San Felipe de Austin Commandery No. 1
Meets at the Galveston Scottish Rite Temple
2128 Church Street
Galveston, Texas 77550
Stated Meetings: 2nd Thur. - Dinner at 6:00 PM / Meeting Following
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Vol. 1, No. 11 November 1, 2009 Walter H. Parr, Eminent Commander
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The Commander's Message
We have enjoyed the redneck jokes for years. Here's an interesting spin that you might enjoy.
You might be a Mason if: It never occurred to you to be offended by the phrase, "One nation, under God."
You might be a Mason if: You've never protested about seeing the Ten Commandments posted in public places.
You might be a Mason if: You still say "Christmas" instead of "Winter Festival."
You might be a Mason if: You bow your head when someone prays.
You might be a Mason if: You stand and place your hand over your heart when they play the National Anthem.
You might be a Mason if: You treat Viet Nam vets with great respect, and always have.
You might be a Mason if: You've never burned an American flag.
You might be a Mason if: You know what you believe and you aren't afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.
You might be a Mason if: You respect your elders and expect your kids to do the same.
You might be a Mason if: You'd give your last dollar to a friend.
Good men search for Freemasonry, but Freemasonry makes them better.
During the month of November we will be celebrating two holidays: Veterans Day and Thanksgiving. Veterans Day is a holiday that many seem to overlook, but as Masons we need to remember that our country's freedoms did not come easily. The freedom that we enjoy was purchased with the blood of patriots who gave their lives so that their children and grandchildren could enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The Tree of Liberty has been watered with the blood of patriots ever since and our land has remained free. Remember to honor our veterans on November 11th and come to our Stated Meeting on November 12th to join us in honoring our veterans as a Commandery.
On Thanksgiving Day remember a prayer of David found in 1st Chronicles 29:10-13: "David praised the LORD in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name." This Thanksgiving let us give thanks to our Lord and Savior for the blessings of the past year and for the blessings yet to come.
Walter H. Parr
Eminent Commander
Chapter and Council 
San Felipe de Austin Chapter No. 1 and La Marque Council No. 406 Stated Meetings will be held on November 18th at La Marque Lodge No. 1325. Dinner will be at 6:30 PM with the meetings to follow at 7:30 PM. There will be woodsheds on other Wednesday nights to study and to practice the work.
Veterans Day
Veterans Day is Wednesday, November 11th. On that day we take time to thank all those who served our country in the armed forces and we pause to remember and to honor those who died in the defense of the freedoms that we hold so dear.
President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistace Day for November 11, 1919. The United States Congress passed a concurrent resolution seven years later on June 4, 1926, requesting the President issue another proclamation to observe November 11th with appropriate ceremonies. An Act approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday; "a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day'."
In 1953, an Emporia, Kansas shoe store owner named Al King had the idea to expand Armistice Day to celebrate all veterans, not just those who served in World War I. He began a campaign to turn Armistice Day into "All" Veterans Day. The local Chamber of Commerce took up the cause after determining that 90% of local merchants as well as the Board of Education supported closing their doors on November 11th, 1953, to honor veterans. With the help of U. S. Representative Ed Rees, also from Emporia, a bill for the holiday was pushed through Congress. President Dwight Eisenhower signed it into law on May 26, 1954.
Congress amended this act on November 8, 1954 replacing "Armistice" with "Veterans" and it has been known as Veterans Day ever since.
This Veterans Day take time to show your appreciation for those who have served our country and offer a prayer of remembrance for those who gave their lives in defense of our liberty.
Knights Templar who are veterans are authorized to wear the military service bar depicted below. If you are a veteran wear that decoration on your uniform with pride and may God bless you for your service.
