Life and Works of Dr.

Jose Rizal
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Gregor I. Alba


Chapter VI
Homecoming and the Second Journey

Jose Rizal left Europe on July 3, 1887 despite warning from his family and friends. He reached
Manila on August 6, 1887. An odd-mixture of feelings pervades the atmosphere during his first
homecoming. The Rizals new that Jose unwittingly created many enemies. They knew that Jose
Rizal became a marked man. They were aware that his speech and literary works had made him
a persona non grata (dangerous person).
There were varying concepts about Rizal: for the learned, they viewed Rizals faith tempered by
reason; for the fanatics, Jose was transformed into a heretic; for those in power, they perceived
him as a threat; for the prejudiced, he was a nobody; for the unlettered and superstitious, he
was a miracle worker; and, for the whole family, he remained as their intelligent Pepe.
Two days after his arrival in Calamba, he performed an eye operation to his mother. Then, he
served other patients. Meanwhile, Noli Me Tangere was selling well despite red tapes. One
formidable enemy he had to contend with was the censorship committee. Using tactics through,
an intimate friend at Ateneo got away with so many requirements and the books were released.
Noli Me Tangere was selling like hot cakes in a bookstore La Gran Bretaa. A matter of few days,
it ran out of copies. Price of the book rose up to five or six times its original price. With
precision, Noli Me Tangere hit its target: the governor general, the friars, the spineless
bootlickers and the common folks. They identified themselves with the characters of the novel.
The novel could have pricked the friars conscience, although some could just have shrugged
their shoulders and ignored it. Those badly hit, could not just take the offense sitting down. The
Dominican fathers saw their alumnus totally transformed into an ardently nationalistic Filipino,
anti-clerical and un-Catholic, like the western liberals and freemasons of Europe.
All told, the acts of brutality inflicted by the civil government through the civil guards on the
agitators; the exploitation of the natives through religion; and, Rizals exposure to Europe,
developed in him an open and critical mind to see God in many ways and in different religious
denominations. Jose Rizal develop a clearer view that he created the characters of Kabesang
Tales, Frs. Damaso, Salvi, Sibyla, Camorra, Irene and other personalities in Noli me Tangere.
The book reveals how vast tracks of lands were donated to religious orders like the case of
Capitan Tiago, who was tricked in his death bed to believe that an act of donating his lands to
the Church was his passport to heaven. Similarly the hermanas (the devout sisters or
churchgoers) competed with each other in giving gifts to the Church, in exchange for
indulgences.
Through the years, no one ever dared exposing anomalies veiled in sanctity. Spain promulgated
laws for the welfare of its colonies, but most of the indios did not bother to know or they had
found the laws too difficult to comprehend. Implementation of those laws was likewise blocked
by the Hispanic-Philippine civil government and the Church. For Rizal, bitterness had grown in
him when he witnessed foreigners divesting his people their patrimony out of their naivity. The
colonizers became masters while the rightful heirs became slaves and tenants in their own
country. During that time, exposing the inefficiency of the civil government and religious
hypocrisies were un-favorable because these were true. Telling the truth therefore, constitutes
a crime of subversion, a heinous crime punishable by death. Criticism of priests was deemed a
heresy, and the heretics destination is hell.
On August 29, 1887 Malacaang summoned Jose Rizal. Governor-General Emilio Terrero asked
him about Noli Me Tangere and demanded from him a copy. In his two interviews, Emilio
Terrero was seemingly kind to him. In the privacy of his room in Malacaang, Terrero reflected
on the message of Noli Me Tangere. As a governor general exposed to the ideology of liberalism
and of freemasonry, Terrero could have a clearer and wider vision to weigh fairness against
prejudice and empirical facts against concocted lies. To his mind, the book was really an expose,
sharply aimed at the civil government and the Church. Yet, it likewise attacks the vices and
weaknesses of the Filipinos. At his end, Terrero believed that Noli Me Tangere should be
allowed to circulate freely and quietly. Generally, forbidden literature agitates the reading
public. The more it is suppressed, the more it arouses curiosity.
Occasioned by the Calamba controversy, readers of Noli Me Tangere inferred the message that
land problem and unjust taxation in Calamba were just a prototype of an explosive socio-
economic political situation all over the country. As a reaction to the embarrassing expose and
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devastating impact of the book, there was no let up on the part of the friars. Heads of different
religious orders took audience with the Governor-General daily. They demanded persecution of
Jose Rizal: to ban the circulation of the novel; to persecute; to arrest; imprison; deport or
execute Jose Rizal. The Manila Archbishop passed his copy of Noli to the UST Rector.
Consequently, the Permanent Commission on Censorship (composed of UST professors, mostly
Spanish priests) was convened to review and to decide either to ban or to allow circulation of
the book.
On December 29, 1887 the Commission found the book full of lies, heretical, impious,
scandalous, unpatriotic and subversive to public order. It declared the author, ignorant and the
book dangerous. The Commission submitted its recommendations to Malacaang. Terrero did
not act on it for quite a time, and the friars grew impatient. Without waiting for the final word of
the chief-executive, the friars replicated and distributed their findings and condemnation of the
book. They used the pulpits to criticize the novel and declared that reading the novels is a
grievous sin. Subsequently, Terrero assigned Jose Taviel De Andrade as Rizals body guard
purportedly, for Rizals protection but it was also done to monitor all activities of Jose Rizal. To
avoid suspicion, Rizal showed Taviel all the letters he received or sent. Despite the initial
diffidence, friendship grew between them. In Rizals third encounter with Terrero, the governor
general advised him to leave the country at once.
Noli Me Tangere exposes the truth about the Philippine society. Laughably, the truth exposed by
Noli has already been known by everybody, but no one ever dared touching it like what Rizal
did. The Filipinos, save for few, prefer to suffer in silence: Filipinos tell the truth euphemistically;
tell half truth; or, believe in their own lies as the truth and live with their lies forever. As a result,
society created monsters such sip-sips, balimbings (a symbol of insincerity), and spineless
leaders which have been thriving in profusion all over the country from the 19
th
century until
today.

