In Search of the Essence of the Filipino Mason:

Apolinario Mabini

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Apolinario Mabini’s Masonic name, “Katabay” could very well describe the role he assumed during the Filipino struggle for sovereignty and self government.  He was first among equals, yet he was more of the conscientious, vigilant companion, sharing the role of the leader but never playing the leader himself.   He was a passionate patriot and Aguinaldo’s  chief adviser during the revolution.  After the declaration of independence, he laid the foundation for the organization and administration of local governments, and later the  creation of a revolutionary congress.    His insights were ahead of his time. He had a clear grasp of the bigger picture of the revolution and its implications in a post revolution scenario. . . Read more

Kalaw's fight for Philippine Masonic sovereignty

When Teodoro M. Kalaw became the Grandmaster of the Regional Grand Lodge of the Grande Oriente Espanol in the Philippines, he immediately launched a campaign to preserve Filipino Masonry which was started in 1891.  The year was 1915; the Philippine-American war was over; the country was under the Americans and American Masons had established  three lodges that formed a grand lodge in 1912.  The American grand lodge called the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippine Islands declared the country Masonically free and later declared lodges of the Grande Oriente Espanol irregular. Kalaw spearheaded a Masonic protest and tried to establish an independent grand lodge. 

From Kawit to Barasoain:
A Masonic Legacy

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An understanding to the events that led to the proclamation on Philippine Independence on 12 June 1898, the convention at Barasoain that started on 15 September 1898, and the culmination of the republican efforts that led to the inauguration of the Philippine Republic on 23 January 1899 - could not be advanced without highlighting the social, ideological, philosophical and political underpinnings that defined the contours of the events and determined the course of the Philippine revolution.  In all of these events, masons and Masonic ideas played significant roles that determined the leadership, identified the mass membership, and delineated the ideas that inspired the events that happened from Kawit to Barasoain in the seven months preceding the proclamation of the Republic on 23 January 1899. . .
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Kalaw's conundrum: the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands- union, fusion or subjugation?

With Del Pilar long gone, having died in Spain in 1896, Morayta was the last remaining mason of his generation who were conscientiously supporting the Filipino cause.  As Kalaw would put it, “after the death of Morayta, the only one who had always shown interest in the Philippines, the only man in Spain for whom Filipino masons felt profound veneration and respect, the lodges considered themselves free to separate from the Spanish obedience.” (Fajardo, 67).  Kalaw has decided to give up the fight – not only to confront and challenge the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Islands, but also to establish the Independent National Grand Lodge of the Philippines as a sovereign jurisdiction.