ffiHHH{I\IH 844

Officiat-Monthly Nowsletterl,
La TrinidCd Lodge Nbr 344 : .

Under the.Iurisdiction of the

Grand Lodge of Free and Accepterl Masons
Republic of the philippines

Editorial : .

GUR' c[-,oRIoUs PAST AND DEPLORAELE PRESENT

The Masonic education for the month of August 2010 as prescribed by the Grand IVlaster
MW
Itvelino I. Razon Jr- 'oOur glorious past and deplorable present" succinctly iescribe the wide gap of
our past to that of the present. The glorious past, had been a bastion of service to county 6"bt"
others thus, prominent members of the craft were bestowed titles ars national heroes.
In the recent past and today, however, it seems that the norm was first to satisfu one,s needs
and caprices before others. People are becoming more materialistic and forgetting their own spiritual
needs.
As Masons, w-e must n-ot also forget that August l9 is the birthday the first Filipinir Grand
Master of the Grand Lodge of the Philippines and also the Cornmoo*eilth president bf tn" th"n
Philippine Islands, MW Manuel Luis Quezon. In his name he is most fondly remembered by his
adage "I rather have the country run by Filipinos like hell, than run by Americans like htjaven.,,-This
remark is seen in the light of hls stronger belief in the capability of the Filipino and not in spite of the
Americans. His statesmanship can also be gleaned when he had a gentleman's agreemeni with the
trncumbent American Grand Master 9f the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands in 1916, MW
William'H' Taylor, when the two drand Lodges existiig at the time, itt" Sp-irtr branO Relional
I-odge with 27 subordinate lodges and the American Grand Lodge of the pliilippine Islands *ittr I
subordinate lodges fused, that the Grand Master for newly united Grand Lodge be alternately
.A.merican and Filipino until such time that no American Mason be qualified to the
iosition of Grani
Master. In the election of 1917, William H. Taylor was elected Grand Master and Manuel L. euezon
as Deputy Grand Master. Quezon was elected Grand Master in fqit.'fft" f^t n-*f.""-Cr""I
Master elected under the agreement was MW Luther B. Bewly in 1960.

FXere is the text for the Masonic Education for August 2010:

Precept: Compla_cency and apathy has caused the de<:line of both the Phitippines as a
country and Philippine Masonry es an Honorable Institution. .4s our Grand Master-Htram. nbiff
entered daily into the Temple to drqw designs on the trestleboord. to see if any improvemeht can still
be made; so should we each enter datly into our hearts and minds and reflect how our re:pective
spiritual edifices can be improved..
Example: Bro. Gregorio L. Aglipay- wc$ a Roman Cathoi'ic Priest wh:o like nany Phikppine
revolulionaries ioinetl- Freemasonry. His devotion to the Rornan Catholic Church ,roi
f"*uii but
after seeing the calloused position of.the Spanishfriars in their low and "un-Christian' regitrdfor
Filipino pTiest, he lhen strongly supported the fornation of the Philippine Independent Church
(Iglesia Filipina Independiente) notfor his benefit butfor spiritual needs of the Fitipino people.
Refl,ections: Have we been lrypocrites in our lives as men and as Masons in dgnying some
realitie'' in our lives?

TF{E 7TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF TI.{E LODGE WAs CELEBRATED AT A ScHooL

FOR DIFFEFIEhITLYABLED CHILDREN OF VETEC FOUNIDATIONI IN
SHILAN, LA TRINIDAD. WM WILLIAM T. BACOLINIG & THE BRETI.IREN SPONSORED
LUNCH WITH THE CHILDREN AND TI{E VOLI..INTEER STAFF OF THE SCHOOL.. TOYS,
CLOTHES AND SOME CASH WERE ALSO DONATED TO THE
74 SCHOOL CHITDREN A[-,ID THEIR VOLUI{TEER TEACHERS.

