Vision, Mission and Action Plan for Masonic Year 2010

Iligan Lodge No. 207 met last  February 7, 2010 at the residence of WB Oscar V. Badelles to conduct a strategic planning for Masonic Year 2010.  Below are the output of the planning session.

VISION  

 A model lodge composed of dedicated and respectable men 
who practice the tenets of Freemasonry and committed
to serve the community.

MISSION

1.  Proficiency in rituals and floor works.

2.  Relevant masonic education.

3.  Good attendance.

4.  Active participation in masonic conventions, etc.

5.  Community service   -  Scholarship Program

                                            Medical Mission

                                            Poverty Alleviation Projects 

                                            Home for Battered Women and 
                                                    Children 

                                            Food Production

Message from the Worshipful Master - February Stated Meeting

Greetings my brethren!

Our installation of officers last 16th of January was a success despite the time constraint in its preparation.  Again, I would like to thank and acknowledge WB Ed Ulindang, my Installing Officer, VW Fem Calio, the Master of Ceremony, and VW Gene Calit, the Assistant Master of Ceremony for their very proficient and adept performance.  The same pasalamat goes to our maestro VW Warly Sanguila and WB Vic Mariano for their instructions and guidance on the rituals.  Also, a word of thank to our guest speaker, VW Gerry Paguio for his very incisive and inspiring speech.  There are many more that I would like to acknowledge and thank, like the Ladies of Iligan Lodge 207 and the son of JW Abel Gomez for their entertainment numbers, but cannot do so due to space limitations.  Suffice it to say, thank you everyone for your generous support.  We again overshot our budget, but thanks to your abundant and kind support, financial and otherwise, and to the great effort of our collectors, Bro. Marlon Yu and Bro. Carlito Chan, we actually had a small surplus.  I have submitted a written report thereon to our Secretary Audwin Garzon, which is open to the perusal of anyone interested.

We had a fruitful planning session in my residence in Isabel Village last February 7th with VW Fem Calio as facilitator.  Among those present were VW Roy Trinidad, WB Ed Ulindang, VW Warly Sanguila, WB Vic Mariano, VW Audwin Garzon, VW James Yu, WB Ronald Sy, Bro. Pat Noel, Bro. Boy Bartolome, Bro. Jason Lim, SW Jimmy Magnetico and JW Abel Gomez.   I believe it was the first time we had one in a long, long while.   It was really a very interesting session because I learned much specially from the experience and wisdom of our past masters.  We have reproduced our output, such as, vision and mission and plans for your perusal.  It may not be perfect and needs some refinement, but I find it sufficient to give us a sense of direction and purpose during my term in the East.  My thanks to the participants.  If anyone has any suggestion to add to and/ or improve the said plans, feel free to approach.    

The Master and the Wardens

 

The Worshipful Master, Worshipful Brother Oscar V. Badelles

     WB Oskie was born in Iligan City on April 20, 1954.  He is happily married to Sis Bel and are blessed with a beautiful daughter Mariz.  He graduated BSBA Marketing from the University of the East, Manila in 1975 then earned a Bachelor of Laws Degree from San Beda College, Manila in 1979.  After passing the bar that year, he engaged in private practice for 25 years until he was appointed Presiding Judge of the Regional Trial Court, Branch 05, Iligan City.  Concurrently, he is the Executive Judge of the Regional Trial Court of Lanao del Norte.

     WB Oskie was initiated an Entered Apprentice on December 3, 2003; passed to the degree of Fellow Craft on January 17, 2004 and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on February 13, 2004.  He is a 32nd MRS of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.

  Senior Warden, Brother Jaime P. Magnetico

     A mixed breed of Tausug and Ilongo, Bro. Jim was born in Jolo, Sulu on December 10, 1947.  He is a Doctor of Technology Education candidate at the Mindanao University of Science and Technology in Cagayan de Oro City.  He is an Electrical Engineer, a Professor, and Chairman of the Department of Electrical Engineering Technology of the School of Engineering Technology, MSU-IIT in Iligan City.  Bro. Jim was initiated Entered Apprentice Mason on December 1, 1978; passed to the Fellow Craft Degree on February 28, 1979; and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on March 17, 1979.

     Bro. Jim is married to Sis Judith (OES, Maria Cristina Chapter, PM), and they are blessed with a daughter, Marylou.

 Junior Warden, Brother Hilario Abel B. Gomez

     Brother Abel is the eldest child of Bishop Hilario Gomez, Jr. of the Bishop Ulama Conference and Charita Buhawe; he was born in Marawi City and happily married to Joanne Asunto with 5 children namely Kiril, Jiaan, Rashid, Shariah, and Abigail.  He was initated on April 23, 2005, passed on May 21, 2005 and raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason on July 27, 2005;  also he is a 32nd degree MRS of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.  

     Currently, he is a practicing Internist and Nephrologist and serves as consultant in the City of Iligan, Lanao del Norte Provincial Hospital, Medina General Hospital, and Zamboanga del Sur Medical Center.

