THE MASONIC LIFE OF MANUEL A. ROXASView Image

By: MW Reynold S. Fajardo, PGM, GMH

 

The Masonic life of Manuel A. Roxas began on August 14, 1920. Barely 28 years of age, he was already Governor of his province.    

Manuel was born on January 1, 1892 to Gerardo Roxas and Rosario Acuna in Capiz, Capiz, a town which has since been renamed Roxas City in his honor.

He lost his father before his birth but his maternal grandmother took charge of his education. Sent to Hongkong to study, he returned to Manila after a year and enrolled in the Manila High School. Thereafter, he studied law at the newly-opened University of the Philippines, then under the presidency of a noted Scottish Rite Mason, Murray Bartlett. As a law student, Roxas studied at the feet of another Scottish Rite Mason, George A. Malcolm. He graduated valedictorian in 1913 and topped the bar examinations given in the same year.

Roxas immediately went into law practice in partnership with his only brother, Mamerto. Shortly thereafter, however, he accepted an appointment as private secretary to Chief Justice Cayetano S. Arellano. He also taught law in the Philippine Law School and the National University.  After a few years stint with Chief Justice Arellano, the political bug bit Roxas. He resigned and returned to his home province to accept an appointment as municipal councilor. In 1919, he ran for governor and won.

Shortly after the election of Roxas, the Masons of Capiz led by Senator Altavas conceived the idea of founding a Masonic lodge in their province. They received a dispensation from Grand Master Milton Earl Springer on September 11 and then, at the Annual Communication of the Grand Lodge held in January 1920, they were given a charter for their lodge. It was named Makawiwili Lodge No. 55, after

a beautiful mountain within the view of Capiz, Capiz.

Grand Master Rafael Palma constituted the lodge on April 9, 1920 in the spacious hall of the "palatial residence" of Altavas in the presence of the leading citizens of the province, including Governor Roxas.

Four months after the constitution of Makawiwili Lodge No. 55, Roxas was honored as one of its initiates. In a terse report to the Senior Grand Lecturer, Grand Lodge Inspector Manuel Camus stated: "Makawiwili Lodge No. 55 at Capiz was visited by me on August 14 (1920).  Governor Manuel Roxas of the province was initiated. WB Jose Altavas, Master of the Lodge, used the old Spanish ritual. The ceremony was impressive xxx."

The entry of Roxas into the Fraternity came as no surprise. Even that early, he already had extensive associations with Masons who must have impressed him favorably. In his home province alone, a number of those who promoted his career and encouraged him were Masons, among whom were Senator Jose Altavas, Secretary of the Provincial Board Ramon Acuna Arnaldo, Fortunato Acuna, Felipe Fernando, Gervacio Ramirez and Rito Isla.

In 1921, Roxas attracted national attention. He was elected head of the Convention of   Provincial Governors and his name appeared in the headlines of the country's newspapers. His political stock was now on the rise and he caught the attention of Senate President Manuel L. Quezon, PGM, one of the two leading political figures in the country. Another feather was added to his cap when he married Trinidad de Leon, the lovely daughter of  a powerful political figure from Bulacan, a Senator and Mason, Ceferino de Leon.

In 1922 Roxas launched his candidacy for a seat in the House of Representatives to represent his district in Capiz and won with an impressive majority. In the same elections, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Sergio Osmena, run for the Senate, so the Speakership was up for grabs. Roxas aspired for the position. With the backing of Senate President Quezon and Senator Osmena, he handily defeated Claro M. Recto, the candidate of the Democrata Party. In those days, the Speaker of the House of Representatives was not just a presiding officer but an official who wielded great powers and influence.

Roxas therefore, became one of the country's leading political figures.  In 1923, the much written-about dispute between the unpopular Governor Leonard Wood and Senate President Quezon erupted into the open. In July, the Filipino members of Wood's cabinet resigned in mass, precipitating a cabinet crisis. Everyone in the government machinery took sides. Speaker Roxas and most of the members of the Philippine Legislature sided with Quezon. Eventually, the Philippine Legislature adopted a resolution urging United States President Calvin Coolidge to recall Wood. Roxas was chosen to head a special mission to Washington to undertake this delicate mission.

Predestinately, just before his departure for the United States, Roxas joined the Philippine Bodies and received   the 320 . In the United States, both the Blue Lodge and the Scottish Rite Masons showered him with touching acts of generosity and friendship. He was treated most kindly by Senator and Brother Frank B. Willis, Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Philippines and by Congressman and Brother Louis W. Fairfield, Chairman of the House Committee on Insular Affairs. Roxas not only succeeded in presenting a Memorial on Wood to President Coolidge, but was also able to lobby for the passage of an independence bill for the Philippines.

Roxas returned home with fond memories and glowing words of praise for his brother American Masons. Thus, when he addressed the Scottish Rite Luncheon forum on July 29, 1924, he profusely lauded the Masonic spirit in the United States. An account of that speech published in the August 1924 issue of the Far Eastern Freemason reads:

Bro. Roxas gave a very interesting account of the impressions that he received on his visit to America. He was very appreciative of the kindness shown him by the American Masons and related many incidents of more than ordinary interest, illustrative of the fraternal spirit evidenced everywhere. Brother Roxas is a strong believer in a militant Masonry and holds that Masons should be practical idealists, ever mindful that one of the chief purposes of our Order is to serve our fellowmen in a practical way.

For many years, Roxas maintained a high degree of interest in the Craft and accounts of his activities aptly landed in the pages of the Cabletow. Thus when Saturnino Alegre of Makawiwili Lodge No. 55 died on August 18, 1923, Roxas delivered a funeral

oration. It was published in full in the October 1923 issue of the Cabletow. The January 1925 issue of the same magazine reported that on December 4, 1924 he accompanied Grand Master Wenceslao Trinidad in the latters official visitation of Makawiwili Lodge. The same issue reported that on December 10, he and Provincial Fiscal Francisco Zulueta were honored with a fraternal banquet held in the lodge. Judge Quirico Abeto, who later became Secretary of Justice, acted as the toastmaster.

