We learn differently than we did a century ago, we don't have exposure to large parts of the Western intellectual heritage. This makes it more challenging as we move through the degrees of Masonry. The words and phrases are from another time and often reference ideas that the 19th century man would have easily recognized but for us it is The cultural references and the religious references of the degrees of Masonry were once part of the shared liberal arts education, this is no longer the case makes the degrees harder to approach and more study to appreciate their context. This is a different type of book, consider it a Primer, an elementary textbook serving as an introduction to the subject. The reader will find a walk-through of the Middle Chamber, what it's component parts allude to, and a healthy dose of what they could be alluding to... but remember that this is meant to be the starting point of a lifetime's reflection on the degree not a wholistic capstone defining your experience.