Theophilanthropy : A ( Masonic ) Plan for Deist Worship
of faith … or a superstitious faith . He freely adopted the enlightened faith that the initiation presented him with , this simple and reasoned faith that makes him recognize his relations with his creator and with his peers … encourages him in the practice of all public and private virtues . 24
During the Revolution , the citizens of Strasbourg had practiced the new faiths “ with gravity and conviction ” 25 . In 1827 , an Alsacien Mason , Brother Riebesthal , published a curious pamphlet entitled Rituel maçonnique pour tous les rites [ Masonic Rituals for All Ceremonies ] 26 . It is a surprise to discover there rituals for conducting The Festival of the Revival of Nature at the spring equinox , The Festival of the Triumph of Light at the summer solstice , The Festival of Nature ’ s Rest at the autumn equinox , and The Festival of the Regeneration of Light at the winter solstice . Nature , regeneration – the very titles of these festivals , completely unknown in eighteenth century Freemasonry , of course recall the religious experiments of the Revolution 27 . This association and the religious orientation that it suggests are confirmed in two other rituals explained by Riebesthal : the “ Masonic Baptism of a Louveton ( at under three years of age )”, and the “ Confirmation of a Louveton ( who has reached the age of seventeen )”. Finally , the work concludes with a list of “ Common holidays during the year ” which also unavoidably recalls the republican calendar and Theophilanthropy . Each of the 52 Sundays of the year has been assigned a moral or philosophical theme as part of a Festival of Honor , of Sincerity , of Brotherly Love , of Wisdom , of Patriotism , of Candor , of Reason , of Patience , of Mercy , and of Concord . Riebesthal explains that these ceremonies are aimed at :
better experiencing the effect and feeling the advantage of the reasonable , natural and purely moral faith that Freemasonry should profess 28 . ... The ceremonies that it employs and the emblems with which it adorns its temples have the goal of inspiring man with the most pure morality , of interesting him in the good of humanity , of revealing to him the truth and of making him attentive to the phenomena of nature , to lift his soul and urge him to contemplate the night sky where myriad stars in their resplendent light announce to him and prove to him the existence of the incomprehensible Being who possesses the ultimate in power , in grandeur , and in all the perfections . 29
These words trace almost verbatim the maxims of Theophilanthropy . It should be no surprise , then , that the Paris correspondent of Brother Riebesthal and his Strasbourg Lodges was Brother Chemin- Dupontès . These para-masonic ceremonies , which were all the rage in the nineteenth century and are still sometimes practiced today – “ adoption ” or “ masonic baptism ”,
24
Cours pratique de Franc-maçonnerie publié sur la demande et sous les auspices de la R ∴ L ∴ Isis-Montyon , by F ∴C ∴Dupontès , third section , degree of Master , Paris , 1841 , p . 182 .
25
Albert Mathiez , op . cit ., p . 491-492 .
26
Ch . -G . Riebesthal , Rituel maçonnique pour tous les rites , Strasbourg , Silbermann , s . d . [ 1826 ].
27
See : Pierre Mollier , “ Chrétien-Guillaume Riebesthal : Des religions de la Révolution aux cérémonies paramaçonniques ” in Les Frères Réunis à Strasbourg , une loge maçonnique engagée , catalog of the exhibition presented at the History Museum of the City of Strasbourg from October 15 , 2011 to February 5 , 2012 , ID Edition , 2011 , pp . 43-47 .
28
Ch . -G . Riebestal , op . cit ., p . 8 .
29
Ch . -G . Riebestal , op . cit ., Preface , p . VIII . 10