- Great Lights
- The three principal furnishings of every regular Lodge: the Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses. Together they distinguish a Masonic Lodge from any other assembly.
- Volume of the Sacred Law
- The book of sacred writ recognized by the candidate as binding upon his conscience; in Anglo-American Craft Masonry the Bible is most commonly used, but the obligation rests upon whatever volume the candidate holds sacred.
- Square
- A right-angled instrument of the operative builder, adopted in speculative Masonry as a symbol of morality: the rule by which we test the squareness of our actions toward all mankind.
- Compasses
- A pair of dividers used by the operative craftsman to circumscribe and lay out the workman's plan; in speculative Masonry, a symbol of the duty to keep one's desires and passions within due bounds.
- Furniture of the Lodge
- The Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses: the indispensable furnishings of every regular Lodge. So called because no Lodge can be opened, closed, or duly furnished without them.
- Lesser Lights
- Three lights, placed about the altar, said to represent the Sun, the Moon, and the Master of the Lodge. They are distinguished from the three Great Lights which are placed upon the altar itself.
- Altar
- In a Masonic Lodge, the central pedestal upon which the Volume of the Sacred Law, the Square, and the Compasses rest while the Lodge is at labor.
- Speculative Masonry
- The Masonry of moral and symbolic instruction, as distinguished from the operative Masonry of the builder's trade from which it took its forms.
- Operative Masonry
- The actual craft of building in stone, the medieval guild trade that supplied speculative Masonry with its tools, terms, and ceremonial framework.
- Regular Lodge
- A Lodge holding a warrant or charter from a recognized Grand Lodge and working in accord with the Ancient Landmarks and the laws of that Grand Lodge.