FREEMASONRY AND THE HOLY SCRIPTURES
Non-masons who attend the Craft’s installation ceremonies are invariably puzzled and attracted at the presence of a Holy Bible at the altar. More so if a Holy Quran is also placed beside it. Which generally strike them in wonderment and awe saying “What kind of religious organization is this?”

Before I tackle that question, allow me first to comment on all the objects atop the altar.. These comprise the “Three Great Lights of Masonry”, although at times the items are not only three but four; namely, the Holy Bible, the Square, the Compasses, and a Holy Quran.

Curiously, this modified phrase has existed for several centuries already but it seemed our ancient brethren did not mind the difference, so the word “Bible” has remained unchanged although it should have been modified long ago.

For the purpose of this article therefore, let me focus on the phrase “The Holy Bible.”, and more specifically, the King James Version to expound on the theme of this article..

THE HOLY BIBLE

The Holy Bible is no doubt the most widely translated and printed book man ever wrote. Consisting of two parts called the Old and New Testaments, the former was written in the “Habiru” or Hebrew language while the latter was in Greek,, both of which were, over a period of time, translated by the Roman Church into Latin and was made the basis for converting the Christians to the faith. In current times, it is said that there is no language on earth that exists does not have a local translation of the Holy Bible and although this claim cannot be verified with a reasonable degree of accuracy considering the magnitude of work that it will entail, it is safe to declare that it may indeed be so. In the Philippines for example, most of the local dialects possess translations that can be called their own; and if by chance the reader thinks this assumption is absurd, he better listen to Ely Soriano over the airwaves as he expounds his commentaries on his “Dating Daan” burgeoning Christian sect..

But whether these printed copies are ever opened and read is an entirely different story; and it is not impolite to ask: “Do you ever touch your own copy at your bookshelf?”

THE KING JAMES (OR THE AUTHORIZED) VERSION

The first thing that immediately comes to mind when the King James Version of the Holy Bible is mentioned is: “Just who the heck is King James?” Is he related to any of the characters mentioned in the Holy Bible during the time of Jesus Christ like Judas, Saul, Simon Peter or Paul?!

Well, this writer declares that King James has a namesake in the New Testament which allegedly is a brother of Jesus who continued the advocacy of the Messiah immediately after the latter’s death, but other than this similarity, no other attachment can be added to it. While this writer was able to trace the renderings or equivalent translations of several Anglo-Saxon names like Moses, John and Jesus to the Castilian Moises, Juan and Jesus, and thereafter to the Jewish Moshe, Yohan and Yeshu, he cannot decipher the English name James that was translated to the Castilian Santiago. But let’s get back to King James before we are accused of electioneering in the 2009 ANCOM.

Seriously now, King James’ real name was James Charles Stuart who was born on June 19, 1566 at Edinburg Castle in Scotland. He was crowned king James VI at the tender age of 13 months after his father’s murder and his mother’s abdicating the throne almost immediately after the murder.

Like many monarchs of the time, James never knew his parents and was thus raised by four tutors in succession, George Buchanan of whom, at 68 years of age, was the most influential. James became fluent in Latin, French, English, and Scots and was also schooled in Italian and Spanish. It was held that he needed no interpreter when entertaining other heads of state as he was found fluent in their respective dialects.

At age nineteen, he began his role as king of Scotland and ruled it well. Robert Lomas, a current Masonic writer and historian claims in one of his bestsellers that King James was made a mason during his reign as king of Scotland; Although he was not able to validly support his claim, this is hardly surprising because the famous Roslyn Chapel that is the crowning glory of the Knights Templar that still exist today was built in Scotland and at the precise era of his reign..

After the death of Queen Elizabeth of England in 1603, King James VI was also crowned King James I of England thereby uniting the two kingdoms and ruled both with superb administrative skills thus avoiding the threat of both internal and external conflicts from within and without his two kingdoms, a feat that was hardly recognized by later historians.
A rabid evangelist and believer of the Christian faith, in addition to the fact that English monarchs automatically also become the spiritual head of their kingdoms, he commissioned fifty four (54) linguists and scholars to translate the two volumes from the original Hebrew and Greek languages that were written in Hebrew and Greek respectively, to the prevailing English language of the time.
It was finally completed in 1611 and despite the opposition of its detractors, notably the Papacy, it was hailed by the English world that the King James Bible of 1611 as the absolute and final word of God. This translated work got further boost when the printing press was later invented and thus paved way for its circulation not only in the British isles but also in Europe and most especially in the northern hemisphere where he was the founding monarch of the United States since it was on his reign that the first successful colonies were planted on the American mainland, notably Virginia, Massachusetts and Nova Scotia (Latin for New Scotland) in Canada.
An unforgettable vignette in American history is George Washington’s use of the King James Version of the Holy Bible when he was installed first president of the United States.
THE USE OF THE HOLY BIBLE BY THE FREEMASONS

Masonic customs and traditions have it that a copy of the Holy Bible should always adorn the altar and that no lodge can be formally opened without it. Understandably, any version of the Holy Bible sufficed, especially because the Old World (this is how Europe was previously called) have different languages but it really did not matter for symbolically it stands for the word of the Deity, and its votaries in fine, did not mind.

