I post the following to honor the memory and last wishes of my friend, teacher and Masonic Brother, Ray Clinton Lee.
Thank you, My Brother.
Sincerely,
Robert Charles Chumbley
"Almighty and most merciful God, in whom we live, and move, and have our being, and before whom all men must appear to render an account for the deeds done in the body, we do most earnestly beseech Thee, as we now surround the grave of our fallen brother, to impress deeply, upon our minds the solemnities of this day. May we ever remember that 'in the midst of life we are in death,' and so live and act our several parts as we will desire to have done when the hour of our departure is at hand.
"And oh! Gracious Father, vouchsafe us, we pray Thee, Thy Divine assistance, to redeem our misspent time; and in the discharge of the duties Thou hast assigned us, in the erection of our moral edifice, may we have wisdom from on high to direct us; strength commensurate with our task to support us; and the beauty of holiness to adorn and render our performances acceptable to Thy sight. And, at last, when our work on earth is done, when the mallet of Death shall call us from our labors, may we obtain a blessing and everlasting rest in that Spiritual House, not made with hands, eternal in the Heavens."
Our Father, who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, As it is in Heaven. Give us this day
our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever, Amen.
May the blessings of Heaven rest upon us and all regular Masons. May brotherly love prevail, and every oral and social virtue cement us. Amen.
So mote it be.