THE GREAT PLEBEIAN COLLEGE

Don P. Reinoso St. Poblacion,

Alaminos City, Pangasinan

Meneses, Rowena O. Life,Works And Writings Of Rizal

Bsed III Filipino Instructor: Sir Nomer Raquino
June 17, 2020

ACTIVITY 1.
Republic Act No. 1425, known as the Rizal Law, mandates all educational institutions
in the Philippines to offer courses about José Rizal. The full name of the law is 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, Authorizing the Printing and Distribution Thereof, and for
Other Purposes. The measure was strongly opposed by the Roman Catholic Church in the
Philippines due to the anti-clerical themes in Noli Me Tángere and El Filibusterismo.
Senator Claro M. Recto was the main proponent of the Rizal Bill. He sought to sponsor
the bill at Congress. However, this was met with stiff opposition from the Catholic
Church. During the 1955 Senate election, the church charged Recto with being a
communist and an anti-Catholic. After Recto's election, the Church continued to oppose
the bill mandating the reading of Rizal's novels Noli Me Tángere and El Filibusterismo,
claiming it would violate freedom of conscience and religion.
In the campaign to oppose the Rizal bill, the Catholic Church urged its adherents to write
to their congressmen and senators showing their opposition to the bill; later, it organized
symposiums. In one of these symposiums, Fr. Jesus Cavanna argued that the novels
belonged to the past and that teaching them would misrepresent current conditions. Radio
commentator Jesus Paredes also said that Catholics had the right to refuse to read them as
it would "endanger their salvation".
Groups such as Catholic Action of the Philippines, the Congregation of the Mission,
the Knights of Columbus, and the Catholic Teachers Guild organized opposition to the
bill; they were countered by Veteranos de la Revolucion (Spirit of 1896), Alagad in
Rizal, the Freemasons, and the Knights of Rizal. The Senate Committee on Education
sponsored a bill co-written by both José P. Laurel and Recto, with the only opposition
coming from Francisco Soc Rodrigo, Mariano Jesús Cuenco, and Decoroso Rosales.
The Archbishop of Manila, Rufino Santos, protested in a pastoral letter that Catholic
students would be affected if compulsory reading of the unexpurgated version were
pushed through. Arsenio Lacson, Manila's mayor, who supported the bill, walked out of
Mass when the priest read a circular from the archbishop denouncing the bill.
Rizal, according to Cuenco, "attack[ed] dogmas, beliefs and practices of the Church. The
assertion that Rizal limited himself to castigating undeserving priests and refrained from
criticizing, ridiculing or putting in doubt dogmas of the Catholic Church, is absolutely
gratuitous and misleading." Cuenco touched on Rizal's denial of the existence
of purgatory, as it was not found in the Bible, and that Moses and Jesus Christ did not
mention its existence; Cuenco concluded that a "majority of the Members of this
Chamber, if not all [including] our good friend, the gentleman from Sulu" believed in
purgatory. The senator from Sulu, Domocao Alonto, attacked Filipinos who proclaimed
Rizal as "their national hero but seemed to despise what he had written", saying that
the Indonesians used Rizal's books as their Bible on their independence movement; Pedro
López, who hails from Cebu, Cuenco's province, in his support for the bill, reasoned out
that it was in their province the independence movement started, when Lapu-
Lapu fought Ferdinand Magellan.
Outside the Senate, the Catholic schools threatened to close down if the bill was passed;
Recto countered that if that happened, the schools would be nationalized. Recto did not
believe the threat, stating that the schools were too profitable to be closed. The schools
gave up the threat, but threatened to "punish" legislators in favor of the law in future
elections. A compromise was suggested, to use the expurgated version; Recto, who had
supported the required reading of the unexpurgated version, declared: "The people who
would eliminate the books of Rizal from the schools would blot out from our minds the
memory of the national hero. This is not a fight against Recto but a fight against Rizal",
adding that since Rizal is dead, they are attempting to suppress his memory.
On May 12, 1956, a compromise inserted by Committee on Education chairman Laurel
that accommodated the objections of the Catholic Church was approved unanimously.
The bill specified that only college (university) students would have the option of reading
unexpurgated versions of clerically-contested reading material, such as Noli Me
Tángere and El Filibusterismo. The bill was enacted on June 12, 1956, Flag Day.
The Noli and Fili were required readings for college students.
Section 2 mandated that the students were to read the novels as they were written in
Spanish, although a provision ordered that the Board of National Education create rules
on how these should be applied. The last two sections were focused on making Rizal's
works accessible to the general public: the second section mandated the schools to have
"an adequate number" of copies in their libraries, while the third ordered the board to
publish the works in major Philippine languages.
After the bill was enacted into law, there were no recorded instances of students applying
for exemption from reading the novels, and there is no known procedure for such
exemptions. In 1994, President Fidel V. Ramos ordered the Department of Education,
Culture and Sports to fully implement the law as there had been reports that it has still not
been fully implemented.
The debate during the enactment of the Rizal Law has been compared to the Responsible
Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act of 2012 (RH Law) debate in
2011. Akbayan representative Kaka Bag-ao, one of the proponents of the RH bill, said,
quoting the Catholic hierarchy, that "More than 50 years ago, they said the Rizal Law
violates the Catholic's right to conscience and religion, interestingly, the same line of
reasoning they use to oppose the RH bill.