The Calamba Agrarian Controversy:

Governor general was either condescending to the friars or at logger-heads with them. Those
having liberal orientation initiated reforms, but most of them ended submissive to the clergy.
The enmity between the Church and the civil government usually ended either by shortening
the governor generals terms of office in the Philippines or by shaping them back to Spain for
varied reasons. In effect, Terrero stepped into a deadly trap when he ordered investigation of
the friars landholdings and other sources of their revenues. He wanted to know the extent of
the friars landholdings, the amount of taxes and rentals collected from the tenants and the
amount remitted to the governments coffers. The move generated varying reactions. The
inquileos and the braceros speculated that the investigation was a prelude to another round of
increase in real estate taxes and of the fees collected from the use of the Dominicans irrigation
system. On part of the friars, they saw the move as a threat to extra-ordinary powers they
wielded: in the acquisition; expansion; retention of real property; and, in their other sources of
revenues. For Jose Rizal, it was an opportunity to enlighten the lessors and the lessees, and
to expose the true state of socio-economic and political problems in the country. For Terrero,
his move was his right and his obligation as the chief-executive of the civil government.
Jose Rizal prepared a written report and in an exercise of democratic process, report on
Calamba controversy was presented to the Calambeos publicly assembled. Attesting to the
truthfulness of the report were representatives of the Dominican estates who affixed their
signatures publicly. Facts showed that the Society of Jesus was the original owner of Clamba
hacienda. When it was disbanded in 1768, ownership passed to the Dominicans. Beginning
1883, the new land owners collected canon from the tenants (the Jesuits did not exact rentals
from cultivators of lands outside their domain. They only imposed fees for the use of their
irrigation system), and the small parcel of land originally owned by the Jesuits remarkably
expanded. After nineteen years, the Dominicans practically owned the whole town of Calamba.
Corollary to this, canon was imposed on all parcels of land but the entire amount collected did
not flow to the governments coffers. What was declared were rentals collected from the small
parcels of land originally owned by the Jesuits. Taken as a whole, it was discovered that only one
part of the ten parts collected as land taxes was remitted to the government and the nine parts
of the ten parts could not be accounted for.
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Rizal had to Leave Again:

By exposing the truth, Jose Rizal disturbed the untouchables and he knew he would pay dearly
for it. Death threats were sent to him daily and people he used to enjoy friendship with, avoided
him. The friars tried to either silence the author and moved to holds back further spread of truth
exposed by Noli Me Tangere. Jose Rizal had to leave the country, after five months only since his
homecoming. He had to leave the Philippines in a hurry while it was tensed because of the
Calamba controversy and the expose of Noli Me Tangere.
He left Calamba with his cousins as escorts and on February 3, 1888 he sailed, via Pacific routes
to England. His leaving was not only for his personal protection but also for his family, friends,
and other people associated with him.
In his second journey, he would put to full use his love for the arts, letters and philosophy. There
were three major projects he would undertake namely: to study and write about the Philippine
history; to continue writing the sequel of Noli Me Tangere; and, to produce the Philippine
dictionary. Other projects necessitated collaboration with people sympathetic to the Filipinos.
These projects explain why Rizal established connection with the sages of Europe and joined
professional societies and organizations.
Hindsight is looking back to our past. It is to study our story as a people, and to rewrite history of
the Filipino people in order to correct distorted information and to discard biases. Insight is
gained through introspection. Inferences are drawn out from facts as basis to understand
existing situation, the nature of Filipino themselves and the events or phenomena under
investigation. This was provided by Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo. Foresight predicts or
anticipates what will happen in the future. Rizal had written his forethoughts in his essay, The
Philippines a Hundred Years Later. He predicted the change of colonizers from Spain to America
and predicted that Japan would join the game of imperialism. Rizals essay on the Philippines a
hundred years from thence, Succesos de las Islas Filipinas Annotated serves as the hindsight;
Noli Me Tangere the insight; and, El Filibusterismo, the insight and the foresight.
As a physician, Rizal anchored his studies on scientific research. He sought to explain the
following:
a. the claim of superiority of the colonizers over the colonized
b. the unfairness of treatment of the Philippines from among the colonies of Spain
c. the Spanish colonizers way of running the Philippines as one of its colonies
d. the possible remedies for the thorny problems of the country

Rizal in Hongkong
In HongKong, Jose Rizal met some survivors of those exiled in Marianas. By and large, deportees
were mostly treated by family and friends as dreaded leapers for fear of being identified with
filibusteros. There were few who were fortunate and one of them was Jose Ma. Basa, a
lawyer, the only exile in 1872, who escaped to HongKong and had a successful business
enterprise there. He was likewise inflamed by patriotic fervor.

Rizal in Japan
After fifteen days stay in HongKong, Jose Rizal boarded Oceanic liner, bound for Yokohama,
Japan. He was invited to stay at the Spanish Legation. As he had a double spy Jose Taviel in the
Philippines, in Japan, he had also Barranda who accompanied him in his visit to Amoy, China.
Jose Rizal was attracted to Japan: the cleanliness of the place, its peace and the peoples
courtesy, honesty and discipline. The scenery as well was breathtaking, especially in spring. He
had a fling with an attractive Japanese girl, U-Sui-Seiko or O-Sei-San. She could be a desirable
lifetime partner and he could have lived in peace and raised a family of his own there. His
greater mission, weighed heavier than his personal interest. After six weeks, in Japan, Rizal had
to finally say, Sayonara!