Source:  Iligan Lodge No. 207 Invitation Program to the Installation and Investiture of 2010 Officers.  Photos courtesy of WB Ronald Sy

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"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools." - Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Three Types of Masons

By WB Tim Bryce, PM, MPS

I've always believed in the concept of threes and the power of the triangle.  Being a management consultant specializing in Information Technology, I've encountered this phenomenon too many times to consider it to be nothing but a coincidence.  Consequently, I tend to see things in "three", such as looking for three reasons for something to occur, three fundamental stages of growth (such as the three degrees), or identifying three characteristics of something, such as Masons.  In my travels through the fraternity, it has been my experience hat there are three distinctly different types of Master Masons in the world : Anonymous, Amateur, and Professional.

Anonymous Masons

These are the Masons who loyally pay their dues but are never seen in the Craft Lodge.   They are either incapable of attending (due to a short cable-tow, they live out of town, or simply don't care), or they joined for the notoriety of being a Mason in the hope that it might help their professional career, or they joined in order to advance to another Masonic related body, such as Shrine, and never look back.  Lodge Secretaries are familiar with the Brother's name, but cannot place a face to it.  The Anonymous Mason is also commonly referred to as the "M.I.A. Mason" (Missing in Action).

Amateur Masons

Perhaps a better adjective for this type of Masons is "casual" as they tend to dabble in the fraternity.  For example, they may occasionally make an appearance in the Craft Lodge, send in a donation for worthy Masonic cause, or read a book or an article pertaining to the fraternity.  They truly like being a Mason but balk at making a major commitment to it, such as becoming an officer or serving on a committee.  They are also the first to complain when a dues increase is proposed or if the Lodge doesn't look quite right.  Instead of becoming more active and finding out the cause of the problems in the Lodge, they find it easier to grouse from the sidelines, thereby disrupting harmony.

Professional Masons

In every Lodge there is a handful of brothers you can count on for leadership and to lend a hand when the chips are down.  They are intimate with the mechanics of the Lodge and the fraternity and do not hesitate to step forward when needed, and help mentor younger and less experienced Brothers so they may grow and take their place in the Craft Lodge hierarchy.  The Professional Mason is not a zealous control freak with a huge ego, but rather is unselfish and appreciates the power of teamwork and the tenets of Freemasonry.  He rightfully understands that Freemasonry is more about the overall Brotherhood as opposed to the glory of a single individual.

Some time ago I described "The 80/20 Rule" (aka "Pareto's Principle), which is a management concept commonly found in business whereby 80% of the work is performed by 20% of the workers.  We see this not only in business but in any non-profit organization, including Freemasonry.  Do not be alarmed; this is natural.  In the Craft Lodge, 80% of the work is performed by the Professional Masons, and the remaining 20% is squeezed out of the Amateur and Anonymous Masons.   If this is true, the Craft Lodge becomes in danger if Professional Masons are eliminated.  Another danger is when an Amateur Mason rises and is elected to the East.  This type of person is more interested in obtaining a Past Master's apron then doing anything in substance.

So, the question arises, "What kind of Mason are you?"  I think it ultimately comes down to why you joined the fraternity.  If you are truly seeking further light, then you are on the right path.  If not, you will probably be nothing more than an Amateur or Anonymous Mason, and we have too many of them already.

Source  :   The Far Easter Freemason   1st Quarter 2009


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"If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader."   - John Quincy Adams

The True Meaning of Masonry

By  Albert Pike
      "Morals and Dogma"

FREEMASONRY is the subjugation of the Human that is in man by the Divine;  the Conquest of the Appetites and Passions by the Moral Sense and the Reason;  a continual effort, struggle, and warfare of the Spiritual against the Material and the Sensual.  That victory, when it has been achieved and secured, and the conqueror may rest upon his shield and wear the well-earned laurels, is the true HOLY EMPIRE. 

To achieve it, the Mason must first attain a solid conviction, founded upon reason, that he hath within him  a spiritual nature, a sould hat is not to die when the body is dissolved, but is to continue to exist and to advance toward perfection through all the ages of eternity, and to see more and more clearly, as it draws nearer unto God, the Light of the Divine Presence.  This is the Philosophy of the Ancient and Accepted Rite teaches him.

Every Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, from the first to the thirty-second, teaches by its ceremonial as well as by its instruction, that the noblest purpose of life and the highest duty of a man are to strive incessantly and vigorously to win the mastery of everything, of that which in him is spiritual and divine, over that which is material and sensual;  so that in him also, as in the Universe which God governs, Harmony and Beauty may be the result of a just equilibrium.

Source :  The Far Eastern Freemason  2nd Quarter 2008


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"The first step in the acquisition of wisdom is silence, the second listening, the third memory, the fourth practice, the fifth teaching others."   -  Solomon Ibn Gabriol

The Son of a Brother Mason

During the fellowship dinner at Maria Cristina Hotel, the son of Bro Abel Gomez, Kiril,  rendered 3 musical pieces with his guitar.  He played "Fur Elis", "Canon" and "Yesterday".   Such a talented young man.  Bro Abel sure is a proud father.

 

Our newly installed Junior Warden, Bro Abel with his lovely wife, Sister Joanne, and two sons, Kiril and Jiaan

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"To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream;  not only plan, but also believe."  - Anatole France