The spread of Freemasonry to the believers of other faiths necessitated a modification. The believers of Allah who were the sworn enemies of the Knights Templar in the tug of war to claim the Holy Land mutually admired each other in the practice of their own professional disciplines and somehow adopted to each other’s ways which reasonably were also being run similar to the administration of lodges. In fine, the three religions that were founded in Semitic concepts namely, Christianity, Jewish and Muslims, soon adorned their altars depending on membership and thus paved way for the inclusion of the Torah and the Holy Quran. In addition to the Holy Bible.

During the advent of atheism in Europe, the Frenchmen, having a unique culture of its own, discarded the Holy Scriptures as a mandatory requirement to adorn its altars, not because its brand of Masonry does not profess in the belief of a Deity but to allow admission even to those who do not believe in it. Because of this, mainstream Freemasonry declared their Grand Lodge irregular and forthwith refused their members recognition.

Thus was the word “Bible” modified to read as “Scriptures” in many writings instead.

HOW THE SCRIPTURE IS ACCORDED IN INDIAN LODGES

If there is one country that exemplifies religious tolerance especially as it pertains to Freemasonry, none can match the Indian continent. Strategically located in what is called as the near East, it is religiously dominated by the Hindus and their breakaway groups called the Buddhists and the Jains who use the BHAGAVAD GITA as their Holy Writings. There are also Pharsis (called Pharisees in the New Testament) with an estimated 200,000 population whose Holy book is called ZEND AVESTA, those wearing turbans that are locally called Bombays in the Philippines but who are called Sikhs in their home country whose Holy Book is called GURU GRANTH. And when the Muslims attacked its frontiers sometime in the fifteenth century, it left its Muslim believers in its wake and consequently, the HOLY QURAN.

When the British occupied India in the eighteenth century, the British expeditionary forces took with them not only the King James version of the Holy Bible but the Catholic edition as well. It was not surprising therefore that when the Golden Lodge of Orange No. 304 was established in Nagpur, India in the mid eighteenth century, the King James Version that originally adorned its altar would soon be joined by the books of the other faiths, notably the Bhagavad Gita, the Zend Avesta, the Gura Granth and even the Holy Quran making its altar the conglomeration of all religious beliefs.

With that concluding paragraph, it’s now time to thank you for your attention. This writer hopes you are able to reach this concluding paragraph.
- posted by Kherwal @ 4:08 PM 0 comments

 
BENEDICTION FOR THE NEW TEMPLE
Our Father which art in heaven, whose wisdom and goodness manifest themselves in all the works of creation, with filial love and reverence we beseech thee to bless these children now here assembled as we inaugurate this new Masonic Temple for the glory of your Holy Name.

We commend to your benevolent care the souls of our trail-blazing fraternal brothers who, during the early years of our Lodge existence, saw fit to purchase a lot at J. S. Torrablba St. where they built the first Masonic Temple some seventy seven years ago in this beautiful and scenic island called Bohol.

But while the Temple has served the brethren fully well, the lapse of time has eroded the structure that it required a replacement else drastic renovation had to be made which can prove even more costly than building a new one using current engineering means.

To the credit of three fraternal brothers, namely, Worshipful Master Eugene T. Galbreath whose foresight initiated the sale of the lot so that a new Temple at the side of the Masonic Cemetery may be erected; to WB David B. Tirol, patriarch of the University of Bohol, whose generosity of spirit encouraged him to purchase the said lot so that the financial requirements for its construction may adequately be funded, and to VW Francisco M. Pamaran, Jr., whose engineering skills as Master Builder insured that the new structure is built making it the most beautiful Masonic Temple in the entire archipelago outside of the Grand Lodge itself; the Galbreath-Tirol-Pamaran triumvirate clearly demonstrated the three symbolic pillars called “Wisdom, Strength and Beauty” of our august Fraternity.

As we install to their respective stations the officers and members of this lodge later this afternoon, we also beseech thee to grant unto our incoming Worshipful Master Victoriano B. Tirol, Jr., and to the succeeding Worshipful Masters who will someday come after him the WISDOM to direct us, to all the other incoming officers and members of the lodge and those that would also later follow them the STRENGTH to support us; and to the rest of the Masonic family, namely, the Eastern Star, the Rainbows, the DeMolays, and also our own respective families, relatives and friends, the BEAUTY of holiness to adorn our labors that this New Temple may last as long, if not longer than the first that was built by our trail-blazing fraternal brothers who indelibly etched their footprints and planted firmly the seeds of Masonry on this rustic Visayan soil...

And when a similar lapse of time demands that this Temple be likewise demolished for one reason or another, we pray that when that fateful date arrives, a third temple be built by the brethren who will come after us, hopefully much stronger and more beautiful than this Temple that it intends to replace.

All these we ask for the glory of your Holy Name.

