No 1045, District 25, Under The United Grand Lodge of New South Wales & ACT Australia [Views herein does not necessarily reflect those of LJR 1045 & UGL NSW & ACT.]

Thursday, January 28, 2010

LJR Charter & Past Wor Masters






For those who love to read & find out more about Bro Dr Jose Rizal, please read 'My Jose Rizal'.


R Wor Bro Emmanuel 'Manny' Maniago - Foundation Wor Master - 2010

R Wor Bro Fidencio 'Fidel' Pamplona - 2011

V Wor Bro Rodolfo 'Rudy' Romerosa -2012

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Dimasalang: The Masonic Life of Dr. Jose Rizal

By Raymond S. Fajardo, 33º

Edited by Fred Lamar Pearson, Jr., 33º

Dr. Jose P. Rizal, a Philippine national born on June 19, 1861, died before a firing squad on December 30, 1896. Thus came to an inglorious end the life of a remarkable man and Mason. Martyr, patriot, poet, novelist, physician, Mason - he was all of these and more. In fact, he squeezed into a very few years, 35, an incredible array of activities. Dimasalang: The Masonic Life of Dr. Jose Rizal by Raymond S. Fajardo, 33º, hereafter appearing in edited form, is an excellent volume which treats splendidly, a neglected facet of the remarkable life of the George Washington of Philippine Independence.

I. Introduction

A majority of the Filipino patriots who led their countrymen in their struggle for emancipation against Spain in the last two decades of the nineteenth century were members of the masonic fraternity. Among all of them, however, only one deserved to be called an international mason - Jose P. Rizal. Only he joined lodges in several countries and practiced the rites of various masonic Grand Jurisdictions. He received masonic degrees from lodges in Spain, Germany, France, and possibly England; he attended lodge meetings in Hong Kong and was the first to be elected Honorary Venerable Master of a [Nilad] lodge in the Philippines. Furthermore, he was the only Filipino designated as the Grand Representative of a Spanish Grand Orient to the Grand Orient of France and the lodges in Germany.

Born to educated and relatively well-to-do parents [June 19, 1861], he went to Manila [1872], enrolling at the Ateneo Municipal where he obtained the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1877, and then at the University of Santo Tomas where he studied philosophy, letters, and later, medicine until 1882.

Masonic lodges, at the time were very few and composed mostly of Spaniards. During that early stage, members of Rizal's family were already closely identified with the Fraternity. His uncle, the Most Excellent Jose Alberto Alonzo, Knight Commander of the Spanish Orders of Isabel the Catholic and of Carlos III, was in Spain in 1868 when the Revolution led by masons deposed Queen Isabela II. He fraternized with the mason Juan Prim, the general who led the revolt, and Francisco Pi y Margall, the president of the short - lived Spanish republic. It was in the house of Alberto where Rizal stayed [while attending school] in Biñan.

Rizal's elder brother [Paciano while a student] in Manila lived with Fr. Jose Burgos and worked with him in the Comite de Reformadores. The Comite had several masons on its rolls, some of whom were implicated in the Cavite Revolt of 1872. Moreover, Fr. Burgos' sister was married to Dr. Mariano Marti, a 33º mason who was the Grand Delegate of the Soberano Oriente de España and who is credited with having organized lodges in Manila, Cebu and Iloilo. Beyond peradventure, Paciano met a number of Masons on the Comite de Reformadores and[during his association with Fr. Burgos.

The first documented exposure of Rizal to masonry took place in 1882. May 3, 1882, he started on his journey to Madrid. June 11, his ship docked at Naples, [where he saw] a multitude of posters set up by masons announcing the death of Giuseppe Garibaldi, their Grand Master. Rizal wrote about what he saw in a letter to his parents and brothers. That letter marked the first time Rizal made a written mention of Masonry, but not the last.

