Lodge of St. John and St. Paul No. 349 – Bicentennial

IMG_20150506_133221340_HDR-1024x1014The Lodge of St. John and St. Paul No. 349 has reached the milestone of 200 years of continuous working. So to mark this special occasion the Lodge held a Bicentennial event in the Island of Malta, and invited the members of the departed E.C. Lodges to send a contingent to the Island to help celebrate. To this end a number of Union of Malta Brethren applied to attend the celebrations in Malta.

The St. John and St. Paul Lodge arranged a number of events for the visiting Brethren to enjoy, including:

  • A tour of the Valletta Masonic Centre, which provided our Brethren with the chance to learn more about the history of Masonry on the Island and also the Union of Malta Lodge
  • A tour of the grave yard where Waller Rodwell Wright is buried, and the chance for all visiting Brethren to pay their respects while a candle was lit at the memorial stone
  • The Masonic Centre bar facilities were opened to allow all visiting Brethren with the chance to get to know each other and get some welcome rest from the 29 degree heat
  • Produced an excellent website that provided information on what to see, where to be, and when to be there

WP_20150506_082-1024x577The highlight of the trip was a special meeting arranged for the presentation of the bicentennial warrant, and a large number of very senior officers were in attendance.

This included the Right Worshipful Bro.
Sir David Wootton Assistant Grand
Master, Right Worshipful Bro. David Kenneth Williamson PAGM
and amongst others the Union of Malta’s most senior Past Master Worshipful Bro. Roy Starling.

The St. John and St. Paul team did a wonderful job of converting the Sacra Infermeria into a Lodge room, and their combined efforts and attention to detail were clear for all to see.  At the conclusion of the meeting the Worshipful Master WP_20150506_085-1024x577and the Assistant Grand Master were presented with a copy of the Lodge’s history, covering the past 200 years. This book has been recently completed, by two Brethren of the Lodge, and a copy was also presented to all the Brethren in attendance.

The meal that followed was extremely successful with a buoyant and pleasant atmosphere. It also served as a reminder of why masonic fellowship is so important, allowing men from many different walks of life to meet together and enjoy each others company.

WP_20150506_083-1024x577

The following day the Grand Inspector of Malta, the Very Worshipful Bro. Lawrence L. Porter a Past Master and member of Union of Malta, held a reception for overseas visitors. This was very well attended and a splendid afternoon was spent socialising and chatting with Brethren and their partners.

In conclusion the Brethren of the Union of Malta Lodge would like to thank the Grand Inspector of Malta and the Lodge of St. John and St. Paul for making the trip sIMG_20150506_200246647-1024x575uch a special occasion, organising all the logistics and for the hospitable way we were all welcomed and hosted. We are sure that our members are already planning a return visit and looking forward to discovering more about the Island, and hopefully visiting Lodge meetings in due course.

Click here if you would like to see a Gallery of photos from the event.