Sharing Masonry
Media
Part of The Cabletow
- Title
- Sharing Masonry
- Creator
- Tinio, Mariano Q.
- Language
- English
- Year
- 1967
- Rights
-
- Abstract
- Address on his installation as Grand Master on Aril 27, 1967 by MW Tinio, Grand Master.
- Fulltext
- Strengthening and. . Sharing Masonry MW Mariano Q. Tinio Address on his installation as Grand Master on April 27, 1067 by MW Tinio, Grand Master. Most Worshipful Sirs, Indies, Gen tlemen and Brethren: At no other time is a Mason more seriously aware of his obligations, his duties and responsibilities than when he is elected to serve Freema sonry, his brethren and this Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the Phil ippines as Grand Master. I appreciate the honor you have conferred upon me and do thank you very sincerely and most profoundly for the trust and confidence which you have reposed in me by selecting me to this most exalted position, tints conferring upon me the Greatest Honor which is in your power to bestow upon a brother. I congratulate the brothers who have been elected and/or appointed to serve as Officers of the Grand Lodge this Masonic Year. I con gratulate you my brothers because yours shall be the honor to share leadership in a lofty undertaking and partake in this great and unique adventure in service; because you shall have the privilege to experi ence the joy and derive happiness and satisfaction from serving bro:hers and Freemasonry. I would like to make public mv ap preciation and gratitude to MW Pedro M. Gimenez, PGM, for dis covering and arousing in my humble self whatever little potential for serv ice I may have had. From this modest asset I pledge to draw constantly and heavily during this year of my in cumbency. Likewise, I wish to thank MW Cenon S. Cervantes, PGM, who unself ishly and untiringly lent me his guid ance these past few years and whose good counsel helped to prepare me for this heavy task ahead. I have had the privilege to serve under three Past Grand Masters, and I am thankful to them all because through them I have sampled of the essence of open-hearted fellowship and brotherly love: and, because I have profited from their examples of fidelity, serenity and discipline. Working for and with them has been a pleasant task indeed. I feel, however, a special sense of gratitude towards MW Raymond E. Wilmarth, PGM, under whom I served as Deputy Grand Master. I have been a beneficiary of his under standing tutorship and guidance; of the virtue of his various examples of searching thoughts for Masonry; and of the wisdom of his exercise of au thority. tempered with brotherly love and affection. Serving under him was certainly a fruitful privilege and an honor. And I am thankful also to the of ficers and members of the Board for General Purposes for their pleasant fellowship. They were to me an in spiring group of leaders. Lastly, I wish to thank MW Esteban MunarTurn to noxt page MAY, 1967 riz, PGM, our Grand Secretary. With him I have had the pleasure to work in the Grand Lodge as Junior Grand Warden, and Deputy Grand Master. He has always been a kind friend and an understanding co worker. To me, he is a symbol of patience, fidelity and dedication. It is a distinct privilege to have bad the opportunity to work with him. For a pattern of work this Masonic Year ahead, we do not contemplate to deviate, in any way, from the plans, program and policies of Grand Masters who have gone before us. We propose to support, maintain, implement and continue them to a fruitful end. You shall be informed of developments through appropriate messages which I propose to issue from time to time. Furthermore, we propose to make visitations to, and make as much per sonal contact with, as many of our in dividual Lodges and brethren as time and opportunity may permit. We hope that in this manner* we shall be promoting more healthy and harmonious relations between the brethren and our Lodges on. the one hand, and the Grand Lodge on the other, a condition which I deem es sentially necessary if we must main tain that pleasant harmony characterestic of Masonry; and, if we must continue to protect and preserve for our Fraternity that certain level of dignity which our forebears in Free masonry have diligently and honor ably worked and earned for it. It is painful to admit, and some may dislike my saying it, but with due sincerity, we must admit that through some unguarded acts of commission or omission of our own, we have permitted petty jealousies, petty pas sions, and petty selfishness, to un dermine our Fraternity and thus, we have given grounds for some serious concern for the good name, and the future of Freemasonry in the Philip