Honor is duty

Media

Part of The Cabletow

Title: Honor is duty
Creator: Picache, A. T.
Language: English
Source: The Cabletow I New Series (No. 4) April 1959
Year: 1959
Rights
Fulltext: c&tonor is "Duty TcJor. ®to. (?• ^Picache, ePflaster of Nilad Lodge No. 12, CT cAefrC My message tonight is addressed both to my brethren and to our friends now assembled in this Lodge Hall. To my brethren: 1 am very much overwhelmed by high honor which you have just conferred upon me. It has summoned my sentiment of grati tude, and stimulated my sense of hum ility. For the East of the Lodge, as wc all know, is the place of Light—Light :«s contradistinguished from Darkness, God—and none but he who appreciates the fact that the realization of one’s ignorance is the first step to one’s wis dom may fittingly and properly seek it. Conscious of my limitations, but con fident of your support and assistance, I shall make such searching for Light my continual aim and obsession. Yes, my brethren, I propose to do just this—not solely that I may become a better Mason and a better man, but that, through such self-development and self-discipline, I may help others to achieve the same end. Of course, 1 know that, by our human differences or intrinsic natures, we each have our conception of Light. What in it may attract one, mav not attract the others; what may draw ohers to it may not draw us. But certainly there arc certain facets to it in which there is, or there should be, unanimity of view or agreement of belief—such as, for instance, the truth that only as we dedicate ourselves to the tasks at hand can we accomplish grander things in the days to come. Indeed, all too often we look afar for opportunities for activity and achieve ment when rgiht in our midst are tasks that demand our earnest attention. Of ten at so much expense of time wc draft long-range plans when the imme diate projects that we have started arc still halfway, if not a long wav, to real ization. Frequently we disperse our ef forts, as it were, across so many do mains, over so many directions, and muster only the minimum of our ta lents. Of course, there is nothing wrong with hitching our wagons to tne stars. Especially during these davs of tremen dous progress in science and technology, in business and industry, in labor and management, man finds himself ushered into tne age of automation and it will not be to nis credit to fail to aim high and shape up his drcams to the eternal wonders. But man must be sure that he has the time, the talent and the training, the desire, the disposition and the determination, for such an act. A few words to our friends. "Freemasonry builds its temple in the hearts of men and among nations." Its beliefs, its teachings and philosophy, were sources of inspiration even to the framers of constitutions of the civilized nations of the world, so that not infre quently we find incorporated in them: (1) the belief in a Supreme Being, (2) the freedom of thought and con science, (3) the freedom of religion and worship, (4) freedom of the press (5) of democracy and equality and (.6) of the universal brotherhood of No person can become a member of this venerable and ancient Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons unless 128 THE CABLE TOW April, 1959 first and foremost, he believes in God. As Freemasons we seek Divine guidance and assistance when opening a lodge and invoke the blessings of God on closing. But Masonry is not a religion contrary to what many people think. I repeat: Masonry is not a religion. It is a religious fraternity. For "every candidate who knocks at the outer door must profess a belief in God. At the threshold of the lodge he must kneel to that God. He is charged never to speak His holy name except with that reverence due from the creature to his Creator. No Masonic assembly is ever opened or closed without prayer.An open Bible is always upon its altar. It draws inspiration from it. The can didate says his obligation bv and ovci it. Passages from the scripture are cither read or sung during the confer rals. The whole Fraternity is predicated upon the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, and its command is to love the Lord with all our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves. No reasonable person who under stands the Masonic fraternitv will be lieve for one moment that it has ever tried to supplant the church. But this greatest human brotherhood the world has ever known, has gone ahead mind ing its own business and accomplishing its mission. Again and again we sav that Free masonry' is a religious society. It is not a religion. But if a great many peo ple think it is, let us in the fraternitv rejoice that thev find in Freemasonry a religion that they might never find in a church. The members of this Fraternitv be lieve in, and practice democracy in all its aspects, and “Masonry has brought about equality for all men, of all creeds and of all colors. Our fraternity reveres our flag and the country for which it stands. You must have witnessed the flag ceremony at the public opening of this Lodge. You will see it again at closing when the Flag of our country is restored to its original place in the hall. We be lieve in that great Filipino patriot, Apolinario Mabini, the Sublime Paralytic, when he aptly said: "Love thy country