Amen!
- posted by Kherwal @ 1:43 PM 3 comments

 
REQUIEM FOR A MENTOR PAR EXCELLENCE
REQUIEM FOR A MENTOR PAR EXCELLENCE


He was like a father to the aging lion, but let the cat narrate his story in chronological sequence.

At the lion’s mother lodge are three past Grand Masters; MW Jolly Bugarin who ascended to the Oriental Chair in 1979, the subject of this article who rose to fame in 1986, and MW Agustin V. Mateo, who rose to the same seat in 1992. Of the three however, only one is a true-blue product of the lodge, the first was raised at Tamaraw Lodge No. 69 while the third became a master mason at Kingston Lodge No. 100.

The aging lion could not remember if his idol was present during his raising in 1989 for surely, his memories during the early years as a Mason was not at all significant. His recollection of what would become his mentor in Masonry to his mind started sometime in 1994 when MW Reynold as he would fondly call the latter approached him saying he would want that the cat do the awesome task as Managing Editor of the Far Eastern Freemason of the Supreme Council of the 33rd and Last Degree Accepted Scottish Rite of the Philippines. And his assuring word was “don’t worry, you can’t fail. I will handle the responsibilities of the Editor-in-Chief anyway”.

The aging lion’s recollection of that event was unforgettable. No sooner was he cajoled to accept the job and he was treated to a luncheon at the nearby Dream Haus Restaurant with no less MW Reynato S. Puno, Ill. Alberto C. Reyes, the Grand Secretary General, Ill. Agerico V. Amagna, Jr., the Assistant Grand Secretary General, his mentor- MW. Reynold S. Fajardo, and two others whose names the lion could not now recall. The reply of the impish lion of course, had to be in the affirmative. After being wined and dined and in front of these revered Masonic elders, can he ever say no?!

Soonest the lion was saddled to his new and unforgettable task as Managing Editor and he was installed Master of his mother lodge in 1995 with his mentor performing the role as Installing Officer. Not noticed by many, that installation is probably the only installation ceremony where an additional item was added to the master’s charge: “that part of the master’s duty that also included the provision that his job as Managing Editor of the said publication should, to the best of his ability, be done.”

But their relationship was not limited to things Masonic. Sometime in 1995 or thereabouts, when the lion’s youngest son got entangled as witness in a frat war involving the Sigma Rho and another fraternity whose name escaped this writer’s recollection at the State University that resulted in the death of one, the aging lion’s mentor succored to the defense of his son by warding off the legal battle that was filed by a certain Atty. Bonifacio Alentajan at the metropolitan trial court.

His job as Managing Editor expired three years later as it was co-terminus to the tenure of his mentor as Editor-in-Chief of the said publication. But his apprenticeship was not to end there. His mentor also saw to it that his ward review an still-unpublished book titled “Famous Filipino Masons” which unfortunately did not go off the press due to the untimely death of Ill. Alberto Reyes. In addition, his mentor also assigned him to review the monumental book titled “The Golden Years” of the Scottish Rite and in addition was required to also write the brief biographical sketches of the four recent additions to the Sovereign Grand Inspector Generals of the Scottish Rite to complete the said book.

In late 2001, his mentor also asked him to co-author the book Philippine Lodges and while the lion was adamant as he was already mulling plans to transfer residence to Bohol, the former simply said, “don’t worry, we’ll finish the task, the powers of the Internet is awesome, all I’ll do is send you the materials by mail, you compose the write-ups and send these back to me for final review. And that’s how the book titled “Philippine Lodges” was done.

The lion’s transfer of residence had aborted their physical contact and save for intermittent mails at the Internet may be considered really irregular. Whenever in the big city, however, the aging lion would make a call at his mentor’s residence at Project 8, their respective places of abode being but a few blocks away, and there talk about things Masonic and also about old times.

So it was that on January 29, 2006 at about nine o’clock, Sis. Betty Exmundo relayed a rare and unusual message that MW Reynold S. Fajardo, PGM, GMH, incumbent Grand Secretary of the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines, and Sovereign Grand Inspector General of the Scottish Rite has just pole-vaulted to the Great Beyond. Her husband, VW Saul knew the aging lion should be informed for reasons the couple surely knew!

Many eulogies will indeed be said about the man, not only for his credentials in Freemasonry and out of it, but more so because he is the only credible Masonic writer the Craft ever had. But to the aging lion his MW Reynold, who is both his mentor and foster father, the memory will surely linger for a long, long time to come.

----

Note: The last email that the aging lion received from his mentor was dated not more than a week from his death, and was titled “Japanese Proverb” the message of which says: “You look silly” (or something).. Perhaps RW Jimmy Y. Gonzales, SGW, who was also furnished a copy, remembers.
- posted by Kherwal @ 1:11 PM 1 comments

 
Brief History of Freemasonry In the Philippines
In the Beginning...