In the November 1925 issue, we read that when Grand Maser Christian W. Rosentock visited Makawiwili Lodge No. 55, a reception was held in the beautiful home of Roxas, "where the ladies served refreshment, and thither the Brethren repaired for a few hours enjoyment of the Terpsichroean art to the music furnished by an excellent orchestra."

In 1927 Roxas was elected from the floor as Master of Makawiwili Lodge, succeeding Ramon A. Arnaldo, the Assistant Provincial Treasurer of Iloilo. His able assistants were Guillermo J. Jimenez, Senior Warden and Braulio C. Manikas, Junior Warden. Although Roxas was still the Speaker of the House of Representatives which required his presence in Manila most of the time, he unfailingly managed to take a boat to his hometown whenever his presence in the lodge was needed.

A project completed during his term as Master was the Masonic cemetery of his lodge. An imposing monumental gate was erected at the entrance with the Square and the Compasses and the legend "Masonic Cemetery" inscribed thereon, all of which manifestly gave an impression of strength, power and dignity. The well-kept graves and tombstones also showed that brotherly love does not stop with the breath of the body. The completed project, needless to say, was a pride of the entire Fraternity.

When Roxas stepped down from the Oriental Chair on January 24, 1928, his grateful lodge awarded him a solid gold past masters jewel. It was pinned on his breast by Judge Leonardo Gardunio, a past master of Sinukuan Lodge. In response, Roxas delivered a stirring address on the aims and purposes of Masonry.

Roxas remained as Speaker of the House of Representatives up to 1933. As Speaker he headed other independence missions to the United States. With the help of several of his brother Masons such

as Camilo Osias and Pedro Guevarra, he successfully obtained passage of an Independence Act known as the Hare-Hawes Cutting Act.

Roxas returned to the country as a hero but Quezon found fault with the Act. Fearing that its approval would undermine his leadership, Quezon engineered its rejection by the Philippine Legislature and then himself went to the United States and secured a new Independence Law, the Tydings-McDuffy Act. In the meantime, Quezon maneuvered to have Roxas replaced as Speaker by Past Grand Master Quintin Paredes.

When an election for delegates to the Constitutional Convention was held in 1934 Roxas was elected along with Senior Grand Warden Conrado Benitez and 39 other Masons.

The Constitutional Convention presented the Masons with a golden opportunity to inject universal Masonic principles in the Constitution. To this end, they organized themselves. Thus, Delegate Conrado Benitez reported to the Grand Lodge:

At the time of the drafting of the Constitution of the Philippine Commonwealth, it was felt essential by Masons in the Constitutional Convention that those Masonic principles incorporated in the American Bill of Rights should be included therein, and that no movement to deviate from those principles should be allowed to succeed. To that end the Masons in the Convention organized themselves and saw to it that the new Constitution of the Philippines was a truly Masonic document. In this effort they succeeded x x x . Besides the principles truly Masonic in the Bills of Rights, of special interest to intellectual freedom is the guaranty of academic freedom to universities supported by the state. 

Roxas played a pivotal role in bringing to fruition the objectives of the Masons. It was widely acknowledged that the overall success of the Convention owed much to his leadership and brilliance. Wrote Delegate Jose Aruego - In his work of securing the harmonious cooperation of all the members of the Convention and the orderly functioning of the body, President Recto was greatly helped by that great leader and patriot, Manuel Roxas, the leader of the minority party in the Convention.

From the beginning, Delegate Roxas cooperated with

the majority party in the most effective way he could, his cooperation inspired by a conscientious conviction that the national welfare demanded the throwing overboard the narrow partisanship in the drafting of the fundamental law.

In critical moments, when the entente cordiale with which the Convention had been inaugurated was threatened, the Convention President freely consulted Delegate Roxas and they always managed to pilot together the Convention through troublous waters. In critical times, when the Convention was proving to be unruly, both Manuel Roxas and Claro M. Recto would be seen at their best, one of them at the presidential chair, the other at the session floor. And with them together at work, usually it was found easy to direct the Convention to the desired goal.

As one of the delegates to the Convention, the author had the privilege of working together with Delegate Roxas in some of the Convention committees, in the preparation of the first draft of the Constitution, on the floor of the Convention, and in the special committee on style that took charge of putting the Constitution to its final form. He was specially struck, as others were, by his great passion for service to the country through the framing of the Constitution. One of the most consistently hardworking members of the Convention, studying conscientiously and closely each and every one of the proposed provisions of the Constitution until its final completion, he was a great pillar to the Assembly, whose wealth of information, acquired from experience as a public servant and increased by diligent study and investigation during the Convention days, proved of incalculable value in the framing of the fundamental law.

After the Constitution drafted by the Convention was adopted and ratified by the people, the Grand Master of Masons circularized to all the Lodges urging them to hold appropriate ceremonies to celebrate Constitution Day. The main celebration was held at the Plaza Hotel in Manila with Roxas as one of the principal speakers. He gave a scholarly and authoritative discourse on the "Masonic Principles of the Constitution."

In due time the political differences between Roxas and Quezon were mended and Quezon again leaned heavily on the former for support. Roxas was appointed to every planning enterprise to prepare the nation for the coming independence in July 1946. He

was made member of the Joint Preparatory Committee on Philippine Affairs. He was asked by Quezon to study the economic phase of Philippine American relations and was appointed chairman of many government agencies, such as the National Economic Council, the Tax Commission on the Rural Progress Administration, and as Board Director of the National Development Company. Aside from these functions he was made a member of various governmental boards such as the National Rice and Corn Corporation, the National Relief Board, the Board of Regents of the University of the Philippines and the Mindanao Land Settlement Project.  In 1938 Quezon appointed him, Secretary of Finance, a position that he held until August 1941, when he resigned in order to run for a seat in the Senate. Roxas won emerging as one of its topnotchers.

