The Ancient and Masonic Order of the Scarlet Cord is the most recent Masonic Order to become widely accessible to brethren in the United Kingdom and is one of the fastest growing Orders in Masonry today.
It is open to Princes of the Order of the Secret Monitor, and it remains very closely associated with that Order, indeed some of its ritual dates back to previous versions of the Secret Monitor degrees.
Like most Masonic Orders, The Order of the Scarlet Cord's ceremonies are based upon biblical allegory, centred on incidents found in the Old Testament.
In the first three degrees, or Grades of the Order, which are conferred progressively on all members, the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity are espoused; We are told about Rahab, who hid the Jewish spies from the King of Jericho’s Guards, and of Ruth and her eventual marriage to Rahab’s son, Boaz, and the birth of her own son, Obed, who was the grandfather of David.
The later Grades, conferred by merit and seniority, refer to periods after David’s death, and that of his son Solomon, we learn of the latter years of the Temple and the eventual loss of its treasures.
Historically, the story ranges from the Siege of Jericho through the fall of the First Temple and eventually to the fate of the Second Temple and revolt of the Maccabees.