next to thy God, and thv honor more than thyself, for it is the only paradise that God hath giv en thee in this life, the only patrimony of thy race, the only inheritance from thy ancestors, and the only legacy for thy descendants; because of it thou has life, love, interest, happiness, honor, and God." “The real Freemason is distinguished from the rest of mankind by the uni form unrestrained rectitude of his con duct. Other men are honest in the fear of punishment which the law may inflict; they are religious in ex pectation of being rewarded, or in dreac of the devil in the next world. A Free mason would be good and just if there were no laws, human or divine, excep which arc written in his heart by the finger of his Creator. In every climate under every system of religion, he i the same. He kneels before the uni versa! throne of God in gratitude for the blessings he has received, and in humble solicitation for his protection. He venerates the good men of any and all ‘kinds of religion, he disturbs not the religion of others. He restrains his passions, because they can not be in dulged in without injuring his neigh bor or himself. He gives no offense, because he docs not choose to be of fended. He contracts no debts which he is not certain to discharge, because he is honest upon principle.” He be lieves in charity. By the tenets of Free masonry, he seeks relicF, not only to 129 the family of a distressed worthv brother, but to every man, woman and child. My brethren and friends, if I have said all this, it is not to take unto my* self the role of a preacher, nor of that of a reformer, hut simply to indicate the probable position of the possible Light —or at least, a ray of it—that the East of the Lodge can provide everv single one of us. We have joined Masonrv that we mav become better men, and we can become better men onlv as we recognize the truth that, whether in affairs of our personal business or in the business of our fraternal lodge, there occurs to us, at one time or anoth er, “the opportunitv to effect a great good,” ana it will be worse than follv to let that opportunity pass by. And now' brethren, in the next twelve months, there will come to Nilad Lodge No. 12, Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines, many such an oppor tunity, and I shall fail in mv position as your Worshipful Master—nay, I shall miss the confidence and trust that you have so generously reposed in me—if I do not call attention to all those oppor tunities— w’hethcr big or small, whether creative or prosaic, whether far-reaching or immediate—and accordingly plead lor vour cooperation. And I know that, when the hour or occasion comes, you will extend that cooperation. You will do so because as Masons you know as much as I do that worthwhile results are most ordina rily produced by an aggregate of many contributions and many exertions. In true brotherhood, therefore, we shall plan together and w'ork together, we shall draw' upon our collective resources for the inspiration and energy to per form the tasks at hand for the credit of our Lodge and the glory of our Frat ernity, and to the extent of our means and capacity, do even more and this is, by continuance, by persistence, by a steady and uniform habit of work, en deavor to advance the enlightenment and welfare of our country and of the world we live in. AAA O BROTHER MAN, FOLD TO THY HEART THY BROTHER O brother man, fold to thy heart thy brother; Where pity dwells, the peace of God is there; To worship rightly is to love each other, Each smile a hymn, each kindly deed a prayer. For he whom Jesus loved has indy spoken: The holier worship which He deigns to bless Restores the lost, and binds the spirit broken, And feeds the widows and the fatherless. Follow with reverent steps the great example Of Him whose holy work was doing good; So shall the wide earth seem our Father's temple, Each loving life a psalm of gratitude. —John Greenleaf Whittier 130 THE CABLE TOW April, 1959 WITH GRAND LODGE OFFICERS As usual the month of January has been a most busv month for the Grand Master, Deputy Grand Master, Grand Secretary, and some of our Past Grand Masters. There were installations to at tend, visitations to make, and laying of cornerstones and dedication of temples to be present at. Alone or in company with the Grand Secretarv, Grand Master Hick was present at the installation of Pinagsabitan Lodge No. 26 in Santa Cruz, Laguna on January 3, 1959; visited Sarangani Lodge No. 50 and Davao Lodge No. 149 in Davao Citv, on Januarv 6; T. M. Kalaw Lodge No. 136 in San Juan, Rizal on January 13; Camarincs Norte Lodge No. 107 in Dact, Cam. Norte on January 14; and in companv with Most Wor. Bro. Sidney M. Aus tin, PGM, visited and installed the of ficers of Baguio Lodge No. 67 in Ba guio City on January 16 and Bontoc Lodge No. 140 in Bontoc on Januarv 17; then Mt. Kaladias Lodge No. 91 in Dumagucte City on January 19; Dagohoy Lodge No. 84 in Tagbilaran, Bonol on Januarv 20; a joint visitation in Cebu Citv to Mactan Lodge No. 30 and Cebu Lodge No. 128 on Jan uary 21. Rt. Wor. Bro. Macario M. Ofilada. Deputy Grand Master, journeyed to Pintong Bato Lodge No. 51 in Bacoor, Cavite on Januarv 3; Biak Na Bato Lodge No. 7 in Plaridel Temple on January 8; Quezon City Lodge No. 122 in Quezon Citv on Januarv 9; Union Lodge No. 70 in