The history of Philippine Masonry may be likened to the history of the first Grand Lodge. On the Feast of St. John the Baptist in 1717, four of the pre-existing Masonic lodges in Great Britain organized what became the first Grand Lodge of the world. On December 19, 1912, three lodges that were chartered under the Constitution of the Grand Lodge of California finally succeeded in establishing the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippine Islands, the forerunner of what is now officially known as the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines.

Masonry existed in England long before the creation of the first Grand Lodge, so was Philippine Masonry already alive even before the formation of the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands. In 1856, for example, Primera Luz Filipina, the first Masonic lodge in the Philippines, was formed by Jose Malcampo y Monge, a naval captain who subsequently became Governor General of the Philippines. Primera Luz was chartered by Gran Oriente Luisitano and admitted only Spaniards in its fold. Subsequently, three other lodges were established one after the other: the first by the Germans, the second by the British consul in Nagtahan, and the third by the Spaniards in Pandacan.

Not only that, Dr, Serafin Quiazon, head of the National Historical Institute of the Republic of the Philippines, while researching in London on the British trade with the Philippines, stumbled upon a significant piece of historical data. Guissippe Garibaldi, that brilliant Italian revolutionary whom President Abraham Lincoln offered a command in the United States Army during the American Civil War, captained a vessel that anchored in Manila Bay sometime in the middle of the nineteenth century. There is little doubt that the tenets of the Craft landed with Garibaldi in the sandy beaches of the Philippine Islands during that period.

The Filipino Patriots Embrace the Tenets of Freemasonry Abroad...

It was the influx of the students who pursued higher studies in Europe, among them Marcelo H. del Pilar from Bulacan, Graciano Lopez Jaena from Iloilo, the Luna brothers from Ilocos, Galicano Apacible from Batangas, Domingo Panganiban from Camarines Norte, Jose Alejandrino from Pampanga, Tomas Arejola from Camarines Sur, Ariston Bautista from Manila, Julio Llorente from Cebu, and the country’s foremost hero, Jose Rizal from Laguna, that made a conglomeration of Masonic patriots from the entire archipelago. In 1886, some of them joined Lodge Solidaridad No. 53 in Barcelona, Spain, while others joined Lodge Revoluccion, and, exposed to the tenets of the fraternity, established local lodges upon their return to the islands. Nilad Lodge was formed first on January 6, 1891, and, in no time, several lodges mushroomed in Manila and its environs, even reaching as far as Zamboanga in the southern backdoor. By 1893, they had succeeded in establishing the Grand Regional Council under the leadership of Ambrocio Flores. Three years later, the Philippine Revolution conflagrated an armed rebellion that was initiated by the Katipunan led by Andres Bonifacio. Bonifacio’s organizational skills and the secret codes that he employed were said to have been copied from the Masonic secret rules and procedures. These ultimately led to the downfall of the nation’s conquistadors who for more than three centuries wielded the stick without dangling any carrot over the subjects of the entire archipelago.

It can be said, however, that Masonry during those tumultuous and rebellious years was in suspended animation. The "hawks," among them Andres Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo, became Katipuneros; the "doves," which included among others, Jose Rizal, Numeriano Adriano and the thirteen martyrs of Cavite were herded in the dungeons and ultimately shot at Bagumbayan. A third group called the "chameleons" or balimbings, simply changed their coats and did what they thought best, be pliant as a bamboo and swing to the rhythm of nature, wherever the wind blows.

The Americans Enter the Political and the Masonic Scenes...

Then came the American conquerors that hounded the self-proclaimed Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo and his ragtag band to the boondocks. Many of these Philippine Masons, already sporting their avowed roles as "Rebolucionarios," were at their wits’ end, eluding the pursuing Gringos. What the Filipinos did not realize was that these soldiers were led mostly by Masons: Generals Arthur MacArthur; John J. Pershing who was then but a captain, a Shriner and who answers to the monicker "Black Jack Pershing;" Harry Bandoltz; and James G. Harbord; the last two named generals later forming the forerunner of the Philippine Constabulary or the present-day Philippine National Police (PNP).

The Country As A Free-For-All Masonic Jurisdiction...

The surrender of General Aguinaldo effectively ended the armed insurrection against the Americans and also resulted in a field day for the different Grand Lodges and appendant bodies of the Masonic fraternity. Early to make their presence felt were the American Military Lodge led by the United States Volunteers from North Dakota, the Knights Templar, and the Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Missouri, a lodge composed of Negro soldiers from the United States. These were immediately followed by the Grand Lodge of California through the creation of what is called "The Sojourners Club" and thereafter was followed by creation of Manila Lodge No. 342, Cavite Lodge No. 350 and Corregidor Lodge No. 386

On the local front, first to reorganize was Grand Master Ambrocio Flores who attempted to establish the Filipino Grand Orient in 1899. This was followed by the Gran Oriente Espanol through the reactivation of Modestia Lodge No. 199, the Grand Orient of France that was introduced by Dr. Trinidad Pardo H. de Tavera, the Philippine Grand Orient that was established by Jose Utor y Fernandez, and the Grand Lodge of Scotland that established Lodge Perla de Oriente 1034 in Manila and Cebu Lodge No. 1106 in the Visayas. Gran Oriente de Espana also came into existence and so did Gran Oriente Luisitano Unido, making the country a conglomeration of several Masonic disciplines and jurisdictions.