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Rizal in San Francisco
On April 13, 188 Jose Rizal boarded Belgic bound for the USA. His original plan of staying in
America was however disrupted by his negative impression of the racial prejudice when non-
American passengers were quarantined for eight days in San Francisco, despite clean bill of
health. The true cause was political in nature. It was the USAs refusal to accept eight hundred
Chinese migrants abroad, as it was presidential election time. Finally, when they were allowed
to disembark, he looked for a hotel and had a great time touring some scenic spots. In his three-
day stay in New York, he concluded that it was a city for poor workers.

Rizal in London
He arrived in Liverpool on May 24, 188 and he proceeded to London. He became a lodger of the
Becketts at Chalcot Crescent.
In 1888, London was the largest city on earth, the mercantile bank center of the world and the
capital of the largest empire ruled by Queen Victoria. As a man of philosophy and letters, he
would conduct a research on Philippine history and culture.
Ferdinand Blumentritts help was invaluable to him. He sent him a letter of introduction to a
German, Reinhold Rost, in charge of the Indian Office Library. He saw Reinholds collection of
rare books about the Philippines and having understood what Jose was looking for, Rost gave
him an English translation of Antonio Morgas Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas.
Rizal would engross himself in the British Museum. It was the most extensive library in the world
in the 19
th
century, the celebrated breeding place of revolutions. The great domed reading room
of the British Museum was the same place where Karl Marx did meticulous background research
for his book. Fortunately, Rizal found there the original, Spanish version of Sucesos de las Islas
Filipinas. His initial plan of writing Philippine history shifted into a plan of annotating the work of
Antonio Morga. Simultaneously, he went on writing El FIlibusterismo which he started writing in
October, 1887.
Other undertakings while he was in London:
1. sculpted a figure depicting The Triumph of Death over Life;
2. organized Filipino young mens club in Dalton, London;
3. he maintained his correspondence with people close to him in his country and gained more
acquaintances and friends who believed in his noble cause, like Reinhold Rost and Antonio Ma.
Regidor
4. he flirted upon by women and he flirted with them. Like Gertrude Beckett, the eldest of the
four Beckett sister.

The Consequences of Calamba Land Problem
In Calamba, the civil governor who signed the Manifesto for the Ouster of Friars and the tenants
who aired their complaints on taxation and landholdings were punished: Manuel Hidalgo,
Saturninas husband who helped Jose in searching for facts on Calamba controversy and other
tenants were deported to Bohol; petition for a better contract with the hacienda owners was
rejected; and, to make matters worse, many people in Calamba died because of cholera
epidemic.
From afar, Jose Rizal exhausted all means to help his family and his people. He kept in touch
with influential personalities in Europe and in the Philippines, and firmed up organizations
abroad and in the country. In addition to Indios Bravos, Solidaridad was formed and its
publication also named La Solidaridad. Rizal published the empirical facts he gathered about
Calamba agrarian problems for the enlightenment of the IFlipinos, for the ilustrados, for the
Church, and for the Crown of Spain. As a reaction, there were counter-moves such as the
publication of La Politica De Espaa de Filipinas, wherein the publication refuted the facts
revealed by La Solidaridad. Francisco Pi Madrigal, noted Spanish politician sympathetic to the
Filipinos cause was imprisoned for defending Rizals works. Friars ostentatiously intervened in
Calamba litigation. Consequently, from the lower court to the Real Audiencia, Calamba case was
lost. While appeal at the Tribunal Supremo in Madrid, the friars rounded up the gobernadorcillos
to effect ejectment of the tenants. On September 6, 1890 Governor General Valeriano Weyler
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sent artillery men to forcibly eject the Calamba tenants. Houses were pulled down and
properties were destroyed. Rizals parents were ordered to get out of their house. Some houses
were burned down and some men were deported to Mindoro.

