown stuff, and leads him to the door of the Council chamber, where he knocks twice, six, and two—2, 6, and 2.
Junior Knight—“Some one knocks for admission, Invincible Knight.” Invincible—“See who it is and make report.” J. K. (goes to the door and reports)—“One that is faithful in good works wishes admission here.” Inv.—“What good works hath he performed?” J. K.—“He hath given food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, and clothed the naked with a garment.” Inv.—“Thus far he hath done well; but there is still much for him to do. To be faithful in my house, saith the Lord, he should be filled with love for my people. If so, let him enter under the penalties of his symbolic obligation.” He enters, makes signs until he arrives at the altar, there kneels.
Vow.—“I, A. B., do promise and vow, with this same volume clasped in my hands, that I will keep secret the words, signs, tokens, and grips of this Order of Knighthood from all but those Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, who have shown a Christian disposition to their fellow-men, are professors of the Christian faith, and have passed through the degrees of symbolic Masonry; and that I will protect and support, as far as in me lies, the followers of the Lord Jesus Christ; feed them, if hungry; give them drink, if thirsty; if naked, clothe them with garments; teach them, if ignorant; and advise them for their good and their advantage. All this I promise in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; and if I perform it not, LET ME BE ANATHEMA MARANATHA! ANATHEMA MARANATHA!” [i.e., accursed at the coming of the Lord.]
The Invincible Knight interlaces the fingers of his left hand with those of the candidate, who lays his right hand on his heart. The Invincible Knight draws his sword; the Senior Knight does the same; they cross them on the back of the candidate’s neck, and the Invincible Knight says, “By virtue of the high power in me vested, by a bull of His Holiness, Pope Sylvester, I dub you a Knight of the Christian Mark, member of the Grand Council, and Guard of the Grand Conclave.” The Invincible Knight then whispers in his ear, “Tammuz Touliumeth.” The Knights come to order; the Senior Knight takes his seat; the candidate continues standing; the conductor brings a white robe; the Senior Knight says:
“Thus saith the Lord, he that believeth and endureth to the end shall overcome, and I will cause his iniquities to pass from him, and he shall dwell in my presence forever and ever. Take away his filthy garments from him, and clothe him with a change of raiment. For he that overcometh the same shall be clothed in white raiment, and his name shall be written in the Book of Life, and I will confess his name before my Father and his holy angels. He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the true believer. Set ye a fair mitre upon his head, place a palm in his hand, for he shall go in and out and minister before me, saith the Lord of hosts; and he shall be a disciple of that rod taken from a branch of the stem of Jesse. For a branch has grown out of his root, and the spirit of the Lord hath rested upon it; the spirit of his wisdom, and might, and righteousness is the girdle of his loins and faithfulness the girdle of his vine, and he stands as an insignia to the people, and him shall the Gentiles seek, and his rest shall be glorious. Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, every one with the destroying weapon in his hand.”
The six Grand Ministers came forward from the north with swords and shields. The first is clothed in white, and has an ink-horn by his side, and stands before the Invincible Knight, who says:
“Go through the city: run in the midst thereof and smite: let not thine eye spare, neither have pity; for they have not executed my judgments with clean hands, saith the Lord or Hosts.”
The candidate is instructed to exclaim:
“Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, and my dwelling has been In the tents of Kedar, and among the children of Meshec.”
Then he that has the ink-horn by his side, takes a live branch with the tongs from the altar, and touches the lips of the candidate, and says:
“If ye believe, thine iniquities shall be taken away, thy sins shall be purged. I will that these be clean with the branch that shall be given up before me. All thy sins are removed, and thine iniquities blotted out. For I have trodden the wine-press alone, and with me was none of my people. For behold, I come with dyed garments from Bozrah, mighty to save. Refuse not, therefore, to hearken; draw not away thy shoulders; shut not thine ear, that thou shouldest not hear.”
The six Ministers now proceed as if they were about to commence the slaughter, when the Senior Knight says to him with the ink-horn:
“Stay thine hand; proceed no further until thou hast set a mark on those that are faithful in the house of the Lord, and trust in the power of his might. Take ye the signet, and set a mark on the forehead of my people that have passed through great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and have made them white in the blood of the Lamb, which was slain from the foundation of the world.”
The Minister takes the signet and presses it on the candidate’s forehead. He leaves the mark in red letters, “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.” The Minister opens the scroll and says, “Sir Invincible Knight, the number of the sealed are one hundred and forty and four thousand.” The Invincible Knight strikes four, and all the Knights stand before him. He says, “Salvation belongeth to our God, which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.” All the members fall on their faces, and say “Amen. Blessing, honor, glory, wisdom, thanksgiving, and power, might, majesty, and dominion, be unto our God forever and ever. Amen.” They all cast down crowns and palm branches, and rise up and say, “Great and numberless are thy works, thou King of saints. Behold the star which I laid before Joshua, on which is engraved seven eyes, as the engraving of a signet, shall be set as a seal on thine arm—as a seal on thine heart; for love is stronger than death: many waters cannot quench it. If a man would give all the treasures of his house for love, he cannot obtain it; it is the gift of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord.”
Charge.—“Invincible Knight, I congratulate you on your having been found worthy to be promoted to this honorable Order of Knighthood. It is highly honorable to all those worthy Knights, who with good faith and diligence, perform its many important duties. The honorable situation to which you are now advanced, and the illustrious office which you now fill is one that was much desired by the first noblemen of Italy, but ambition and jealousy caused his highness, Pope Alexander, to call on his ancient friend, the Grand Master of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem, to guard his person and the Holy See, as those Knights were known to be well grounded in the faith, and zealous followers of the Lord. The members of the guard were chosen BY THEIR COUNTENANCES, for it is believed that a plain countenance is an indication of the heart; and that no stranger should gain admission and discover the secrets of this august assembly, this Order of the Christian Mark was conferred on those who went about doing good, and following the example of their illustrious Master, Jesus Christ. Go thou and do likewise.
Motto.—“Christus regnat, vincit, triumphat;” [i.e., Christ rules, conquers, triumphs.] Rex regnantium, et Dominus dominantium.
Israel on the left breast, a triangular plate of gold, seven eyes engraved on one side, on the other the letter G in the five points.