Furthermore, the Americans brought to the fore several appendant organizations, notably the Scottish Rite, the York Rite, the Mystic Shrine and the Order of the Eastern Star. Even the Chinese secret societies composed of Chinese Masons who claimed kinship with the worldwide fraternity entered the picture. All these complemented and co-existed with one another.

The Formation of the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands...

Invariably, confusion ensued. The Americans kept membership in their lodges to themselves; the Filipinos clamored for recognition, until, finally, the three American lodges that were chartered under the constitution of the Grand Lodge of California sought dispensation from their Mother Grand Lodge to form their own and thus established in 1912 what came to be the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands. Their respective Lodge numbers were also changed and became Manila Lodge No. 1, Cavite Lodge No. 2 and Corregidor Lodge No. 3, respectively.

Masonry Silently Works by the Sidelines...

It is interesting to note that Masonry worked in mystic ways. Unknown to many, Generals Harry H. Bandholtz and Gary G. Harbord took Manuel Luis Quezon into their protective wings and gave him his political start in Tayabas by helping him get elected an Assemblyman. It was most reasonably because of his close association with the two that encouraged Quezon to join the Masonic fraternity by petitioning for membership at Sinukuan Lodge No. 273 in 1907. His appointment as Resident Commissioner in Washington would later serve as guiding light in his future Masonic endeavors when he was refused admission in a lodge in the United States on the ground that his lodge in the Philippines was clandestine. At about the same time that Quezon was initiated into the mysteries of Masonry, Rafael Palma petitioned for membership at Bagong Buhay Lodge 291 while Juan Sumulong joined a lodge of Gran Oriente de España and later became member of Bagumbayan Lodge No. 4 under the jurisdiction of the newly-formed Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands; three illustrious Freemasons who were all admitted to the Philippine bar and would make their respective presence felt in the corridors of power of the American-guided government.

The Polarization of the Brethren into Two Main Bodies...

The existence of lodges under several jurisdictions became as confusing as would two amateur players playing chess with so many boisterous kibitzers watching the game on a chessboard. The California Lodges recognized the Scottish Lodges but did not accept brethren from the Filipino Lodges. The Scottish Lodges maintained relationship with both the American and Filipino lodges but completely ignored the black-skinned Prince Hall lodges. Until finally the Masonic field polarized into only two main bodies, the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands composed of the white-skinned Americans, and the Regional Grand Lodge which consists of the brown-skinned Indios of the land.

Merging Into One Masonic Roof...

It is doubtful whether Masonry in the Philippines could have achieved easy unification and harmonious relationship without the combined talents of Governor Francis Burton Harrison and Manuel Luis Quezon. Harrison was appointed Governor General in the Philippines and had publicly acknowledged that he owed his appointment to Quezon. The Governor was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on July 11, 1916 and brought with him his pro-Filipino inclination to the Masonic world. It was therefore inevitable that the fusion gained headway on both sides and when the election for Grand Master was held for the first time under the fused bodies in 1917, the Americans who were easily outnumbered, were surprised to see MW William H. Taylor reelected during the first year of fusion. It was also the start of what would later amount to a Rigodon de Honor of electing a Grand Master, much like the checkered floor of King Solomon’s Temple; if it is white this year, then it should be brown next time. Una sin otra were the Spanish words for it.

Growth, Expansion, and the Role of Filipino Masons...

The years that followed the unification registered impressive growth for the Craft. In four years time starting in 1918, thirty-eight lodges were established. The Filipinos that were elected Grand Masters, alternating with the Americans every two years, was led by Manuel L. Quezon. MW Quezon was followed by Rafael Palma, Quintin Paredes, Wenceslao Trinidad, Francisco Afan Delgado, Teodoro M. Kalaw and Vicente Carmona, in succession. These illustrious gentlemen were also quite active in the corridors of power. At this point and time, most of the notable political figures were Freemasons. It was therefore no wonder that Monsignor Michael O’Doherty wrote in his diary in 1917 shortly after his installation as Archbishop of Manila, "Masonry is a menace. Osmena, (the incumbent Speaker of the House) is the only government official of any standing who is not a Mason here in Manila."

The Nation Gains Independence...

The 1935 Constitution led to the granting of the country’s Commonwealth status and ultimately her independence. This Philippine independence was gained largely through the efforts of Masons. No wonder, the names Manuel L. Quezon, Rafael Palma, Quintin Paredes and Manuel L. Roxas alternated in shuttling to and from the United States to lobby for the untangling of the country’s umbilical cord with the United States. When the election of the Constitutional Convention delegates were tallied, 42 out of 202, or 21 percent of the total, were Masons.

The War Years...

