The Point Within A Circle

Short Papers Competition 2009 © 2010 Internet Lodge and the author Paper 23/2009 Title The Point Within a Circle Author Bro Kerry LeBoutillier – Australia Brethren, let’s turn our attention to the point within a circle. This is represented in a lodge room by a motif on one side of the altar. It depicts a circle surrounding a dot, which lies at its centre. The circle is enclosed by two perpendicular lines. A casual observer may look at it and wonder about its meaning. Let’s break it up into segments. The perpendicular lines are said to represent the patron saints of the orders of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist. Anyone who studies fr eemasonry would not take long to realise that geometry is at the heart of just about everything. What could be more geometric than parallel lines? The point within the circle is said to represent an individual brother while the circumference of the circle is said to be the boundary line of his duty to God and man. There is small part of my own lodges ritual when the master picks up the compasses and describes a circle with them. At the same time he says, "... you are now at liberty to work with them in order to render the circle of your Masonic duties complete."
But there is a deeper meaning, much older than we may imagine. The point within the circle is a much older symbol and the author believes it to be at the root of the secrets of modern freemasonry. Symbolism often has two meanings. One is meant for all the world to read and know. The other is a kind of code for something much deeper. When we read "deeper" we can substitute "older". Just as the meanings of words change in today's language, the language of symbols has changed. Symbols have been hijacked from one religion by another.
This author believes that the point within a circle symbolises the Earth travelling around the Sun. This was the Copernican view of the universe, something that was considered heresy in its time. At the dawn of modern Freemasonry, this fact, if accepted, could easily have led to excommunication, a fate far worse than any earthly penalty then.
But freemasons have always been free thinkers. I believe that they accepted that the Earth was not the centre of our Universe, but it was a fact that needed to be kept secret to all but the initiated. Could this be the symbolism behind dressing our initiates as medieval heretics.
Look around the room. Look at the motifs and symbols you see about you. It is a far more interesting place when we not only question what they are, but we find out their hidden meaning. References: http://www.sacred-texts.com/mas/sof/sof17.htm http://www.freemasons-freemasonry.com/point_within_circle.html http://watch.pair.com/symbol.html http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/mackeys_encyclopedia/