II. Rizal's First Years As A Mason

Upon his arrival in Spain, Rizal found it a country strongly influenced by Masonic thought. The atmosphere of freedom had a profound impact on Rizal who was then smarting from the abuses of the friars in his native land, particularly the injustice inflicted upon his mother. When he was only ten years of age, his mother was arrested on a trumped-up charge and forced to walk from their residence in Calamba, to the prison in Sta. Cruz, the capital of Laguna, a distance of over thirty kilometers. She was later exonerated, but only after two-and-a half years in jail.

Ferdinand Blumentritt, Rizal's good friend, assessed the impact of free Spain upon him, thus:

During his sojourn in Spain he came upon a new world. The horizons of his mind widened considerably, opening up to him new ideas. He came from a country where the friars, the bureaucrats, military officers, and the rest of the Spaniards exercised absolute power. In Madrid, he saw the exact opposite; freethinkers and atheists spoke freely and disparagingly of his religion and his Church; the authority of the State, he found out, was weak; he expected to see liberals and clericals fighting each other, but he saw quite the opposite… At the sight of all this, a feeling of bitterness overwhelmed him when he compared the unlimited freedom in the Mother country with the theocratic absolutism in his own land.

Rizal soon came under the influence of several outstanding masonic thinkers.

Miguel Morayta, a Grand Master, was his college professor who molded his views of history, while the ex-president of Spain, the Catalan - Francisco Pi y Margall, who also became his friend, gave direction to his political thoughts. Among the first Spaniards to advocate emancipation of the Philippines were the masons Rafael Labra y Cardano and Sovereign Grand Commander Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla. Small wonder, therefore, that Rizal decided to apply for membership in Acacia Lodge No. 9, a lodge in Madrid under the Gran Oriente de España, at that time the principal and biggest Grand Orient in Spain. Upon his initiation, Rizal chose Dimasalang as his symbolic name in Masonry.

Early on Rizal and other Filipino expatriates realized that the enemy of reform in the Philippines was not Spain or religion, but the friars. Starting a patriotic propaganda for the improvement of conditions Rizal quickly rose to the forefront of this movement. In 1884 he started writing his famous novel, Noli Me Tangere, an incisive indictment of the Philippine political and religious regime. The same year Rizal spoke at a banquet [held] in honor of Juan Luna and Felix Resurrecion Hidalgo, Filipino artists named first and second prize winners in a painting contest held in Madrid. Rizal saluted Spain, but flayed the friars in the Philippines. When copies of the newspapers carrying his speech reached Manila, authorities branded him a subversive.

Completing his studies in Madrid, Rizal left for France in July 1885 to specialize in opthamology. He trained in Paris for four months, then he left for Heidelberg, then considered the most advanced center of opthalmic research in Europe. From there he moved to Wilhelmsfeld, Leipzig and Berlin and met some of the most eminent men in Europe.

* * * * * * * * *

This excerpt is from Heredom, the transactions of the Scottish Rite Research Society.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Lodge Jose Rizal No 1045 Consecration


Regional Grand Counsellor Region 11 Letter



Dear Brethren of Lodge Jose Rizal,

My Regional Grand Counsellor R11, Rt Wor Bro Neil Atkins, PJGW sends his and that of the brethren from Region 11 the attached message to Lodge Jose Rizal officers and members on the occasion of its consecration.

Rt Wor Bro Neil Atkins, PJGW thank you so much for your kind greetings & wishes.

Fraternally,

Rey Porras

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Rizal’s visits to Singapore

Looking Back By Ambeth Ocampo

[Philippine Daily Inquirer First Posted 02:08:00 06/20/2008]

SINGAPORE—If you care to explore beyond the shopping malls of Singapore, you will find two landmarks with reference to the Philippines, the most famous being an eye-catching bridge painted in the wildest colors by the late Filipina artist Pacita Abad. The other landmark, smaller and more dignified is one that commemorates Jose Rizal’s five visits to Singapore. The National Heritage Board of Singapore initiated a project in 2005 called “Friends to Our Shores” that commemorates visits by eminent personalities.

The original plan was to install a marker in the Botanical Gardens that Rizal had visited not once but thrice. President Macapagal-Arroyo was supposed to unveil the marker during her visit last year, but it was decided not to rush to do a better job. The Rizal marker unveiled by President S.R. Nathan yesterday is by a river near the Asian Civilizations Museum.