In the meantime, Roxas maintained his active involvement in Masonic affairs. His appointments to various government positions were dutifully reported in the pages of the Cabletow. In September 1938 issue, he was featured on the front cover and the caption under his name read: "Assemblyman from Capiz who has been appointed Chairman of the National Economic Council. Brother Roxas is a past master of Makawiwili Lodge No. 55 and continues to be active in the affairs of the Fraternity." When he was appointed Secretary of Finance, the Cabletow again published his picture in the December 1938 issue along with Bros. Rafael Alunan and Jose Abad Santos who were appointed Secretary of Interior and Secretary of Justice, respectively.

In 1941, war clouds hung ominously over Philippine skies. Roxas volunteered for military service and was made an aide to General Douglas MacArthur, with assignment to serve as liaison between the Generals headquarters and the Commonwealth Government of President Manuel L. Quezon.

On December 8, 1941, Manila time, the war everybody feared finally broke out. Japan unleashed a furious attack upon the Philippines, which they pursued and sustained with an interminable series of blows that stunned both the Filipinos and the Americans. Unable to resist the Japanese invaders in the plains, the American and Filipino defenders retreated to Bataan and Corregidor, but food supply for the soldiers became a serious problem. Getting supply from Luzon was out of the question for the advancing Japanese forces sealed all routes. There was, however, still one possible source of supply and

that was Capiz from where food could still be sent through a sea route. Roxas was assigned to this delicate and dangerous undertaking. Roxas did not let the troops down. Using the steamship Legaspi he had 30,000 sacks of rice, more than 300,000 eggs and other food items shipped to Corregidor and Bataan. He volunteered to go on the first trip of Legaspi but MacArthur and Quezon vetoed the idea. Nonethe less he was promoted to full colonel for his heroism.

On March 22, 1942, Col. Roxas was directed to inspect military establishments in the Visayas and Mindanao with instructions to return to Corregidor upon the completion of his mission. The situation of the defenders, however, deteriorated from bad to worse and completely foreclosed all his chances of returning. An attempt was made to rescue him and fly him out on a plane to Australia and to the United States. Pappy Gunn was entrusted with the mission but he failed to make the stopover at the designated airfield on the agreed date and time. Consequently, the Japanese captured Roxas. Brought to Camp Casisang, a concentration camp in Malaybalay, Bukidnon, he was designated commanding officer of the prisoners of war in the camp. He initiated programs to bolster the sagging moral of the prisoners, improve sanitation in the camp and increase food supply. His accomplishments impressed even the Japanese.

The Japanese had something else in mind for Roxas. Their lightning military triumphs created a vast problem of administration. Hundreds of millions of people in Asia were suddenly under Japanese flag but the Japanese had  neither the technical know how nor the needed personnel to run the civil governments. Moreover, they realized that to sustain their new empire the had to transform the hostility of the vanquished people into friendship. Within seventy two hours of occupying Manila, therefore, Chief of Staff Maeda Masami and General Hayashi Yostide,  director General of the Military Administration, began searching for support among the pre-war elite. Roxas logically, became one of their prime targets for support. The Imperial Japanese Forces tried all strategems to have Roxas serve actively in the Japanese- controlled government, but he adroitly parried all attempts to enlist his collaboration especially in matters directly connected with the Japanese war effort. He was, however, prevailed  upon to serve as a member of the Independence Commission that was charged with the task of framing a  Constitution for the Japanese-sponsored

Philippine Republic, but he saw to it that the charter would include the principles of democracy. He also agreed to head the Bigasang Bayan (or BIBA) which was tasked to procure and distribute rice among the civilian population, especially in the Greater Manila area. He felt that with the BIBA he could help stave off starvation among his countrymen during those critical days.

Masami and General Hayashi Yostide, director General of

the Military Administration, began searching for support

among the pre-war elite. Roxas logically, became one of their

prime targets for support. The Imperial Japanese Forces tried

all strategems to have Roxas serve actively in the Japanese-

controlled government, but he adroitly parried all attempts to

enlist his collaboration especially in matters directly

connected with the Japanese war effort. He was, however,

prevailed upon. Although Roxas was outwardly serving the

government, he surreptitiously maintained close contact and

collaboration with the resistance movement. The letters he

received after the Liberation from such guerilla leaders as

Major Edwin F. Ramsey, Major Robert E. Lapham, Lt. Col.

Bernard L. Anderson, Capt Ray C. Hunt, Jr., and Col.

Wendell W. Fertig, fully attest to this. Because of his known

assistance to the underground movement, selected guerillas

were assigned to rescue him from the Japanese Forces

when he and other important Filipino leaders were being

taken to Baguio City by the retreating Japanese Forces

under General Yamashita. Under cover of darkness the

guerillas were able to spirit him away to the American-

liberated town of Tubao in La Union. From La Union, Roxas

sickly and emaciated, was brought to the headquarters of his

brother Mason, General Walter Krueger, of the American

Sixth Army, at San Fernando, Pampanga, and subsequently

to another brother Mason, General Douglas MacArthur at his

headquarters in Manila, for a happy  reunion. Reporting for

military duty the following day, Roxas was promoted to

General by General MacArthur.

