The tie that binds

Today is the National Flag Day of my country of origin- the Philippines. This nation's flag design has deep Masonic roots. Designed by a zealous Freemason Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo- the first President of the Republic of the Philippines.

Pay attention to the 3 colors (royal blue, crimson red, and gold) and the symbols (white equilateral triangle with the sun in the middle. There are three 5-pointed stars at each vertex of the triangle.

"With God to illumine them, and Masonry to inspire them, they fought the battle of emancipation and won." -Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo (Freemason and 1st President of the Philippines) speaking of the 1896 Filipino revolutionists.

"The Bonifacio Mural" (1964) painted by Carlos “Botong” V. Francisco.

"The successful Revolution of 1896 was masonically inspired, masonically led, and masonically executed. And I venture to say that the first Philippine Republic of which I was its humble president, was an achievement we owe, largely, to Masonry and the Freemasons." - Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, 1st President of the Philippine Republic. 

President Aguinaldo in his 60's with the original flag.

 

Freemasonry is a peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by signs and symbols. The most visible of these symbols are the Plumb, Level, Square, and Compasses.

Some symbols are enacted- meaning they're not visible at all to those outside of the lodge. One of these enacted symbols- the Chain of Union- have captured my imagination early on but is something I have yet to witness despite my 10yr membership in the fraternity.

The Chain of Union symbolically unites us, psychically, morally, and masonically. I integrated this symbol into the design of the 32º Scottish Rite series of neckties. 

As of this writing, the 3rd in series- the Black Edition is the only one that is available.

Below are the earlier versions of the 32nd Degree FraternalTies Scottish Rite Freemasons necktie series. 

32º Scottish Rite No. 1, Midnight Gold and Black.2014. Product link.

 

32º Scottish Rite No. 1, Midnight Blue and Black. Product link: 

Note: This article was written last year. I was supposed to publish this before Christmas but somehow failed to do that...

"Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love. It will not lead you astray." -Rumi

Some of our eagle-eyed Brothers have noticed that as an artist, I have a tendency to depict the Freemasons S&C in the 2nd Degree / Fellowcraft position.

The reason behind is simple- it's my favourite degree. Like the Rumi quote above, the 2nd Degree teaches us to love the work that we do. As the saying goes, when we love our jobs, it becomes play. When we play, we zone out. In essence, work is the best therapy, recreational drug, and money-making scheme that nature has to offer!

The Fellowcraft Masonic coffee mug features a stylized Square and Compasses designed by yours truly. It is made of common working tools of a modern man. Each symbol that you see here have it's own meaning. I'll discuss a few...

The Compasses are joined by a circumpunct- a perfect circle with a dot in the middle. It was used by the ancient Egyptian philosophers as a symbol for the Above- the Sun, the Deity, or the Divine.

The Square *below* is formed by joining two different kinds of hammers. These are working tools of force which have to be wielded by skilled mortal hands. Take note of the handle of the hammers.

On the other side of the mug is a quote also related to Fellowcraft.

This mug is not available anywhere else. If you see this being sold elsewhere, please let us know. Click here to buy the Fellowcraft mug now.

Wildfires have brought unprecedented death and destruction across the state. The Grand Lodge is aiding and assisting their Brothers, their families, and their communities.

Most Worshipful Stuart A. Wright, Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of California, has requested the Masonic Service Association of North America to issue a Disaster Relief Appeal.

 

How can I help?

1. By direct donation:

   Please forward any donations you feel appropriate to help in this stricken jurisdiction to MSA. Please make checks payable to MSA Disaster Relief Fund and send to 3905 National Drive, STE 280, Burtonsville, MD 20866. When remitting by check, please clearly mark that you wish the funds to go to the California Disaster Appeal.

2. By getting this Christmas themed Masonic t-shirt

   100% OF PROCEEDS will be donated to the GL of California through the MSANA.

To get the shirt and help with the cause, please click this link. You may also click the photo of the shirt below. 

 THE GOOSE AND GRIDIRON artwork printed on this t-shirt is an original design by Bro. J. Paul Gomez. He is the designer at www.fraternalties.com and currently serving as the Junior Warden at Doric Lodge No. 316 in Toronto and an honorary member of Harmonie Lodge No. 699 in Buffalo, New York. If you would like to see the sweatshirt mentioned above, please click this link.  

 

This is a busy time of year for us and our carriers, so we can't guarantee that all orders will be delivered by December 21st. But you should still place your orders by these dates for your best chance to get them on time!

 

USA Domestic

 

 

USA International

 

 

Europe International

 

Masonic lodges all over the world are suffering from 2 things: dwindling attendance and lack of new candidates. Many lodges have gone "dark" as a result. My own mother lodge's future is uncertain. 

It is a common understanding that this is so because Freemasonry can be brain-numbingly boring for the most part. The bulk of what we do can be classified as office-work stuff instead of esoteric stuff. The conspiracy theorist will surely be dismayed when he or she finds out that reading of minutes, collection of fees, planning the next fundraiser is how we roll.

A lot of us Freemasons cry for "real" Masonic Education. We want enlightenment. When we go out of the house to form lodge, we hope for a good night of philosophy and camaraderie with the boys- not accounting and bickering. We're humans after all, we want things ideal.

In my journey however, I came to a fuller understanding that those things that bring discomfort are actually the things that instruct. The things that are most important for survival can be boring as hell. They are repetitive and requires a fair amount of thinking. No easy task.

I'm a designer-entrepreneur and a father of 4. Ideally as a designer, I'd like myself to stay creative for the whole day. I would like to spend time designing, drawing, and crafting. I'd like my day to go by like that. But the truth is I also have to deal with customer accounts, emails, spreadsheets, analytics, updates, etc. The entrepreneurial side takes up a lot of time.

As a father of four, I imagine my ideal day with my kids as a peaceful and fun day of just interacting with them. But as many parent of multiples will tell us, this parent will spend most of his or her time with kids as a referee, judge, and jury- and let's not forget the good cop bad cop routine. The little free time must be wisely spent (chores vs Netflix) or else suffer dire consequences. 

Bob Marley once said, "Truth is everybody is going to hurt you: you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." It echoes the beliefs of Buddha and Jesus. Life is suffering. With that said, go to lodge and enjoy some accounting.