The National Heritage Board of Singapore provided the site and a setting for a bronze relief of Rizal’s profile by National Artist Guillermo E. Tolentino provided by the National Historical Institute of the Philippines. Our hero thus joins the other writers who visited Singapore, like Joseph Conrad and Somerset Maugham. I was wondering whether the emphasis on Rizal as writer rather than revolutionary was dictated by Singapore’s security concerns, but the fact that Ho Chi Minh has also been memorialized means that our embassy should begin negotiations to install a marker to commemorate Emilio Aguinaldo’s visit to Singapore in 1898.

Rizal’s visits to Singapore, and even that of Aguinaldo, underscore the fact that our relations go beyond the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between our countries. Our heroes and their visits to Singapore also antedate the independence of our countries. When Rizal and Aguinaldo were imagining a free and independent Philippines, Singapore was also under a foreign flag.

Rizal is a boon to Philippine diplomacy because he traveled a great deal and it is when we look back to a shared past with foreign countries he visited that we also get a glimpse into a shared future.

Textbook history tells us a lot about Rizal’s travels and how they resulted in an urbane and very cosmopolitan outlook. Yet in May 1882, it was Rizal’s first trip abroad and aside from the anxiety that accompanies all travelers then as now, Rizal had to cope with a pressing personal condition: he had left the country secretly, without his parents’ consent, without even saying goodbye to his fiancée Leonor Rivera. These emotions weighed heavily on him and we see a reflection of it in nightmares recorded in his diary, the first in Singapore. More significant is the admission that Rizal had precognitive gifts and he sometimes used it in school:

“It is true that I had a dream once that was fulfilled. Before the examination for the first year in Medicine, I dreamed that I was asked certain questions but I didn’t mind them. When the examinations came, I was asked the questions in my dream.”

Could this be the secret of Rizal’s genius that he was able to foretell exam questions before they were given? Wouldn’t that be cheating? If I were blessed with the same gift, I would probably be dreaming about winning lotto numbers and horse races. Rizal bought lottery tickets every week and actually won the second prize during his Dapitan exile.

During his tour around Singapore, Rizal saw the Maharajah of Johore and described him as “an old, stout man, respectable-looking and garbed in European style but wearing a sort of apron.” He didn’t like the food at Hotel de la Paix where he stayed. “There was neither order nor coordination in the service. I ate rice which was inferior to ours; the pineapples, though small, were sweet and tasted good; the banana, bad.”

Rizal also wrote about the Palace of the Rajah of Siam marked by “a small iron elephant and what-not on the pedestal placed in front of the building.” Today the Royal Thai Embassy is on Orchard Road and one wonders if this was the site of the Palace mentioned by Rizal, minus the elephant that is now in front of Singapore’s Parliament, now renamed Arts House. This elephant was a gift of King Chulalangkorn who visited Singapore in 1871. It used to be located in front of City Hall but has since been replaced by a statue of Raffles, founder of modern Singapore.

Many of the places and landmarks Rizal mentioned can still be visited today, and it is possible to retrace his footsteps in Singapore.

Rizal’s other visits were stopovers to and from the Philippines. These were short and seemingly uneventful because little is recorded in his normally detailed diaries and travel letters.

In 1896, he passed Singapore twice, first, en route to Cuba where he was to serve in the Spanish medical corps, but he was arrested in Barcelona. The second was when he was sent back to Manila. He was allowed to move around the ship freely when the ship was at sea, but each time the ship docked, he was detained in his cabin. Worse, 16 hours before they stopped in Singapore in November 1896, he was not only locked up in his cabin, he was chained to the bed to prevent him from jumping ship in the last port of call before Manila. Rizal’s friends lodged a petition with the Singapore Supreme Court for a writ of habeas corpus. This was rejected, Rizal returned to Manila, and the rest is history.