San Fernando, La Union'on Januarv 10; Marikina Lodge No. 119 in Marikina, Rizal on Januarv 16; Ta ma raw Lodge No. 65 in Calapan, Mindoro on Januarv 17; Dapitan Lodge No. 21 in Manila on Januarv 19; Iloilo Acacia Lodge No. OLDEST MASON IN THE PHILIPPINES Prideful is the Grand Lodge of the Philippines that in Bro. James Jardine Wilson, it has one of the oldest Masons in the Orient. Ninety-two year-old "JJ”, as his intimates call him, has been sixty-nine years a Mason, paving dues inspite of the honor of a Life-Member ship awarded to him hv his Lodge, Mt. Apo No. 45, some two years ago. Bro. Wilson was raised to the sub lime degree on January 27, 1890 at St. John Lodge No. 16 in his native Fal kirk, Scotland. Years later, when he emigrated to the United States, he joined Pentalpha Lodge No. 316 in Los Angeles, California. At the turn ol the century’, Bro. Wilson joined the Armv of the United States and was ‘ent to the Philippines. In Zamboangawhere he was stationed for sometime, lie joined Mt. Apo Lodge No. 45 in 1918 as a character member and has been a member of that Lodge ever since. Still young enough to travel, Bro. Wilson set sail for the Llnitcd States and Scotland early last year to visit with his folks, or what is left of them, in those countries. He is expected back in Zamboanga shortly. »1 in Iloilo City on January 24. Grand Secretary Munarriz, whenever possible, accompanied the Grand Master or the Deputy Grand Master; but where it was impossible for cither officers to be present due to previous engagements, our Grand Secretarv went alone or in companv with other Grand Lodge Of ficers. Most Wor. Bro. Munarriz went io Mong Lodge No. 89 in Paranaquc, Rizal on January 10; Batangas Lodge No. 35 in Batangas on Januarv 17; and Kutang Bato Lodge No. 110 in Cotabalo on January 22. 131 £abit Qayon? Noong ikaw’y tumutuktok sa pinto ng kapatiran, May apoy ka ng sigasig at sidhi ng kalooban; Bakit ngayong matanggap ka’t ang diwa mo’u mailaivan, Saka ka pa nanlalamig at madalas na magkulang? Bakit baga tila waring sa puso mo'y napaparamdam Ang sikhay ng iyong nais na ang iba’y bahaginan, Ng matayog na kuro mong sa gawai’y pamatnubay At gayon din, di na nais na ikaw ma'y madulutan? Kung sa araw na natakdang tayo'y dapat na magkita Ay sikapin nating lahat na matupad ang panata, Di malayong sa palitan ng kuro ng isa’t isa'y Matamo ang kaganapan ng lunggati’t gintong pita; Maging yaong suliraning sa puso ay bumabakla, Kung maraming magtutulong na lumutas at magdala, Mabigat ma’y gagaan din at madaling mokikita Ang lunas na magdudulot ng liwanag at ginhawa. Di ba’t tayo ay nagkusang dumulog at nakisapi Sa layuning makiisa sa gawaing natatangi; Nanumba nang buong puso na tayo ay magbibirihi Ng aral sa madlang tao upang luminis ang budhiK At gayon din ang kapatid sa ginhawa’y ihahati, Tutulungan ang salantang sa hirap ay nalugami; Pa’nong yao’y magagawa kung liliban ka ngang lagi At ang tawag ng tungkulin ay pansinin mo na di[i? Kahapon ay nakita kong ikaw nama’y nakinabang Sa tulong ng natanggap mong sikap nitong kapatiran; Saka ngayong dumakila tila yata babayaan Ang nagpala at nagdulot ng taglay mong karangalan^ Bakit waring nalimot na ang sumpa mong binitiwan Noong ikaw'y knmakapa sa laot ng kadiliman? Balikan mo ng gunita — nang kamtan mo yaong Haw May panatang binigkas kang tutuparin habang buhay? F1L0MEN0 R. CARPIO MaW.0% Lodge No. 46 132 THE CABLE TOW April, On April 27, 1958, at 48, not the youngest, but certainly the tallest, 6' 6", Most Wor. Bro. Howard R. Hick, was installed Grand Master of Masons of the Philippines, lhe world's biggest Grand Lodge. His managerial acumen as President and Gen eral Manager of Peter Paul Phil ippines, Inc. served him well in directing the business of the Grand Lodge for 1958-'59. Tackled his jt like a footb. star, which I was, NYU, ar bore ihrour with success. E couraged cult ral outlets hidden talents Masons, Easle Stars, DeMolai Rainbows, J bies ... th presented d mas, musica national danc< Inspired organ ization of more youth groups af filiated Io Ma sonry. Was hon orary host ar in stitution of a new Bethel of Job's Daughters on Feb. 15, 1959 at Plaridel Tem ple; firmly be lieves in lhe potentialities for good of the young; in res ponsibilities of the adulls to the youth. His term saw 1 h e building, decorating, re pairing, refur bishing of lodge temples. Offi ciated at the cor ner-stone laying for three new temples; dedic tated two. In [Plaridel Temple, Facilities were augmented, ser vices improved. Gave impetus to "more-men-in-Masonry-and-more-Masonry-in-men" ideal. Constituted ihree lodges; gave dispensation to one; saw the re-organizalion of Mt. Makiling Lodge in Bro. Rizal's homelown of Calamba, Laguna. Found great joy in attending District Grand Lodge Conventions, eight of them; visited lodge meetings; gave stirring, punchy talks to brethren in Masonic gatherings, installations. In prior planning that prevents poor performance, his help-meet, Jean, inspires. When pradicable he has flown outside lhe coun try to be pres ent at other Grand Lodge communications. Visited wilh bre thren (above) in Japan; has warm spot in his heart for the four Jap an lodges which chose to remain with the Grand Lodge of the Philippines. And yet, finds time t o fellowship with Eastern Stars (right) in meetings or so cials.
pages: 128-136