Wars always inflict destruction not only to the country and its people but more so to the Masonic fraternity whose tenets would not allow them to stay idle by the sidelines. Masonic records were destroyed and countless of its sons were either incarcerated or suffered heroic deaths. Topping the list is MW Jose Abad Santos who was executed by the Japanese government for non-cooperation. Grand Master John Robert McFie, RW Jose P. Guido, Deputy Grand Master and RW Antonio Ramos, Junior Grand Warden, also became casualties. So did many more of its sons.

Rebuilding From the Ashes...

It is a truism that after the storm is peace. Lodges were rehabilitated, new ones were added and, progressively, the tenets of the Craft were indelibly imprinted in the country’s history unnoticed by many as it vaulted through the 21st Century.
Freemasonry...

The sheer lack of drum-beaters within the Craft does not allow that the sterling qualities of members go unnoticed. A major factor that influence this situation is the generally subdued attitude of the members themselves. Except for the brethren who are in the know, the public does not realize that Freemasonry and its adherents always play important roles in the nation’s history.

The two EDSA revolutions have produced Freemasons from both sides of the political fence whose names, because of the lapse of time, will no longer be mentioned.

The Recent Political Turmoil

In the recent political upheaval that been rocking the current administration since year 2005, several members of the Craft have been in the limelight from both sides of the hostilities and are doing their functions to their level best . Eight brothers whose sterling qualities are admirable may indirectly be mentioned.

At the other side

A brother from Salug Valley No. 216 and the whistle blower who produced the tapes that rocked the entire country, a former Deputy Director of the National Bureau of Investigation, whose dedication to the cause he believed in is beyond compare.

A brother from Luzon No. 57-the Philippine Army’s Brigadier General who sacrificed his expected pension six days before retirement by honoring the Senate investigation on the alleged election irregularities in Mindanao and even subjected him to court martial for his heroic deed.

From the Philippine National Police

From Bontoc No.140-the Director of the PNP who walks the tight rope doing police functions to the best of his abilities, cognizant of the constitutional rights of his fraternal brothers at the other side that these are duly protected.

From. Pampanga No. 48- the Deputy General of the PNP for the National Capital Region who is in charge of the peace and order in the entire metropolis and whose ending statement when interviewed over the radio is invariably “May God bless us all always”, debunking the myth that Freemasons are Godless.

From Congress

From Jacobo Zobel Memorial No. 202- The debonair Chairman of the Public Information Committee whose finesse and fair play at conducting the investigation is indeed admirable.

From. Kutang Bato No. 110- The Chairman of the Justice Committee, who formerly was both Justice, and Public Works and Highways secretary, adeptly steered the proceedings exonerating the lady president from impeachment charges and thus eluded being “thrown to the wolves” at the upper branch of the Legislature called the Senate.

At the Judiciary

From Hiram Lodge No. 88- a past Grand Master and revered elder in the Fraternity whose appointment as the most eminent jurist of the judicial branch, being the most senior member at the bench was thought certain, was bypassed by the appointing authority using the political maneuver called revolving-door-policy. Although publicly admitting he was hurt, he accepted calmly the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune and promptly continued his work at the bench doubly aware that the All Seeing Eye never sleeps and that he will ultimately be vindicated by God Almighty.

And finally, from the Executive Branch

The Fraternity’s reigning Grand Master, member of both Alfonso Lee Sin No. 158 and Dapitan No. 21 whose indispensable duty as Secretary of Public Works and Highways require that he performs without fanfare at the sidelines and also to do the tasks and biddings that his superior dictates.

This brief history can never end for as the earth rotates upon its own axis each day, worthy brothers also etch out daily their own accomplishments that bring honor and glory to this ancient and honorable Fraternity.

Updated January 1, 2006
- posted by Kherwal @ 12:06 AM 1 comments

 
Dad, Da Vinci and Nicholas Cage
By: Ivan R. Galarosa

It was in year 1989 when Dad came home one day. He called a family meeting. Mom’s eyes were already red from tears. Mom, my sister and myself were the only other persons in the house then and so the family meeting started easily. Dad begun by saying: “Children, I just lost my job. But let us not lose hope. Let’s just help each other so that we can return to our normal lives.”

Dad having said that, I suddenly lost my uneasiness. When Dad tells us not to worry, I don’t worry. I knew Dad is good at facing life’s adversities. So when he says everything will be okay, I believe him. Dad was jobless for a month but he did not just sit in the house watching opportunity pass by.

He approached many of his friends and relatives from whom he can ask for help, neither to borrow nor beg for money, but to ask for a job.

I really believe in Dad! And it’s because it has never been his habit to borrow money. What he wants is earn it; just give him the opportunity.

At this time also, in addition to looking for a new job, he mentioned something that has occupied him. He said he will be joining an organization that may change his life, and probably ours as well. That was the time Dad became a Mason.
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Dad finally got a job, but that was not what caught my attention. Simultaneously with his new job was his acceptance as a member in a nearby Masonic lodge (chapter).