S'pore pays tribute to Philippine national hero Dr Jose Rizal

By S. Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
Posted: 19 June 2008 2155 hrs

SINGAPORE: In an affirmation of the strong ties between Singapore and the Philippines, President S R Nathan unveiled a heritage marker dedicated to Dr Jose Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines on Thursday, which marked his 147th birthday.

Dr Rizal advocated reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial period.

The marker, at the Asian Civilisations Museum, is part of the National Heritage Board's (NHB) Friends to Our Shores series of historic markers.

They commemorate visits by eminent personalities by indicating the sites which were visited by them.

The initiative is also aimed at increasing Singaporeans' understanding of history and how they are intricately linked to the region.

Dr Rizal visited Singapore five times. His first was in 1882.

A Philippine Festival will be held in Singapore next year and it will focus on the country's art, artefacts and stamps. - CNA/vm

Rizal and the martyrs of our time

ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces (The Philippine Star) Updated June 18, 2009 12:00 AM

Much has been said through time about Jose Rizal, the man we know from our history books to be the great Philippine national hero, martyred for defending the cause of the nation and its people during the Spanish occupation. He, to me, is still unmatched as the most remarkable Filipino in history, with his multiple skills and extraordinary intelligence and wit. Years after his execution, his story of heroism still echo, though sometimes, its significance lost in the repetitive stories commonly told about his life and death, and the recitation of important events and achievements surrounding his personhood.

Without mentioning his moving literary works like Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo and his indefatigable advocacy for freedom and democracy for his country that led to his martyrdom, the man that we came to know as Jose Rizal from history is a great person in himself — a man of character the likes of whom is hard to come by these days. In fact, his words and deeds became a stirring example and inspiration to other Filipinos who would later become enshrined in the pages of history as great heroes in their time. One of these heroes is Andres Bonifacio, who established the revolutionary organization called Katipunan from the civic organization La Liga Filipina that Rizal organized. Katipunan mounted a fierce campaign for independence from the Spanish colonizers and Emilio Aguinaldo, who later became the first president of the Republic, was one of the more prominent leaders who joined the spreading revolt waged by the Katipunan. We can count other great men and women who were inspired by Rizal’s selfless cause and with the same ardour advocated for the rights and liberty of the Filipino people.

His thirst for knowledge was so intense that, unlike frivolous young men born to wealthy families, he pursued varied fields of knowledge with no less than sobresaliente at a pace likened to a race. At 21 years old, he travelled alone to Europe to study medicine upon learning that his mother was going blind. Four years later at 25, he would complete his studies and practice in ophthalmology, during which time he also learned to speak German. And as his family’s funds dried up and away from his family, he persevered, not minding the sacrifices he had to make to finish his career. Until the age of 35 before his trial and execution, he continued to master various skills and subjects from the arts and letters to business and economics, to the sciences and sports, showing the high importance he gave to educating oneself. The ophthalmologist was also a sculptor, painter, educator, farmer, historian, playwright and journalist. He wrote his novels in Spanish, the language of the elite, at a time when there were less than 11 million Filipinos.

The greatest example he bequeathed to generations after him and up to the present was the peaceful but inspiring way that he awakened the consciousness of a people who were then nestled in a convenient but shackling colonial rule and how he, through the values and ideals he espoused in his writings, and a brilliant satirical way with which he described people and situations, instituted reforms in a society beholden to a religious culture that is at the same time foreign and repressive.

Rizal said, “It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming a part of any edifice.” Hence, he made his life, not only a useful one, but one that excelled and shines brightly to this day. He is the cornerstone that served as a strong foundation of Philippine democracy.

To honor the memory of a great martyr, I dedicate this column to seven slain Marines who were killed last week during fierce encounters with the Abu Sayyaf group in Sulu. Sargeants Rafael Quinones and Wilhelm Alvarez, Privates First Class Randy Sacro, Marlon Quidep, Robert Fedochino, Willy Cabilite, and Dioan Tamayo were the frontliners in the military effort to rescue Italian Eugenio Vagni of the International Committee of the Red Cross still being held hostage after six months. These soldiers were also part of the team that rescued a popular TV broadcaster and her 2 cameramen last year. I salute them as martyrs and modern day heroes as well as the other military and police personnel who have sacrificed their lives to preserve the country’s honor and uphold the people’s peace and freedom.