A recital of Roxas’ life during the war years would not be complete without mentioning the name of Lt. Col. Nobuhiko Jimbo of the Imperial Japanese Forces. It was Jimbo who was tasked to convince Roxas to collaborate with the Japanese. During the negotiations, the Kempetai of Col Nagahama constantly threatened Roxas' life, but Jimbo, at the risk of his own life, saw to it that Roxas got proper treatment as a prisoner of war, and that he was taken away from the custody of the Japanese military police. He was also able to convince General Homma to rescind an order for the execution of Roxas issued by General Hayashi, chief of the Japanese Military Administration in Manila. At the end of the war, when Roxas was already the President of the Philippines, he learned from Mrs. Jimbo that her husband was being held as a prisoner of war by Nationalist China in Taiwan, North China. He lost no time in sending President Chiang Kai Shek a letter of appeal in behalf of the Japanese war prisoner. In that l etter, Roxas said:

I hope you will understand, from the text of this letter, why my first communication to you since my assumption of the Presidency of the Philippines, should be of personal in nature.

I have long known of your deep interest in the Philippines, an interest which I deeply appreciate as stemming from your concern for the advancement of freedom and human dignity in this part of the world. x x x x.

The purpose of this personal letter is to place before you certain circumstances involving a Japanese army officer now in the custody of your Government, an officer of minor importance in the general scheme of things, but who played an important role in my own experience of the recent war.

This officer, a certain Lt. Col. Nobuhiko Jimbo, is

being held, I am told, in a prison in Tainan, Shantung Province,  China, as a suspected war criminal. I hasten to say that I know nothing of his activities in China, or of the evidence against him. x x x

I should like to submit, however, that Col. Jimbo is responsible for my being alive today. He was known in the Philippines as one of the few Japanese officers with a genuine sympathy for our plight, and as one of those who did what he could, within the limits of his official station, to alleviate the brutal savagery of his superiors and subordinates. On one occasion, he risked his life by disobeying an order issued for my execution, and made a successful appeal at a later time for the rescinding of the execution order. This action was not based especially on a personal esteem for me, although he had that too, but on repugnance for the senseless cruelty and murder madness which possessed his commanders and associates. He was, of my acquaintance, the most humane of the Japanese invaders.

If there is any proper way in which you can give countenance to these representations in his behalf, I would feel a great load taken off my mind. I know that it is, in an official sense, impolite for me to make these statements on behalf of Colonel Jimbo, but my conscience would not permit me to refrain from doing what I can do to bring these circumstance to the attention of the appropriate officials of your government.

Permit me, Your Excellency, to express sentiments of friendship and admiration for you and your country.  Very sincerely yours,

(Sgd) MANUEL ROXAS

Upon receipt of the letter, the Chinese Generalissimo ordered the immediate release of Col. Jimbo. After the re-establishment of the Philippine Commonwealth at the end of the war, Roxas assumed his duties as Senator and was promptly elected President of the Senate.

General elections were scheduled for April 1946. Aiming for the presidency, Roxas organized the Liberal Party to oppose the Nacionalista Party of President Osmena. The campaign was brief but bitter with Roxas winning by a comfortable majority. Roxas became the last President of the Philippine Commonwealth. Inaugurated into office anew when Philippine Independence was proclaimed on July 4,

1946, he also became the first President of the Philippine Republic.

As President, Roxas had no time to attend Masonic functions but he did not forget the Fraternity. In one of his first official acts, he dispatched the following signed message to his brother Masons, through the Cabletow:

The grant of independence to the Filipino people is a real challenge to us all. It is not enough that we express once again our undying gratitude to America, nor is it sufficient that we, who are the recipients of her magnanimity, rejoice over the realization of our sacred aspirations.

We must be ready to shoulder our corresponding responsibilities and be willing to perform our respective duties. To merit the trust and confidence of our friends and sympathizers, every Filipino, regardless of his station, should contribute his share in the gigantic task of rebuilding the nation.

This applies with special significance to the members of the Masonic Fraternity, an institution derived from the principle of work itself. Here then is a rare opportunity for the brethren in this jurisdiction to work, and work, as they never did before, in the interest of their fellowmen and for the welfare of the Philippines.

Roxas did not serve long as President. Scarcely had he been in office for two years when he succumbed to a heart attack on April 15, 1948 after delivering a speech at Clark Air Base in Pampanga. The Cabletow editor joined his legion of bereaved sympathizers and penned the following parting words:

Our distinguished brother has finally laid down his working tools. His earthly labors have ceased, but not until his dream was realized and his goal accomplished. He contributed toward the liberation of his people from the clutches of the enemy, he helped build the national edifice and was one of the architects of Philippine liberty. As a fitting climax of his colorful career, he lived to be the first Captain of the Ship of State, which he had at long last become sovereign and free. What more could a man born of a woman desire?

PRES. MANUEL LUIS QUEZONView Image

 

He was born on August 19, 1878 at Baler, Tayabas (now Quezon province) and died on August 1, 1944 in the United States.  

He was made a mason on March 17, 1908 at Sinukuan Lodge No. 272 (renamed Sinukuan Lodge No. 16). A fiery orator, he led the unification of the American and Filipino lodges and was the first Filipino Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands that was established in 1917.

He served in the staff of General Emilio Aguinaldo and saw combat in Pampanga under General Mascardo. After the Filipino-American war ended, Generals Harry H. Bandholtz and Gary G. Harbord made him their protégé and gave him his political start in Tayabas by helping him get elected Assemblyman. He later served as Resident Commissioner in the United States, President of the Philippine Senate and finally President of the Commonwealth until his death in 1944.

On his deathbed three months before General MacArthur landed in Leyte, he wrote: “my beloved countrymen, every day the hour of our liberation is drawing closer. Keep the banners of your faith flying. We are on the onward march to victory and freedom.”

His remains was brought to the Philippines on a U. S. carrier on August 1, 1946 and was temporarily led to rest at Cementerio del Norte. On August 1, 1979 it was finally transferred to the Quezon Monument in Quezon City.