I thought, if Dad is already a Mason, would he still believe in God? Would we still go to church every Sunday? Well, it is because of what I’ve heard, that Masons don’t believe in God. I told myself “Dad is also a character, he lost his job and when he found another, he distanced himself from God. Until finally, I could no longer contain myself and so asked him why he joined Masonry at that particular time.

“Dad, will we still go to church each Sunday?” I asked. He replied as if wanting to hit me at the back of my shoulders. “Eh, what a smart aleck you are. It is you who is too lazy to join us in going to church whenever I ask you!” he replied. “Well, will you still take your communion now that you have become a Mason?” I barked back. “And when did you ever see me take communion? I never took one, even before I became a Mason” was his instantaneous reply almost laughing. And so I finally blurted out and asked him pointblank: “Is it really true you no longer believe in God?”

“Son,” he said, if a Mason does not believe in God, has it ever occurred to you I won’t waste my time joining them?!” was his quizzical reply.

But of course! If Dad’s objective was only to turn his back at God, why would he still waste his time joining an organization and pay its exorbitant fees. He’ll just turn his back and cease going to church, period!! I did not ask him anymore.

I reckon Dad is really queer. He immediately got a job and became a brother to Rizal, Bonifacio and Mabini, all in a period of only four months. Many years passed and he sort of made Masonry his career. He enthusiastically accepted various lodge positions and other tasks outside of it. And he even became a Masonic writer and historian. Terrific, huh!!

Just the other day, I watched a movie alone. I saw the movie titled “National Treasure” because they say it was about Masonry and the lost treasurers of the knights during the Middle Ages. I said to myself, what crazy ideas would the movie impart about Masonry? Would it impress upon the moviegoers (again) that Masons don’t believe in God? In fairness, the movie did nothing of that sort.

But I felt something different inside while I was watching the movie, the same feeling that I’ve felt when I read the books “The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons.” I again felt the hairs of my skin stand meanwhile my mind was reeling from the question: “Is Masonry this influential it is now often the subject of literary works, be it on books and in movies?” One thing more, if Masonry has a secret that involves riches ( like the Holy Grail of the Lost Treasures of the Knights Templars) are they teaching these to all their members? Is there something Dad knows about these treasures that he must have stumbled upon in his researches?

In my view, the hidden treasures of the Masons, whether in the Philippines or in other countries, are far more valuable than the those found by Ben Gates (Nicholas Cage) in the movie. In my opinion (well, I can but opinionate as I am not a Mason), having a broader mind, “religious tolerance”, love for peers (or neighbors), the never-ending search for truth and their strong faith in God, are the hidden treasures of Masonry. These riches, I believe, are what they forcibly try impress upon their people, only, "one has to display his worth to be able to show that he can handle the daunting task of keeping these 'treasures'". I think it is not material wealth but the spiritual and intellectual riches that they conceal. But again, this is but a personal assumption.

And why do I believe these are what they hide? Because these are the treasures that Dad has kept on passing to me as I grow up ever since he became a Mason in 1989. There was never a time when he has not inculcated upon me the value of these treasures, and I presume, and this presumption is solely mine, that Dad has already shown me the well-kept hidden cache of wealth that Masons are hiding from public view.

Someday, I will still find out whether my assumptions are true.

(If you want to read some of the articles that were written by Dad on Masonry, just follow the link http://www.glphils.org/index-page.htm)

(View also the link http://lionroar.blogspot.com for the lion’s personal website.- translator.)
- posted by Kherwal @ 1:16 PM 7 comments

 
A BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF FREEMASONRY
VIA THE INTERNET

Sometime last November, this writer received an email from RW Oscar M. Jayme, Junior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Hawaii that said:

“You might want to checkout this site:
www.ephesians5-11.org”

In reply, this writer wrote back:

RW OMJ

Ha, ha, hah!! So what else is new?? All one has to do is type “Freemasonry” in the Search Box of any major Internet facility and he will readily see so many anti-Masonic materials which he can browse upon in addition to what you just forwarded to the undersigned.

Lest some of our less-informed Christian brethren get waylaid in this anti-Masonic smut however, let it be reiterated that our gentle Craft does not have a particular Deity or God to adore. Each one of us takes with him the particular Deity of our own faith, be it Jesus, Yahweh, El Shaddai or Jehovah (for the Christians) and conversely, the respective names of the Deity (Allah, Buddha, Hare Krishna etc.) of the other faiths! It is also within his own sole province whether to consider Jesus Christ as God or simply as a Messiah!

And readers need not be reminded that the Christian religion (no offense meant is intended to all Christian brethren) is the most fragmented of all the major religions of the world!

In like manner, our gentle Fraternity does not provide any avenue for salvation, for that is the concern of the religion that each member professes.

It may therefore be necessary to reiterate that other than the belief in the existence of God, the immortality of the soul and the brotherhood of all men to which all religions also subscribe to, another of its most indelible tenets is striving to make its votaries turn out from good to better. If a brother is not taking any effort in doing this, then he is definitely wasting his time. Other than enjoying our fellowship, of course!

