Rizal 031

Life, Works and

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Writings of Dr. Jose

P. Rizal
“It is a useless life that is not consecrated to
a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the
field without becoming a part of any
edifice.” –Jose Rizal
“What moral right has the white man to look
down on the men who have similar thoughts,
studies and abilities as they just because their
skin is brown or their nose is flat?” Jose Rizal
Author: Claro M. Recto

Sponsored the Bill

in the Senate: Jose P. Laurel

Signed: June 12, 1956

What is RA 1425?
known as Rizal Law. an
act to include in the
curricula of all Public and
Private Schools, Colleges and
Universities courses on the
life,works and writings of Jose
Rizal, particularly his novels;
Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo.
composed of 6 sections.
 Objectives of the Law
enrich the minds of the youth about the
history of the Philippines
The study of the Rizal's works should be
implemented by the government.
To appreciate Rizal's ideals and teachings in
relation to the present conditions of our
country and apply in current social
problems/issues.
To foster the development of the Filipino
youth.
Highlights of the R.A. 1425:
1. The study of Rizal’s life, works
and writings to bring about
nationalism among students;
2. The inclusion of works of Rizal
in college curriculum
particularly the study of his
novels-Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo;
 Highlights of the R.A. 1425:
3.The inclusion also of other works of Rizal
such as letters, paintings, and travels;

4. Funding of the law in order to give

supplemental copies of the novels among
public libraries; and

5. The implementation of the law.

ANALYSIS ON RIZAL LAW
•
The adoption of the study of Jose Rizal’s
life, works and writings in colleges and
universities both public and private is
mandated by law;
•
The study of Rizal’s works particularly his
two important novels and other works as
well as its translations in Filipino and English
should be implemented by the government;
10
 ANALYSIS ON RIZAL
LAW
•
In fostering nationalism among youth,
Rizal course can give a wide range of
thoughts on how Rizal and other heroes
fought for freedom for the sake of the
country’s necessity to survive against evil
imperialism.
 Brief history of R.A. 1425
Birth of the Noli (1884)
•

Purpose: “Ï have tried to do what no man has been

•

willing to do..I have described the state of society…I

have unmasked the hypocrisy, which under the cloak
of religion, came among us to impoverish…I have
unveiled what lay hidden behind the deceptive and
brilliant words of our government: I have told to our
compatriots of our culpable and shameful
complacence with miseries…the facts which I have
related are all true and real; I can give proof of
them..”
 Initial reaction to the noli

The Dominican Archbishop, Pedro Payo,

•

ordered a review of the novel.

Result: it is HERETICAL, IMPIOUS, AND
•

SCANDALOUS IN THE RELIGIOUS ORDER,

AND ANTIPATRIOTIC, SUBVERSIVE OF THE
PUBLIC ORDER, OFFENSIVE TO THE
GOVERNMENT OF SPAIN.
 ATTACKS ON THE NOLI
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Fr. Salvador Font – distributed pamphlets
in which he enunciated the attacks that
Rizal allegedly had made on the different
aspects of the Spanish colonial setup.
•
Governor Valeriano Weyler (Butcher of
Cuba)- mere possession of the book (NOLI)
will be prosecuted.
 ATTACKS ON THE NOLI

Friar Jose Rodriguez – issued a series of

•

pamphlets that discussed the dangers in

reading such impious books as the Noli. And
he put forward some threatening questions
such as “Why should I read them?” “Beware
of Them?”And “What do you think of
plaque?” “Änd confenssion or damnation?”
 Defenses of the Noli
Marcelo H. del Pilar – circulated his own
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pamphlets, written in Tagalog, the cover

was similar to that of the pamphlets of Fr.
Rodriguez but its content was exact
opposite.
 Defenses of the Noli
Fr. Vicente Garcia – argued that Rizal’s
•

novel must be viewed as a literary work,

not as a doctrine. He considered the book
as neither heretical nor blasphemous.
 Defenses of the Noli
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Jose Rizal – for all its faults has served my
purpose…it has struck the head of that two-faced
Goliath that in the Philippines is called friar rule
and mal-administration…my book has not yet
been judged and cannot be judged (rightly)
because its effects are still being felt. When men
it pillories have disappeared from the country’s
political life, when a generation arises which does
not itself participate in these present crimes…..
 THE EL
FILIBUSTERISMO
It was published in the late 1891 in Europe
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and circulated in the Philippines. And like the