A magnificent patriot and a paladin for Filipino freedom, he fought for his country’s welfare both with the incisive sharpness of the sword and the charismatic powers of politics.

 

APOLINARIO MABINIView Image

Considered by many as the “Brains of the Philippine Revolution”, Mabini was born in

Talaga, Tanauan, Batangas on July 23, 1864 and died on May 13, 1903 at Pandacan, Manila, who considered himself a spiritually-beaten man for not being able to see the freedom of his fatherland.

He joined the Fraternity in September 1892 at Logia Balagtas 149 under the Grand Oriente Espanol. An effective organizer and an orator of the Regional Grand Lodge that was established by Grand Master Ambrocio Flores in 1893, he helped unify Philippine Masonry. He was blessed with a very intelligent mind and tutored by his mother at an early age, he later became a lawyer and an idealistic philosopher.        

He helped organize La Liga Filipina and was arrested in 1896 for alleged complicity in the Katipunan.

Later paralyzed on both legs, he was handpicked by Aguinaldo to help the latter form a revolutionary government and was transported from Bay, Laguna to Kawit, Cavite on a hammock, in time for Aguinaldo’s proclamation on June 12, 1898.

He was designated Prime Minister and Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Aguinaldo’s newly-formed government, and later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Malolos Congress. He laid the foundation of the government of the First Philippine Republic.

Author of the “Decalogue” and the “Philippine Revolution”, he is regarded as the “Brains of the Revolution”, “Learned Statesman” and the “Sublime Paralytic.”

JUAN LUNAView Image

 

The elder of the Luna brothers, Juan was born in Batc, Ilocos Norte on October 23, 1857 and died on December 7, 1899 in Hongkong.

 He was made a Master Mason in Paris, France, under the auspices of Lodge Solidaridad 53. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree at the Ateneo de Manila in 1874 and in 1877 studied

painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid. He was pensioned by the City of Manila for painting work in Europe.

He participated in the various art exhibits in Rome, Paris, Barcelona and Madrid in which his art works “Spolarium”, and “Battle of Lepanto,” four gold medals, three silver and one bronze and two decorations to the honor and glory of his country.

Together with his younger brother Antonio, he was imprisoned in the Philippines for complicity in the 1896 Revolution and was banished to Spain. After the war with Spain, he was appointed by General Aguinaldo to head a Philippine delegation to Washington to convince US President Bro. Mckinley to withdraw the American decision to colonize the Philippines.

A genius of the arts, he is the greatest Filipino painter who projected the Philippines into the limelight through the medium of the brush.

GENERAL ANTONIO LUNAView Image

 

Bro. Antonio Luna was born on October 28, 1866 in Manila and was assassinated on June 5, 1899 at Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija.

 He was made a Master Mason in Spain and was among those who revived Lodge Solidaridad 53 in Madrid. He assisted Dr. Trinidad Pardo H. deTavera and Dr. Ariston Bautista in founding a “triangulo” in Paris under the auspices of Logia Solidaridad. He later commissioned Pedro Serrano Laktaw to secretly organize Masonic Lodges in the Philippines to strengthen the Propaganda Movement.

He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree with highest honors in 1883 at the Ateneo de Manila, and earned his doctorate in Pharmacy in 1890 at the University of Madrid.

A gifted writer, he worked with Rizal, del Pilar,

Lopez Jaena and Mariano Ponce in the Propaganda Movement to achieve reforms for their country.

Arrested in the Philippines in 1896 as a rebel, and together with his brother Juan Luna, he was banished to Spain during the  tumultuous 1896 Revolution. He returned to his country after studying military science and tactics in Belgium and was appointed overall Commander of the Filipino Forces by General Emilio Aguinaldo at the outbreak of the Filipino-American war.

A fierce and dedicated patriot, he was acclaimed the foremost military strategist during the war of the Filipinos against the Americans.

 

President Jose P. Laurel [ View Image ]

 

Bro. Jose P. Laurel was born in Batangas on March 9, 1891 and died on November 1959.

He was made a Master Mason at Batangas Lodge No. 383 under the Gran Oriente Espanol, (renamed Batangas Lodge No. 35 under the Grand Lodge of the Philippines).

He was founder of Lyceum of the Philippines, Senator from 1925-31, was elected to the 1935 Constitutional Convention, Acting Chief Justice from 1936-42.

Was installed President of the 2nd Philippine Republic on October 14, 1943. Laurel dissolved the dummy government on August 17, 1945 when news of the Japanese surrender to the Allied forces on August 15, 1945 was received.

The public perception of Jose P. Laurel was that he was a collaborator to the Japanese

government. The following paragraph as written by historian Teodoro Agoncillo, will debunk this myth.

On December 24, 1941 Bro. Manuel L. Quezon conducted a meeting of his cabinet and selected those who would accompany him in exile. Jose P. Laurel who was already designated Acting Chief Justice also wanted to go but Quezon ordered him to remain saying:

"Do the best you can. Make whatever bargains you have to do with the Japanese. Try to keep the people together in one piece. Try to protect the people from Japanese brutality and avarice. You have some tough decisions to make. Do it for the sake of the Philippines."

MARCELO H. DEL PILAR [ View Image ]

 

Considered the "Father of Philippine Masonry," Marcelo H. del Pilar was born on August 30, 1850 at barrio Kupang, San Nicolas, Bulacan. He died on July 4, 1896 at Barcelona, Spain. He founded “Diariong Tagalog,” first vernacular daily newspaper and used it in publicly first vernacular daily newspaper and used it in publicly denouncing the abuses and oppression of the authorities. 

A well-trained lawyer and writer, he left the Philippines because of government persecution. He carried his fight against the rulers in Madrid by editing “La Solidaridad.”