But what the authors have composed is still worth reading. As the Masonic scholar Albert Pike once wrote, “read, digest, discriminate”, assuming the reader can readily identify the gold from the dross.

And he should first learn the awesome powers of this wonderful world called the Internet.

With my kindest fraternal regards!

Bro. Jun






- posted by Kherwal @ 3:57 PM 0 comments

 
CLUTCHING A DIAMOND IN HIS HAND


Four months ago, at the initiative of the Quezon City Lodge No. 122 Ladies Circle, we visited a fraternal brother. Such a visit was part of the Circle's program of reaching out to their husbands' brethren and loved ones who for some reasons have become inactive.

Brief, indeed, was my first meeting with WB Francisco B. Aquino. It was no more than a social call brought about by my curious desire to see a fraternal brother now in the "December of his years" but revered because his has demonstrated a fervent fidelity to the Craft.

At 96, that Masonic fervor was still deeply burning in his chest. He could still talk fondly of his more celebrated colleagues like MW Reynold S. Fajardo, MW Jolly R. Bugarin, MW Gus Mateo, WB Emil "Daddy" Ozaeta and the other lodge luminaries who rubbed fraternal elbows with him during his heyday.

If only his now wobbly legs would let him, he has intimated he would gladly deliver the lectures of the three Masonic degrees!

As an ultimate Masonic gesture, he willed that when his final date with time's Great Leveler would be at hand and take him to the Great Beyond, the brethren should give him the final rites at the Capitol Masonic Temple.

WB Kiko, records show, was born on December 3, 1894 at Baliwag, Bulacan. Twenty one years later, or on December 10, 1915 to be exact, he tied the marital knot to a pretty sixteen-year-old lass whom he fondly calls "Onyang".

Their union was blessed with three sons and an equal number of daughters. All of the sons and two of the daughters got married. One opted to remain single.

Two of the children have since migrated to the United States. But when WB Kiko and Sis. Onyang celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary, they flew home to witness their parents renew their wedding vows.

On that occasion, two sets of families joined WB Kiko and Sis. Onyang. One set consisted of six children, twenty seven grandchildren and twenty eight great grandchildren. The other set is composed of WB Kiko's fraternal brothers from Quezon City Lodge No. 122. MW Gus Mateo was there. WB Emil "Daddy" Ozaeta, WB Agusto Cabral, WB Conrad "Ado" Veneracion, the three lights led by WM Jose "Pong" Lustre, and followed by Bros. Saul R. Exmundo and James K. Donadilla, (and yours truly), were also there. Many of us were accompanied by our respective spouses. Another member of the Craft from another lodge (I cannot recall his name) was on hand, too.

What a gathering it was! WB Kiko and Sis. Onyang's children (some of whom are no younger than favorite WB "Daddy" Ozaeta) were deeply moved by our presence. They were aware that their Dad is a true-blue member of the Craft- from inside out, if you wish. Why, even his favorite mahogany cane, which has served him for many years as his third leg in moving around, had that familiar "square and compass" logo embedded on it, a reminder to all and sundry, and also to himself most probably, that a Mason should be proud of his fraternal affiliation. Proud of the Craft, WB Kiko definitely was!

How did he join the Fraternity and when?

A hydrographer by profession and an employee of the Bureau of Public Works, WB Kiko led a semi-nomadic life. As such, he came to meet members of the Craft from whom he got ideas about Freemasonry.

When he was assigned in the province of Pangasinan, he knocked at the doors of the Fraternity. He was initiated an entered apprentice on September 1, 1923 at Pangasinan Lodge No. 56 and a master mason on October 13, same year.

After the formation of Quezon City Lodge No. 122 in 1948, he likewise knocked at its doors as a dual member. Since then and up to the time old age finally crept into his kneebones, he shared his valuable insights on what our fraternal organization is all about.

WB Kiko was revered by his brethren because he was a veritable sturdy pillar in lodge affairs. Decidedly, he richly deserved the 50-year pin that was awarded to him by the Grand Lodge.

When he could no longer answer the cabletows sent by the lodge announcing stated meetings, much like the mountain going to Mohammed, the lodge members not infrequently, paid him unscheduled visits at his home in Cubao. They would take along with them newly-raised members of the Craft for the sight of a brother who had consistently lived his Masonry might spur them to emulate his example. In such visits, the brethren would recall the old times, the points of fellowship that had cemented them as brethren of this mystic, Masonic bond.

On that visit that we paid him four months ago, I saw him as a picture of complete satisfaction. He had nothing more to wish for- not even reaching that rare century mark. So it seemed.

But we were told he still has one more wish before his earthly existence finally expire; to see on of his great grandchildren beget his first great, great, grandchild.

WB Kiko, in fine, was a man clutching a diamond in his hand!

(Editor's note: The first Masonic article this writer ever wrote, it saw print in the January-February 1991 issue of the Cabletow and is herein reissued for its poignancy and timeless relevance.)



- posted by Kherwal @ 2:43 AM 0 comments