Jesus, the Lamb of God, was crucified during the time of Passover and so became our symbolic paschal lamb. (Words in square brackets are supplied by me.) The term 'paschal' originally related to the Passover, or Seder, of the Jews, and the paschal lamb was a lamb slaughtered and eaten on the eve of the first day of Passover. Heraldry defines it thus: a representation of a lamb passant having around its head a nimbus and supporting on the dexter shoulder a crosslike staff bearing a flag argent charged with a cross gules. This symbol is sometimes referred to by the Latin name Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) or in heraldry, Holy Lamb. The paschal lamb atop the square has long been a symbol of Christ, apparently coming into use about the 15th Century. As stones are cut to fit into a building, so our acts and thoughts are built together into a structure of character badly or firmly and must be tested by a moral standard of which the simple square is a symbol. Since the square was used by operative masons to prove that angles were 90° or 'right,' it naturally became an emblem of accuracy, integrity, and rightness. Additionally, we are taught that the square is a symbol of morality.

The square, as we know, is the jewel of office of the Worshipful Master of a Blue Lodge. The square is to remind you that friendship and love should ever govern Freemasons and particularly Knights Templar. The jewel is a square, surmounted by a paschal Lamb. The metal is silver color for both the suspension bar and the jewel as it is for all remaining officers' jewels as well. The jewel of the Generalissimo is shown at right. As I have already discussed the Latin Cross and the Passion Cross in a previous article in the Knight Templar magazine (January 2010, pages 24-28), I will refer the reader to that article and proceed to the next officer. The rays of light are symbols that suggest to you the humility, love, and pure benevolence that emanate like rays from the religion of the Blessed Emmanuel. The jewel is a passion cross surmounted by rays of light. The jewel of the Eminent Commander is gold color for both the suspension bar at the top and the jewel. Thus, as is the case with most Masonic symbols, their interpretation may take many forms-thus, no one interpretation or set of interpretations can be considered as 'correct' or definitive.

Before proceeding, however it is important to remember that the symbolic interpretations of any object are dependent upon the person or cultural group doing the interpretation. Then I will extend the symbolism as applicable. For each jewel I will first state what is said about its emblem in the installation (given in bold italics). We will start with the office of Eminent Commander and work down the line. However, as this article will demonstrate, the symbolism may be extended beyond that stated in the installation. A brief allusion to the symbolic significance or explanation of the jewel emblem for each office is given in the script for the Commandery installation of officers. These are suspended from a black and white ribbon (although the ribbon may sometimes be green) and are pinned above the left pocket of the uniform coat. Many Commanderies use breast jewels for their officers.

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