More than a century after his death, the memory of Rizal’s life and works empowers and inspires Filipinos and even other nationalities to emerge as unique and outstanding people in a new and complex global village. Despite its many problems, our race stands proud and jubilant because it has a hero like Rizal.

A collection of writings about Rizal, for the benefit of Lodge Jose Rizal No 1045 members.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Charter Officers Designates for Masonic Year 2010-2011

VW Bro Emmanuel "Manny" Maniago, JGD - Worshipful Master
RW Bro Rey Porras, PJGW [33rd Deg] - Foundation Past Master

W Bro Fidencio "Fidel" Pamplona, SGD - Senior Warden
W Bro Rodolfo "Rudy" Romerosa, PM - Junior Warden
W Bro Vicente "Vince" Flores, PM - Chaplain .

Bro Manuel "Manny" Santos - Treasurer

Bro Mario "Mar" Baylon, Jr - Secretary

W Bro Godofredo "Fred" Enriquez, PM - Director of Ceremonies

W Bro Rolando "Rolly" Manarang, PM - Senior Deacon

Bro Manuel "Manny" Placido - Junior Deacon

W Bro Herminigildo "Hermie" Mateo, PM - Director of Music

Bro Renato "Rene" Ilaya - Organist

W Bro Jacinto "Jack" Sta Maria, PM - masoniCare Caring Officer*

Bro Eulogio "Butch" Canicula - Membership Officer

Bro Jose "Dan" Elizes - Inner Guard

W Bro Russell "Russ" Dobson, WM -  Steward

Bro Alfredo "Fred" Sese - Steward

Bro Numeriano "Nomer" Adriano - Tyler

Foundation Members:

Bro Joel Joseph Cabides

Bro Israel de Guzman

VW Bro Marcelino "Mar" Driza, PM

Bro Micvi "Mick" E. Fidel

Bro Roland Martinez

Bro Noelidestro "Noel" Obrero

Bro Solovin Paje

Bro Roy Purificacion

Bro Kristan Regalado

Bro Vedasto "Ved' Reyes

Bro Julio Roson

Bro Antonio "Tony" Saputil

Bro Roberto Urqueza


Appointed Officers for the Year 2010-2011

Assistant Treasurer - Bro Noelidesto "Noel" Obrero
Assistant Secretary - Bro Vedasto "Ved" Reyes
Assistant Director of Ceremonies - Bro Kristan Regalado
Education officer - RW Bro Rey Porras PJGW
Communication / IT Officer - Bro Mario "Mar" Baylon Jr
Auditor - Bro Jose Dan Elizes
Auditor - Bro Roland Martinez
Welfare Funds Representative - W Bro Fidencio "Fidel" Pamplona
Social Committee Representative - Bro Manuel "Manny" Placido

Executive Committee Members

VW Bro Manny Maniago JGD, PDGIW
RW Bro Rey Porras PJGW
W Bro Fidel Pamplona SGD
W Bro Rudy Romerosa
W Bro Vince Flores
Bro Manny Santos
Bro Mario Baylon Jr
Bro Manny Placido
W Bro Hermie Mateo
Bro Jose Dan Elizes

Trustees

VW Bro Manny Maniago JGD, PDGIW
W Bro Fidel Pamplona SGD
W Bro Rudy Romerosa
Bro Mario Baylon Jr
Bro Manny Santos

Ritual, Mentoring & Education Committee

Director of Ceremonies - W Bro Fred Enriquez
Assistant Director of Ceremonies - Bro Kristan Regalado
Senior Warden - W Bro Fidel Pamplona SGD
Education Officer - RW Bro Rey Porras PJGW
Membership Officer - Bro Butch Canicula
Other qualified members

Nominations / Benovolence Committee

Worshipful Master
Wardens
Secretary
Treasurer
Trustees
[Minimum of seven to form a quorum.]

masoniCare [Caring] Committee

masoniCare Caring Officer/s - W Bro Jack Sta Maria
Secretary - Bro Mario Baylon Jr
Treasurer - Bro Manny Santos
Other Interested Officers & Members

Social Committee

President - WM - VW Bro Manny Maniago
Secretary - Bro Mario Baylon Jr
Treasurer - Bro Manny Santos
Representative of the Ladies Committee
All Members & their Families are encouraged to participate in this committee.