He was made a Mason in Spain in 1889, one of the first Filipinos initiated into the mysteries of Masonry in Europe. He co-founded Logia Revoluccion in Barcelona and revived Logia Solidaridad 53 when it floundered into stormy seas where he became its Worshipful Master and with Jose Rizal as Orator. He was crowned 33° by the Gran Oriente Espanol.

He spearheaded the secret organization of Masonic lodges in the Philippines as a means of strengthening

the propaganda movement. Considered the greatest Filipino journalist of his time, and the “most intellectual leader and soul of the Philippine Revolution,” he died a pauper, away from his family, a true patriot and martyr to his country.

The Plaridel Masonic Temple and his hometown are named in his honor, adopting his pen name “Plaridel.”

 

GAT ANDRES BONIFACIO[ View Image ]

      

     Called the “Great Plebian”, Bro. Andres Bonifacio was born inTondo, Manila,  on November 30, 1863 and was assassinated at Maragondon, Cavite on May 10, 1897. Bonifacio joined Freemasonry in 1892 at Taliba Lodge No. 165.

       Born of poor parents and orphaned at an early age, he worked to support his younger brothers and sisters and at the same time endeavored to complete his elementarystudies. Despite his limited education, he studiously read books, among them “Noli Me Tangere”, “El Filibusterismo,” History of the French Revolution and the Holy Bible, books that were banned for reading during those  turbulent times.

He founded the Katipunan, the secret society established purposely to gain independence through force of arms and became its Supremo, or Supreme Head.

He wrote poems, essays and the Decalogue of the Katipunan on “Duties of the Sons of the People.” This decalogue espoused armed struggle for the purpose of gaining independence and culminated in what is now being celebrated as the “Cry of Balintawak” or Pugad Lawin, depending on one’s preferred

historical marker.

A man of daring action and courageous spirit with a passionate love for country, he is considered one of the country’s foremost heroes, some even comparing him to Dr. Jose Rizal.

 

BISHOP GREGORIO AGLIPAY[View Image]

 

A true blooded “anac ti Batac”, Gregorio Aglipay was born on May 5, 1860 in Batac, Ilocos Norte and died on September 1, 1940.   He was made a Mason on May 3, 1918 at Magdalo Lodge 31 in Cavite, now called Emilio Aguinaldo Memorial Lodge No. 31.  Jailed in his early childhood together with his uncle for their failure to produce the required tobacco harvest as required by government monopoly, his seething hatred against tyranny was nurtured starting from his youthful years.

     He studied at San Juan de Letran, and upon the advice of Rizal discarded his law studies and entered the seminary in Vigan where he was ordained Catholic priest in 1890.           He joined the Philippine Revolution at its late stage. Joining Aguinaldo’s libertarian movement as a priest, he was excommunicated by Archbishop Nozaleda on May 4, 1899. He was later appointed Military Vicar by General Aguinaldo with special duties to win adherents in the heartland of Ilocandia.

     He became a member of the Malolos Congress and was a signatory to the Malolos Constitution. At the close of the Filipino-American war, Isabelo de los Reyes founded the “Iglesia Filipina

Independiente” and convinced Aglipay to be its “Obispo Maximo.”

     A revolutionary priest and soldier, Aglipay is ranked among the unsung frontliners of the Filipino patriots.

 

DR. JOSE P. RIZALA National Hero

View Image

 

Rizal was made a Master Mason on November 15, 1890 at Logia Solidaridad 53 in Madrid, Spain. He affiliated with a lodge under the jurisdiction of Grand Orient of France on October 14, 1891, and was made honorary Worshipful Master of Nilad Lodge No. 144 in 1892. There he delivered a lecture entitled “La Masoneria”.

A many-faceted and multi-talented genius, his God given talents for freedom and for the welfare of his people through peaceful reforms was an obsession that has guided him all his life.

A dedicated nationalist, physician, poet, novelist, historian, painter, sculptor, linguist, educator, anthropologist, ethnologist, sportsman, traveler and a prophet, his talents appear inexhaustible. His famous novels, “Noli Me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo” exposed the abuses of the Spanish authorities and inspired the 1896 Revolution. His martyrdom fanned the patriotic spirit of Filipinos and solidified their craving for nationhood.

Considered the pride of the Malay race and the greatest of the Filipino heroes ever born, he ranks equal to most of the great men of all races and of all times.

 

more on rizal

Rizal's Apostasy Was World Ecumenism

By Dean Jorge Bocobo

POPE John XXIII, "the good Pope" as he was called, might have been proud of our Jose Rizal. They were kindred spirits, who stood for religious tolerance and understanding among all faiths and peoples. So whatever happened to Vatican II and the world ecumenical movement that held so much promise for an end to religious strife in the world? Was all that ''Kumbaya'' singing for nothing? The priests turned to face the people, but they still preach the same stubborn and intolerant doctrine that Catholicism is the one true faith and all others are infidels.

So, irony of ironies. Asia's only Catholic country has an excommunicated Free Mason and apostate for its national hero in Rizál. This was the man who fought the 19th century's version of the Taliban in the Philippines, not with bombs, but with something more lethal, which are, noble ideas and sentiments, delivered by the technology of Gutenberg.

    He sent two B52s in the form of two novels, ''Noli Me Tangere'' and ''ElFilibusterismo,'' whose telling truths exploded in the hearts of his countrymen, opening their eyes to the cancer of Spanish oppression. Like bunker-busters, these powerful stories destroyed the metaphorical caves and dungeons of the friars, full of simony and injustice, into whose oblivion his people had been cast for centuries.