Annual Inspection
Our Annual Inspection is scheduled for November 21st at 1:00 PM. Since our scheduled date for use of the Scottish Rite Temple was preempted we will have to travel to Kennedy Commandery No. 61 located at 304 Schilling Avenue in Baytown, TX for the Annual Inspection. Both Commanderies will have Annual Inspections one after the other. Since our Inspection will be first it is planned that Kennedy Commandery will be able to assist us with enough warm bodies to help form the lines and execute the tactics and that we will be able to assist them in the same manner. We will also confer the Order of the Temple as a part of the Inspection. We will be able to carpool for those who do not want to drive all the way to Baytown. We need to have more practice for the Inspection, so please come out and help us prepare.
Excalibur Award
The Excalibur Award will be awarded on Thursday, November 12th during our Stated Meeting. Sir Knight Clyde Batten has been named to receive this prestigious award for his service to the Commandery.
Orders of the Commandery
In the Commandery, the Chivalric Orders of Christian Knighthood are conferred as follows:
Order of the Red Cross
As the first step in a Commandery of Knights Templar, the Illustrious Order of the Rred Cross continues the story of the Royal Arch and deals with a period in Jewish history at the time of the return of the Jews from captivity and the efforts to rebuild the Temple of their God in Jerusalem. The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross, peculiar to the United States, teaches the lessons of the triumph of Truth.
Order of the Knights of Malta
The second Order in the Commandery is the Knight of Malta with its pass degree of Knight of St. Paul or the Mediterranean Pass. This Order is the first Christian Order encountered by the candidate. The ritual is based historically upon one of the old Orders of the Crusades.
Order of the Temple
This is the third and most impressive Order of the Commandery and is wholly Christian. The Templar tradition derives from the Society of the same name which played so important a part in the Crusades of the Middle Ages. Beautiful lessons of the death and ascension of our Savior are inculcated and the candidate is received into full fellowship, in the most solemn manner.
The only argument which can be used against knightly orders as component parts of the Masonic System is that they are essentially Christian in their character and scope. This, however, arises from the circumstances which are inseparably interwoven into the world's history and which therefore cannot be annulled. We have inherited from the fathers aforetime an organization which has for its symbol the triumph of the Cross and which commemorates the deeds of its defenders. Having accepted the inheritance, we must adhere to the fact that was sealed in blood amid the din of arms and the carnage of battle. Freemasonry demands only a belief in God and Hindu, Mohammedan, Jew, and Gentile may worship around its altars, yet it cannot be deemed inconsistent that the Christian Freemason should establish a branch of the fraternity where he may be free to interpret the symbols of the Symbolic Lodge according to his religious belief. Thus, the Masonic Orders of Christian Knighthood are the logical outcome of the Christian Mason's belief in Christ as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, whose hand will raise the dead to life and in whose Holy Name the True Word is found and restored at last. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1
Knights Templar Hid Holy Shroud, Vatican Says
(April 5, 2009) -- The Shroud of Turin, the 14-foot-lomg linen cloth that many people think was placed on Jesus Christ at the time of his burial, was hidden and secretly venerated by medieval knights for more than 100 years, the Vatican announced, according to a story published by Brittain's Times Online.
According to Dr. Barbara Frale, a researcher in the Vatican Secret Archives, the shroud had disappeared during the sacking of Constantinople in 1204 AD during the fourth Crusade, and did not resurface again until the middle of the 14th century and it's this time period that the Vatican now accounts for.
The shroud is now kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy. It was last publicly exhibited in 2000, and is due to go on display again next year.
Election Day
Election day is Tuesday, November 3rd. Don't forget to vote!
Members of San Felipe de Austin No. 1 at the Installation of Officers
Officers for 2009
Walter H. Parr --- Eminent Commander
J. C. Dorman --- Generalissimo
Clyde E. Wood --- Captain General
Clyde L. Batten --- Senior Warden
Jay H. Hicks --- Junior Warden
John G. Knecht, P. C. --- Excellant Prelate
A. O. "Bill" Thorn, P. C. --- Treasurer
Theodore "Ted" Armstrong, P. C. --- Recorder
Manuel C. Perez --- Sword Bearer
Travis Campbell --- Standard Bearer
Howard M. Purkaple, P. C. --- Warder
John Hunter --- Sentinel
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