Noli, this book also received attack;
consequently, the author himself also
received the same fate.
The governor-general commented on the Fili
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that it was dedicated to the three

priests(GOMBURZA), this made Rizal to be
sentences with deportation.
RIZAL’S DEFENSE ON THE
FILI
“with the sincerity and impartiality of which
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a man is capable of looking into his past…

what there was, was a clear-sighted look at
the realities in my native country,…but now I
see what I call a “novel” come true so exactly
that I can say that I am at present the
enactment of this work and taking part in
it.” Here Rizal was not only an actor but also
a victim.
 The Rizal Bill of 1956
Senator Claro M. Recto authored the
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Senate Bill No. 438 in which he claimed

that, “a constant and inspiring source of
patriotism with which the minds of the
youth. Especially during their formative
and decisive years in school, should be
suffused.”
 Senate bill no.438-debate
The debate between the proponents and
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the opponents of the Bill rose to a high level

of emotionalism and ardent patriotism.
Verbal jousts (combat), hecklers (those who
harass) in the gallery, rising blood pressure,
fistfights between two hotheaded
representatives.
 The opponents' side
Catholic Action of the Philippines;
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Congregation of the Missions;

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Knights of Columbus;
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Catholic Teachers Guild

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 Opponents' argument
They argued that the Bill violated religious
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freedom. Their question was: “Why

compel students to read these books
when some passages in them are harmful
to their faith?”
 Opponents' argument
Fr. Jesus Cavana, after reviewing the
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novels, found out that a 332-page edition

of the Noli contains 120 pages of anti-
Catholic statements and only contains 25
pages of patriotic pages.
 Opponents' argument
•
“The Noli and Fili are books of the past, by
the past. While they have their place in
the Philippine history, they certainly are
inadequate Bible of Philippine nationalism
today.”
 Opponents' argument
“Rizal is dead. Why should he be roused
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from his sleep? Let him rest in peace.”

 The Proponents’side
Revolutionary Veterans known as the
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‘Spirit of 1896’
Alagad ni Rizal
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Freemasons
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Book Lovers Society

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 Proponents ‘argument
They argued that the “opponents of the Bill
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were in effect condemning Rizal’s patriotic

writings to oblivion, by preventing the
Filipino youth from reading them. This was
worse than what the friars had done; it was
tantamount to executing Rizal a second
time.”
 Proponents ‘argument
•
One veteran claimed that he had risked
death just to be able to read the novels of
Rizal at the time when the Philippines was
not yet free.
•
“My loyalty to religion ends where my
loyalty to my country begins.”
 Proponents ‘argument

The people who would eliminate the

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books of Rizal from the schools…would

blot out from our minds the memory of
the national hero…now that Rizal is dead
and they can no longer attempt at his life,
they are attempting to wipe out his
memory.” (Claro M. Recto)
 Proponents ‘argument
Catholic schools threatened to close shop if the
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Rizal Bill was passed. Recto calmly told them to go

ahead because then, the state could nationalized
them. Some church bigwigs even threatened to
‘punish’ erring legislators in future elections, but
Recto simply undaunted. Here was one man willing
to risk losing votes because of his principles; this is
what I admire so much in Recto. (A. Ocampo)
 End of the debate
Senator Jose Laurel modified the Bill to
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accommodate the objection of the church…

Compulsory for all public and private schools,
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colleges, and universities to include in their

curricula courses on the LIFE, WORKS, and
WRITINGS OF JOSE RIZAL, particularly the Noli
and Fili, in their original and unexpurgated
versions. However, it allowed exemptions from
reading such versions for reasons of religious
belief.