Why study the life of Rizal?

As mandated by the congress that R.A 1425 states that all educational institutions
are under the supervision of, and subject to regulation by the State, and all schools are
enjoined to develop moral character, personal discipline, civic conscience, and to teach
the duties of citizenship.” It is very important to use our educational institutions to instill
these values to the children who are at their prime years of growing and learning. During
one’s educational years especially the college level is when individuals formulate their
priorities and career tracks in life, and it is essential that institutions make students realize
that the country should be a part of their priorities and serving one’s country is an innate
and inborn duty for all. Also, embedding a profound and authentic moral character and a
strong sense of personal discipline in the youth would yield proficient, genuine, and
selfless Filipinos of the future who would turn the Philippines from an impoverished
country to a globally competitive nation. As a student studying the life, works and
writings of Rizal, it is essential to know about how Dr. Jose P. Rizal fought for our
country with his own way. Rizal obtained the freedom and independence of his country.

ACTIVITY 2.
View a film entitled “Ganito kami noon, Paano kayo ngayon? By Eddie Romero.
1. Describe the nineteenth century Philippines as represented in the film.

 The nineteenth century Philippines as represented in the film was during the
Spanish colonization although Spain is a partriarchal country and they bring that
kind of system here in the Philippines. Nineteenth century time was strictly led by
Spaniards. It is represented in the film because there were no children in the
streets and women are always inside the house.

2. What is the main question that the film seeks to answer?

 I think the main question is about something to do of what it is like to be a

Filipino and who is the Filipino?

3. What is your own reflection based on the film and your own
understanding?

 Based on the film that I had read in the internet because I cant find a full movie of
Ganito kami noon Paano kayo ngayon and in my own understanding, it is simply
mean that during those time Filipino people struggles for Philippine
Independence. The culture of our country was replaced by Spanish rules. It cited
that a young man named “Kulas” seeks his own life. Despite of it he looks at life
with curiosity. The character named “Diding” partner of Kulas, she is flirtatious
and in terms social climber. She left Kulas with another man named “Don Tibor”
because of his ambitious goal in life. Don Tibor caught Diding’s heart and also
for the quest of nationality. The themes of the film is about love, friendship,
admiration. The young man finds a worthy cause to live for. He is disgusted at so-
called Filipinos collaborating with the enemies, the Spaniards and the Americans.
Just like Jose Rizal,who was heartbroken, he abandons his love for Diding and
shifts his love to his country. A Filipino is someone who loves or will love the
Filipino nation. It is not enough to be born in the country in order to be called a
Filipino. But being a worthy, bravery and taking a stand for our country. We must
treasure all the sacrifices that our Philippine heroes did for our country. And also
their instruments and other materials that they have when they are still alive and
preserve them in the national museum for the next generation. We must be feel
proud in our own races by supporting the product of Filipino people more than
just accepting other nationality. And of course our own language we should
continue to be curiously interested in learning so that it will even expanded
further communication and these were proud of. Nowadays young age are having
a colonial mentality like wearing a fachionable clothing, shoes etc. What is new to
them and famous to their eyes they also want to get it. However they must
appreciate and contented in things that they have.