He was shot in the back, like a traitor, on Bagumbayan Field, on Dec. 30, 1896, at the instigation of Catholic friars, who saw in his brilliant mind and satiric pen, the dying light of the Spanish Empire, and the death knell of their centuries-old religious dictatorship. Rizal's capital crime and essential heresy was to deny the supreme Catholic vanity of being the "one true faith." Pope John was too far in the future to prevent his unjust execution.

Influenced by Miguel Morayta, a history professor at the Universidad de Madrid, Rizal joined Masonry, under the Gran Oriente de Español, adopting the Masonic name, Dimasalang. He was automatically excommunicated, expelled from the Catholic Church, a fate decreed for all Catholics becoming Masons since 1738 and reaffirmed by the CBCP in 1990. Rizal had plenty of illustrious company including Andres Bonifacio, Apolinario Mabini, Ladislao Diwa, Marcelo H. del Pilar, Juan Luna, Deodato Arellano, Graciano Lopez-Jaena, H. Pardo

de Tavera,and so many others in the Propaganda Movement and La Liga Filipina.

It was a Masonic trader, Jose Ramos, who first smuggled copies of the ''Noli Me Tangere'' into Manila.

In 1912, Rizal's family rejected a petition from the Jesuits to rebury theirfamous pupil. Instead, that honor was accorded to the Masons, led by Timoteo Paez, who, in full regalia, carried Rizal's remains in a long procession to the Masonic Temple in Tondo for funeral rites, before final interment at the Luneta in December 1912.

The true meaning of his life has been obscured by his enemies, who have claimed that in the end, he abjured Masonry and returned to the Faith. If he did, why was he martyred? Luckily, most of his written work (50 volumes!) has been available, since his birth centenary in 1961, despite strident opposition from the Catholic Church. In this way, Rizal may still get the final word. The tragedy is, most Filipinos have not read Rizal at all, being mainly exposed to seriously flawed films about him. (These much-awarded movies portray him at his execution, clutching rosary beads around his neck, a sop thrown in to mollify Church hierarchy.)

We treasure his two famous novels, of course. But there is also his poetry (some sophomoric, some sublime). Then there is the epistolary, or long letters, that he exchanged with Pablo Pastells, S.J., a mentor at the Ateneo. Though portions were published by Retana, the original, complete texts were suppressed and hidden by the Jesuits at a monastery in Spain for over a century. Why? The authoritative bilingual edition by Fr. Raul Bonoan, S.J. became available only in 1998, when some embargo must have lapsed, or their toxicity deemed expired.Read the letters for yourself and see if you agree with my interpretation ofthem, because I think they were the damning evidence of heresy and apostasy that were used at his one day trial on Dec. 26, 1896. That is why they were hidden for so long. They were used as a murder weapon.

The 1956 Rizal Law (RA 1425) of Sen. Claro M. Recto should be amended to make these letters required reading in Philippine schools. For in these

letters, Rizal speaks for himself, not through fictional characters, but directly and undeniably from his heart, to all of us, in the vast audience of history, about his deepest beliefs. Even if he had, hypothetically, signed some made-up retraction document, to save his family from persecution and to marry Josephine Bracken, the letters prove he could not have done so sincerely. Freed from Catholic indoctrination by wide exposure to many cultures and religions, theheart and mind that one encounters in the epistolary just could not have made a genuine retraction, for he was, irreversibly, a global citizen, an  ecumenical man.

Rizal believed that you can be a good and moral person without believing in a specific supernatural deity or purported representatives on earth. Of course, faith can also lead to a strong moral conscience, but religion is not the only route to virtue. Participation in an organized religion may be a sufficient impetus to a virtuous life, as is fear of eternal damnation, but it is not a necessary condition.

Rizal upheld democratic tolerance and ecumenism. He rejected dogmatism and the towering vanity of a "one true faith." In so doing he found true freedom and understood the deepest meaning of democracy before it was born in his country.

That is why he chose to die an apostate, excommunicated from the Catholic Church, rather than be a traitor to himself and the future of humanity.

 

more

Rizal Today [Philippine Inquirer Editorial dated December 31,

2001]

IF Jose Rizal were to find himself in the Philippines at the end of the first year of the 21st century, would he know where he was?

It doesn't seem likely. What, after all, would the famous man in the overcoat make of the horseless traffic that has overwhelmed the country's cities, or the mountainous malls that have replaced the open

spaces of the town plaza, or, indeed, of the ambidextrous members of the text generation—children of an authentic but benign revolution? Today's Maria Claras don't retreat behind the walls of a convent; they simply turn off their cell phones.

But on another level, Philippine society has not changed at all since Rizal wrote his revolutionary novels in the late 19th century.

Freedom has been won, that is true. Now—within the context of an inter-dependent world, held together by economic treaties that bind us with the force of law—we answer only to ourselves, not to a colonial power. But aside from the basic democratic promise of "one man, one vote," equality remains an ideal, an unfinished project.

When Tocqueville made his famous visit to the United States in the 1830s, it was the basic equality of conditions that impressed him most. But today, as in Rizal's time, the Philippines remains essentially a hierarchical society. Rizal used the multi-level steamer, Tabo, to reflect the ranks of inequality that structured the society of his time. Today, he would find that the arrangements on any inter-island ship continue to reflect the same reality, with one exception: the upper decks, the luxury cabins, would be largely empty, because those who can afford to use them can afford to take the plane, or indeed buy one. The social tiers are determined by the same factors: money, education, political power, and (at the upper echelons) more money. Only one factor is new: celebrity, which allows television and the movies to create "personalities" and to wield enormous influence.

His characters, too

PERHAPS, if Rizal were alive now, he would not write a novel to cure the social cancer that is eating away at Philippine society, instead he would write a soap opera, or a series of 30-second commercials. But because his work would inevitably include an unforgiving look at the image-making industries as well, chances are that it would not air at all. His fearsome education would only get him so far.

