BusinessWorld Weekender: Clash of the dogmas

BusinessWorld Weekender: Clash of the dogmas

"A history of acrimony: Rogelio L. de los Santos noted in Patriots, Masonry and the Filipino Religious Psyche (a research project of the National Historical Institute, 2006), mentions that while the Masons were looked upon favorably by the Church in the early days (requirements for admission even included confession, and profession of faith in the Holy Trinity), by the 17th and 18th centuries, "the religious character of the Masons would be subjected to doubt and criticism, owing to members who were influenced by the liberal and anti-clerical ideas of the Period of Rationalism and Secularism" (1600-1700 A.D.).

Reverend James Anderson, the minister of a Scottish Presbyterian Church in London, said to have been influenced by John Calvin, introduced the concept of God as "the Great Architect of the Universe" in Masonic teaching. In 1723, Mr. Anderson and John Desaguliers drew up the Masonic constitution and ritual; it kept the framework of the old operative Masonic guilds but alterations were made that removed the Catholic soul and spirit from these constitutions. The Craft was opened to Jews and other non-Catholic believers, further alienating the Church.

Past Grand Master Reynold S. Fajardo, explained Masonry’s appeal in The Brethren: Masons in the Struggle for Philippine Independence (published by Enrique L. Locsin and the GLP, 1998): "Masonry preached religious tolerance based on an irreducible minimum of belief in God and the immortality of the soul, personal and civic morality, liberty, equality and peace. It emphasized the ideals of brotherhood, freedom of conscience, tolerance, as well as the absence of class, caste, and race requirement as its standards of admission.""

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