pines. People judge, and will continue to judge, Freemasonry by the Masons they know and see. If Freemasonry is to continue on its proper pedes tal of dignity, and command the re spect of people, we, the men in the Fraternity, must ourselves command respect and ourselves keep and main tain that level of dignity which be comes a worthy and exemplary Ma son. Were we to look back at our earl) days in Freemasonry we would re collect that as each of us was admit ted into Freemasonry, we immediate ly became aware of the greatness of the Craft, and of its value to our selves and to us all as a people. We then became aware that we were the recipients of a gift and a trust; and we began to feel, as it was once said: “That it was the faith, hope and expectation of our Masonic forebears that we who come after them would strive to prove worthy of what was being passed on to us; that we would work, plan and struggle to preserve the Order in all its purity and beauteous splendor, and, that we would transmit unim paired thru a succession of ages the excellent tenets of Freemasonry." Yes, we have received from those who came before us a precious heri tage: The Great and Ancient Fra ternity of Freemasons, with all its traditions, its beautiful degrees full of symbolism and meaning, its lofty idealism and its inspiration to each individual Mason; a way of life; and, a Medium that affords to every Ma son the privilege of the love of fcllowmen and a home everywhere. Certainly, it must be our duty to cherish this heritage, to understand Turn to pogo 3* The Cabletow The last day, March 11, was spent in purely panel discussions with speak ers from the Masonic hierarchy and national government. Closing address was given by Rt.W. Mariano Q. Tinio, Deputy Grand Master. — AM STRENGTHENING AND . . . From paga 4 its message, and to appreciate its full worth and meaning. It must be our further duty to protect it against the snares of the insidious, who may come from within or from without, by a constant practice of the great social and moral virtues we derive from it. And surely, it must be our duty to preserve its purity and splen dor by constantly maintaining unsul lied the luster of its image and dig nity, its traditions and idealism. But if we must truly cherish this our heritage, protecting and preserv ing it is not enough, for that is not the end total of our obligations. We must build upon the accomplishments of those who came before us and en rich our minds and souls by their examples, that as men of honor, in tegrity and sincerity, we may the bet ter be fit ashlars for That Eternal Temple. We must strengthen this our heri tage by constantly squaring our ac tions, and by dedicated efforts to pro ject a wholesome image of Freema sonry, to bring people to understand it and accept it, its philosophy and its objectives. While we must hold Freemasonry among our most precious possessions, sharing it with all people through a constant practice of its wholesome tenets, and passing it on to future generations as pure and unimpaired as wc have received it, is our respon sibility. Thus, in our own respec tive ways we would have truly che rished and served Freemasonry. My brethren, you have chosen me to lead our Fraternity this ensuing Masonic Year, and as I humbly ac cept the honor, I am conscious of the attendant responsibilities. Hence, I take your trust to mean as a challenge to serve Freemasonry in general and my brethren and this Most Worship ful Grand Lodge in particular. I am aware that the role of leader ship has been in the hands of many, in our Fraternity and in all other hu man activities, as well. To have served well and successfully, how ever, has been the good fortune of but a few. Aware of my shortcomings, of my personal limitations, and of the nor mal human frailties I pray the Great Architect of the Universe to endow me now and henceforth with strength and wisdom necessary that I may ac complish this role of leadership — WELL — with Honor to the Fra ternity and pleasure to my brethren. By your constitutional mandate the Grand Master is charged with the duties : (1) to exercise a general and careful supervision over the Craft; (2) to see that the Constitution, Edicts and Regulations of the Grand Lodge arc strictly maintained, sup ported and obeyed; and, (3) to dis charge all the necessary executive functions of the Grand Lodge, when that body is not in session. I pledge my administration to a regular, strict, uniform and judicious subservience to and compliance with these mandates. With your assistance and coopera tion I dare hope for and look for ward to a bright, harmonious and fruitful Masonic Year ahead. A MAY, 1967 31