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 Beehive 344 Augttst 2010

10 QUOTE-A-QUIZ
By Bro. Femando M. Lacsaman4 PM .

In this section, 10 great quotes are featured. Can you identify its authors? lWtich of them were from Freemasow?

l. 'No bird soars too high, if he soars with his own | 6.*Whenever one has anything unpleasant to say one
wings." I should always be quite candid."
otis
2, "Anger, said, is the last thing to grow |old." 7.*I have come'too'late in a world too old."
3. *All books are either dreams or swords. You can | 8."I-ovesdemandsall,andhasarighttoall,"
cut, oryou can drug, witti words." | 9."Men like trll otlier animals, naturally multiply in
4.' "Th& moro advanced the civilization, the less I pr-oportionto,themeansoftheif subsistence."
p"*rmi irt. i"di"id;;i' . I r o. ;ie#;" is a device for making a man deserve it."
mice"' :
5. "The cat in gloves catches no | '
" ' :
Ari*t'ers on page 248

Sit [ux, ef fmit lux - Let there be light; and there was li

TO I.EARN...
by Bro. Harry Christian V. Nool

Let me share with you a paper which won the 2009 World Award competition for Masonic
Education written by Bro. Richard Cai''.rer of the United States. lt'sran interesting read end it is hoped
that it stirs some interest to the brethren: .
:
: :
As the Worshipful Master opens or closes a Masonic Lodge of Entered Apprentices, he performg a
ritualistic catechism of sorts, whereby:he asks questions and receives responses frofi various..other
Lodge officers. At one point he inquiies, Brother Senior Warde.n, what came yo,u h-ere to do? With an
almOst monotonous tone that comes from pure repetition, we have all heard the Senior Warden drone a
r"ipon.", To learn to subdue my passions lfoilowed by.a short pause] and to.iyP,rove myself ill
Mjsonry. While this response is ritualistically correc{ l-propose foq your golsideptlon, that tftq
responie is essentially erroneous. The essence and the nature.of the lessons that are being presented
have become bluned. I offer a respectful argumen.t that, through,qulwe,fl-m93nin9 it!n!9Tio @nvey
a uniform wording.in the ritual, the Senior Warden is not communicating the intended message.
Masonry knowingly accepts no man into its ranks who is not a moral and upright citizen and of.good
piactice
repute befoie man aid God. Any acceptable candidate'for Masonry mrll alrealY p.ossess and
such raits. White it is the intent bt wtasonry to make good gen bettel,.it is,ftgi.the desiql ot,M":9,1,ry !".
convert immoral or corrupt men into lhoral me4, who, after Masonic'ihitiation,,afe then cap?|f9 9f
ruoouing their passions. Masonry pjecls any candidat-e found lackino i1"vifye,Ifflry."l!l"gligj:
subdue'[ris passions. This would likely occur during the early stages of his candidacY'. a,!9. alY 11l
found wanting of these traits would be quickly exposed as unworthy of efforts to make him a bener
to subdue
man. So therefore, it would be logical to cbnstrue that a worthy Mason- does not need fo leam
his passions he instead,observes the practice of subduing his passions
-
These passions come in various forms, and are not limited.to the obvious example of sexual lust:_
although he must keep that emotion in proper bounds as welf. He.keeps his p3:s'9n-1,l9ljl:,,ti:l9Tg
religioi and politics in due bounds so as to allow no discord to exist between his tsrotners wfin olnenng
and- opposing views. He is free to remain passionate about such beliefs outside,the
walls of the Lodge;
yetheiuoouistheminsidetheLodgesothatpeaceandharmonyp|9Vail:-].,...
Given such circumstances, this almost demands the questions: ls 'subduing. passion" aJt tfq!
nl"ronw'iea.,f'"rzli"that enough? lf a Mason subdues his passions, is there nothing.mojp to learn?
More often than not, events in-Masonry'occur and present them_selvel'l s"l:.of 3's1 Jhere 3r9.3
3 lesser lights,
knocks, 3 degrees, e'stages of life - youih, manhood and 30e, 3 ruffian.s,.3.9r"31Lights,
an6 so'on. f"nere are aiew other re-Curring numbersrin Masonry, trut it is.hard to..ignore th".l9pTt*
and intentionat use of the number three. fikewise, there exists a qgssiPflity,J!"i_tl:-::1,:lJT9"I:
response is also a set of three separate tasks, and there exists the li["*:3!t_"^?-"blllty
that Dy..tne
pause in the wor:ding, they become to be interpreted as thottgh they
si#pe omission of a- oiscernable
are only two.
will submit for your consideration that a Mason is not a man wlo colgs t9-,a Lodge to
le11m to
I
subdue his passioni. A Mason is the mgn who has already tearnedto subdue his passions. The '
so it is more
;il;i"g of tris passions is something that a Mason puts into practice in the Lodge,