Ladies Committee

President - Mrs Remedios "Remy" Maniago
Vice President - Mrs Pen Pamplona
Secretary - Mrs Mila Romerosa
Treasurer - Mrs Lourdes "Odeng" Santos
The Ladies of All Members are encouraged to participate in this committee.


*As announced at the Quarterly Communication [10 March 2010], all Lodge Caring Officers will be known as masoniCare Caring Officers [mCOs] from 31 March 2010. The role will be identical to the current Caring Officer's role except he will be have the full backing of masoniCare [the Grand Charity]. See the new masoniCare website.

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Lodge Meetings

As per Lodge Jose Rizal 1045 [District 25, UGL of NSW & ACT] By Laws the following are the meeting nights:

1.  Regular Meeting Night is every 2nd [Second] Saturday of every other [odd] months in January, March, May, July and September Tyles at 6:00 PM; with November as Installation Month, Tyles at 5:00 PM.

At the moment, the Lodge meets every other month only, for a total of six months in a year. Except special or emergent meetings, which the Lodge WM can issue summonses at least seven [7] days before the day of such meeting.

2.  Management Meetings [6:00 PM] and Rehearsal Nights [7:00 PM] is on the 1st [first] Saturday of the above months; or at such time as the Worshipful Master may direct in advance.

Place of meetings:

Castle Hill Masonic Centre - corner Showground and Old Northern Roads, Castle Hill NSW 2154. Carpark entrance via Barwell Ave, just across McDonald's. Installation Banquets, at the discretion of the incoming WM and as agreed [at a previous Management Meeting] can be held at other venues.

--------------------------------------------

                        Lodges of District 25 Meetings                             Installation Meetings

Lodge Burnside 729                      1st Wednesday at 6:00pm   1st Wed APRIL at 6:00pm

The Parramatta City Daylight    1st Thursday at 10:00am     4th Thursday JUNE at 10:00am
       Lodge 1014 
Lodge Baulkham Hills 958           1st Friday at 7:30pm            1st Friday MAY at 6:30pm

Lodge Beecroft 359                       2nd Thursday at 7:30pm     2nd Thursday OCT at 6:30pm

Lodge Alpha 970**                       2nd Friday at 7:15pm          2nd Friday  MAY at 6:30pm

Lodge Jose Rizal 1045                  2nd Saturday* at 6:00pm    2nd Saturday NOV at 5:00pm

The Hills Lodge 1025                    3rd Wednesday at 7:30pm   3rd Wednesday SEPT at 6:30pm

Lodge Blacktown-Kildare 393** 3rd Friday at 7:00pm           22nd AUG Saturday at 5:00pm

Parramatta Hills District LOI    4th Monday at 7:30pm          AGM - 24 JUNE at 7:30pm     

Lodge Resurgo 223                       4th Wednesday at 7:00pm    4th Wed MARCH at 6:30pm

Lodge Star of Australia 200           4th Saturday at 6:00pm

*Lodge Jose Rizal meets only on odd months of the year [January, March May, July, September & November Installation Meeting. December mostly scheduled for Christmas Party/Fellowship, February - Ladies Night subject to change.

**Meets at The Blacktown Masonic Centre, corner 1st & Boys Avenue, Blacktown [near Blacktown Railway Station].

Lodge Axiom 1047                     3rd Monday at 7:00pm        25th JULY Saturday at 6:30pm
Meets at Guilford Masonic Centre, corner Kane & Calliope Sts, Guildford NSW 2161.

Other Masonic Centres:

Concord West Masonic Centre - 315 Concord Road, Concord NSW 2138

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