Indeed, too much education does not translate well on television; in his case, it wouldn't even guarantee him a talk show. (With very few exceptions, all talking heads on TV are unburdened by the benefits of higher education.)

But in news shows and in newspaper columns, Rizal would certainly recognize the characters he first discovered. In the old Senate, for example, he would have recognized a feisty senator as the living reincarnation of a stereotype he is responsible for. No, we don't mean the tragic character of Sisa, the mother of Crispin and Basilio who descended into madness. Sisa's fate is ultimately tragic; she is the mother as martyr, pushed to the extreme. We mean the uproariously comic character of Doña Victorina: smug in her pretensions, and wonderfully oblivious of the comedy she was creating. While it is true that Doña Victorina did not claim to have studied at Harvard and Oxford (truth, we are reminded yet again, is truly stranger than fiction), the former senator is guilty of the same social-climbing, turn-your-back-on-your-own-kin sin. While she did not marry a timorous Spaniard, she did do the modern equivalent: she got herself a law degree.

In the executive suites and the exclusive villages, and most of all in high-powered, well-connected law firms such as the most famous one during the Marcos era, he will recognize men—and women too—who are mere variations on a theme of Kapitan Tiago: sincere in their convictions about what ought to be done for the country, but compromised by their very position and cuckolded by others in authority—then ecclesiastical, today more likely bureaucratic. In and out of public office, the national hero will recognize the features of modern-day Padre Damasos—men and women who pay lip service to their public duties (the welfare of the poor, for instance), but whose private behavior (unbridled gambling and uninhibited womanizing, not to mention hundred-dollar leather slippers) undermines the very faith of the public they serve.

If Rizal were alive today, he would have to start all over again.                 

Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo [View Image]

 

Emilio Aguinaldo was born on March 22, 1869 at Kawit, Cavite and died on February 6, 1964, one of the few Filipino patriots, who died at a late age. His remains was laid in his historic residence at Kawit. He was made a master mason on January 1, 1895 at Pilar Lodge No. 203 (now Pilar Lodge No. 15) at Imus Cavite and was founder of Magdalo Lodge No. 31 (renamed Emilio Aguinaldo Lodge No. 31 in his honor). He was conferred the Scottish Rite degrees in 1917 in the Philippine Bodies, A. & A. S. R. and was

coroneted 33° by the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of theRepublic of the Philippines.

In 1894, he was initiated into the Katipunan by Andres Bonifacio.

A towering figure of the Philippine Revolution, he led his countrymen in their fight for liberation against Spain, and later, against the United States of America.  He proclaimed Philippine Independence on June 12, 1898 on the balcony of his residence in Kawit, now a national shrine and the annual site of independence day celebrations.

The first president of the Philippine Republic, he opened the Malolos Congress on September 15, 1899 thus making his country the first republic ever established in the eastern shores.

 

 

     What they say...[to know more about the person, please click on the name and to return to this page, click on your browser's "back" button."  

Emilio Aguinald

oFirst

President of the

Republic of the

Philippines

 

"Whenever there is a human cause, we are certain to find Freemasonry for it is the fundamental basis of all true liberal association."

Giuseppe Garibaldi

"I wish somehow we could have fraternity among nations, as it is taught in America among men. I do not mean to employ sign, grip, and password, which affords an appealing mystery to our relationship, but the insistent demands for just dealings, the respect for rights of others, and the ideals of brotherhood recited in the Golden Rule, and the righteous fellow-relationship which every man knows his God approves. Under such a reign of fraternity cruel human warfare will never come again." Warren G. Harding(29th President of

the USA)

"My best ambition having ever aimed at the unbiased

approbation of my fellow citizen, it is peculiarly

pleasing to find my conduct so affectionately approved

by a fraternity whose association is founded in

justice and benevolence."

"So far as I am acquainted with the principles and Doctrines of  Free Masonry, I conceive it to be founded in the benevolence and to be exercised only for the good of mankind."

George Washington1st President of the USA

Famous Filipino Masons

  

     

    

NEW PLARIDEL MASONIC TEMPLE

1440 San Marcelino Street, P. O. Box 990

Ermita, Manila, Philippines 1000

(0632) 522 2218; 522 2328; 536 1383; 522 2232

All offices are located in the 2nd Floor of the

New Plaridel Masonic Temple

except

the Masonic Supply Store

OFFICE OF THE GRAND MASTER

Local 101 - Grand Master

108 - GMs Sec (Ms. Elo Morillo), glp.ogm@glphils.org

GM’s Direct Line (0632) - 524-3263

email: M.W. Jaime Y. Gonzales

  

OFFICE OF THE GRAND TREASURER

102 - Grand Treasurer

105 - Finance Officer (Ms. Gloria Compendio)

106 - Accounting Staff/Bookeepper (Messrs. Dario Borja & Allan Tan), glp_accounts@yahoo.com

107 - Cashier (Ms. Josie Sembrano), glp.cashier@glphils.org

 

OFFICE OF THE GRAND SECRETARY

103 - Grand Secretary

104 - Asst. Grand Secretary

109 - GS Sec (Ms. Felina Villasanta), glp.ogs@glphils.org

 

 

NEED WEBSITE ASSISTANCE? 

PLEASE CONTACT

GLP WEB DESIGN GROUP

GRAND WEBMASTER

FOR MEMBER'S AREA USERID AND PASSWORD

PLEASE CLICK ONE BELOW:

The Grand Master's Chief of Staff

The Assistant Grand Secretary

ASK THE GLP

OR

email: grandwebmaster@glphils.org | back to top»

GRAND LODGE OF THE PHILS. | 1440 SAN MARCELINO ST. | MANILA PHILIPPINES 1000 | 0-632-522-2218 ASKGLP@GLPHILS.ORG