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Beehive 344 August 2010

TO LEARN...

accurate to say that a Mason comes "to subdue my passions" and it is equally true that he also
comes "to improve myself in Masonry." This leaves onrly'the first:part of the statement unresolved, .:
which is "to learn..;' tmeb'"*rraie'to
By acknowledging these three logical and separate tast<$:ritrb say that a Mason
comes to Lodge in order to learn, to subdue his passions, and to improve himself in Masonry, Not only
does this wording better meet the comrnon theme of the recurring number 3, it also seems tb be a more
accurate assessment of the goals, and equally, a inore realistic assessment of the Masonic ideals.
A Mason has an intrinsic desir.e to learn. His knowledge'naturally increases through the study and
rpplication of ritual, and through his innate curiosity about Masonry's more esoteric interests. The
iearch foi Light" itself becomes a passion, and it is a passion he subdues or at least suppresses in the
presence of Brothers having a differing opinion, in the presence of a more learned teacher or.when in
the company of the profane. Masonic knowledge is ever abundant, and holds no limits. His desire to
learn will never be fully satisfied. The search for the light of knorruledge mn never be fully obtained, but
learning and the pursuit of knowledge remain among the most noble of our earthly endeavours
I continue as a firm believer that we absolutely must convey Masonic ritual as correctly and
precisely as is hurnanly possible. lt should always be.done'in strict accordance with'all approprbtei
Grand Lodge laws, rules and regulations for the various jur:isdictions. Having said that, I would also,
propose that to better convey one of the often-overlooked lessons in Masonry, we can practice a
smidgeonofcreative|icenseandyetnottechnicallychangeif.or.violateanyrulesorob|igations.
lf you disagree with my arguments, then you should continue to do as you have always done. lf you
have discovered that you are in agreement with my assertion that tne response would best be given in
3 parts, and if you find yourself seated in the Senior Warden's chair, you might simply pause to take a
breath in the middle of the response at the appropriate point,'r,
I do again wish to point out that it is not my intention to qqggg€t.that we' make any.change !o oui
ritual, or in any way propose that it be done by others. My onty desire is:to better convey the meanlng gf
our ritual, and to suggest that we should often pause tp reflect upon.those great lessons', ;

Brother Senior Warden, what camd,you here,to do? To leam... To subdue my passions...
And to improve myseilf.ih Masonry! I :

may have been derived from ecclesiastical practice. For

.IVXASONIC LEXIEON example,,in relation to the entlrsnement of a bishop, a
The series on Nlasonic kxicsn raas launched in new appointee to srictt a p,cisition is requlred to knock
tlrc lanuary 2008 of the Beehiae 344. Its features are Three tlmes on the weslern door of a cathedral to
Iifted from the 195-pages book entitled !'Let tltere be seek admission for"the ceremony of his induction
light, a Mnsonic Lexicsn by RW Bro. lohn G- while a similar qerernony obtains'at the consecration
Sulliaan, PDGM United Grand Lodge of Victnria in
Australia, published in L988. It is hoped thnt the
bretltren zoill use this lexicon to add to their Masotiic
knozolzdge and better understanding. The itnns in
ithlics: pAtain to:those practieed by the Grand Lodge
of the Philiypines and its subordinate Lodges.lNhere
therc'ate no italics the same are understood to be
mutualty shared. lt would be noticed tlut tlte two
Grand jurisdictions hnae commonalities as well as
dffirences principally for the reason thnt th! GLP is
o product af Arneican Freemasomy while the otlw
'is a producl of tfu Grand Lodge of Englartd. To date
we laae coaered70L pages.
209. KNOCKS IN DEGREES. The Masonic degr.ee
knocks, in. series of threes, are not considered to have
any symbolioal significance despite claims to tle
contraiy by some Masonic students. They are used for
the basic and practical purposes of proving a lodge
properly tyled, indicating the degree in which work is
proceeding, advising of brethrpn seeking admisi]on or
denoting alarms. In attaching different knocks for the
three degrees in Freemasonry,'this is merely to afford a
means by which one degree may be distinguished from
to
the another. It is to be notad, howevern that the knocks
Next page please...
of ,the degrees are not standard in all jurisdictions. It is
believed by some that the employment of such knocks

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A,ugust 2010

MASONEC LHxle$zu"ofrom pase 247

211. LdBOR. Whep the lodge has been opened and

is working, brethren are said to be at labor, and when
the business of the meeting has been completed they
cease labor and retire from the lodge room usually to
partake of refreshments. at the festive board. This
carries on in the speculative order the same type of
pt'oceedings as obtained in operative days. The
difference i3 that the labor of operative stonimasons
was directed towards the erection of material edifices
whgreas Fieemasons are engaged in the building of
hum4n supersh'uctures of vifue and morality
standing on the foundation ofthe basic princip0les of
the ordel. The Senior Warden in oDr lodges act in a
superintending capacity in relation to work being
carried outo and he has a column on his pedestal
which he keeps in an erect position during labor as
symbol of that authority. This offrcet lowers his
column to a horizontal position when the labor
ceases thus indicating that he has passed his
authority to another brother the Junior Warden
during r"he brethren's absence from the lodge.
211. LANDMARKS, ANCIENT. tn the Masonio
ritual, there are many. references to the ancient
landmarks of the orcler and brethren are enjoined to act
at all times in accordance with these landmarks and to
preserve them sacred and inviolable. The landmarks
have been highlighted since the earliest days of
speculative Freemasonry but it is difficult to decide
exactly what was intended originally. A landmark is
described by some authorities as being a matter which
dates back to time immemorial and something which is
essential to the continued existence of Freemasonry as
an institution. Other writers have developed lists of
landmarks which would seem to be more properly
termed regulations, customs, practices or principles.
The number of landmarks can vary from just a few to a
considerable number: there is no standardization of
approach. Perhaps the best known list is that proposed
by Albert Mackey in 1858 which contain 25 landmarks
covering a number of facets of the order, Some Grand
Lodges have nominated specific lists but'the Viqtorian
constitution, like many others, considers the matter too
controversial and has not adopted any particular group
of landmarks. (The GLP has adopted Albert Mrclrey's
25 landn,arlc.)

212. LEADERSIilP COURSf, (WARDENS) For

several years the United Grand Lodge of Victoria has
'sponsored a comprehensive course for wardens. The
aim of the course is to assist Wardens to accept
responsibilities for lodge leadership through the
development of skills in managernent and personal
relationships. Developed by dedicated brethren
experienced in such organizafional planning, the course
deals with numerous topics including forward planning
in expectatioit of later election to the Masteros chair,
setting of objectives, leadership, communication skills,
conduct of meetings, personal developrnent, the
' acquisition of knowledge and other aspectslof Masonic
education. Courses are held throughout each year both
in the meffopolitan areas and country districts. They
have been well attended and well received by Wardens,
many of whom have indicated thar they have found the
instruction stimulating, helpful and timely,: The oourse
is a most useful adjunct to lodges of Instruptions-

24&