Fostering National Consciousness and Patriotism
Jose Rizal established connections with the learned men in Europe and joining scientific,
sociological and political organizations. He strengthened the Filipino community in Madrid and
was spreading information and ideas about the Filipinos plight under frailocracy or friarocracy.
Jose Rizal was not alone in his cause. Together with his compatriots, they wged the propaganda
movement in Europe and in the Philippines. First, they must foster sensitivity and second, they
must instill sensibility. Sensitivity is awareness of the socio-economic and political situation of
the Philippine: identification of the Filipinos common enemies; and, the recognition of Filipinos
oneness regardless of their regional orientations and affiliations. Sensibility, on the other hand,
is the capability to discern: to sift facts from falsehood; to recognize reason from superstitions;
to distinguish religiosity from spirituality; and, to decide judiciously what possible options to
take.
Nationalism is the peoples awareness of their uniqueness; their consciousness of the cultural
bond that binds them: in the commonality of their origin, history, language, religion, race and
idiosyncrasies; pride in identifying with the fine qualities and abilities of their race; humility in
accepting cultural flaws and foibles, and the firm resolve in rectifying them; the peoples
constancy of faith in the nobility of their national heroes; the meaningful commemoration of
historical events; and the sincere appreciation of national heroes, in the face of todays oblivion,
ingratitude, and the heroes seeming obsolescence and anachronism to todays generation.
Patriotism is the supreme sacrifice of ones life and the readiness to die so others may live in
abundance and in peace. Patriotism and nationalism combined is shown in the collective
sentiments and aspirations of the people to shape their destiny bereft of manipulation and
control by other nations.

The Propaganda Movement
Sensitive and sensible, ilustrados in Europe; a number of peasants; and, the elite patriotic
Filipinos in the country undertook actions for reform. To succeed, a movement must be
anchored on ideology which serves as the basis of either maintaining the present set up or the
reasons why prevailing situation must be modified or radically changed.
Ideology is closely organized system of beliefs, values, and ideas forming the basis of a social,
economic, or political philosophy or program. It has 3Ps: philosophy, program, and propaganda.
Libertarianism is the Filipino movements philosophy. The propagandists had program, plan of
action and propaganda. Propaganda is the spreading of ideas and information to generate
support. It is undertaken either to build or to destroy personalities or institutions. It is also a
means of upholding, reforming or changing the prevailing socio-economic and political set up.
While propaganda is directed to the intellect, it operates more effectively on emotion.
Propaganda can make the public cling irrationally to what it is advocating.
Propaganda uses different strategies and mediums and with the invention of printing press,
information and advocacies are easily spread to the reading public through newspapers, books,
leaflets and pamphlets. Speeches also propagate ideas and information. They are delivered in
public gatherings. For the Church, the priests p*odium is the pulpit before their captive
audience.
The surge of intellectual awakening and freedom movements in Europe likewise, emboldened
the ilustrados. Propaganda in Spain exerted much effort to awaken the Filipinos to the excesses
of the colonizers, and the movement stirred patriotic Filipino sentiments. They exposed the
social ills in the Philippines and struggled to gain better concessions from the Crown of Spain.
Jose Rizal was the honorary chairman of a patriotic society Solidaridad and a valuable
contributor to its newspaper La Solidaridad.
Knowing the value of mass media, friars were entrusted by the Crown of Spain the authority to
create and to control the Permanent Commission on Censorship. The Commission banned
subversive publications, confiscated and destroyed forbidden books, and it ordered
persecution of writers and anyone caught reading forbidden literature. Inversely, the more the
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authorities suppressed these reading materials the more they arouse curiosity of the reading
public.
There has been varying directions in the propagandists struggles: the reformists sought for just
treatment; to make the Philippines as one of Spains provinces; to Hispanize the Filipinos; to
treat the Philippines like Spains other colonies; and, for the radical ones, to wage revolution for
total separation of the country from Spain.
Though used interchangeably, reforms are means of solving existing problems, without
changing the social, economic and political structures. These are reactionary measures to
address existing problems. Reforms are proposed solutions which are temperate and limited in
scope. Revolution on the other hand, are drastic measures aimed at overhauling the entire
socio-economic and political system. It aims to go beyond order, neither to retain the status quo
nor to cause some modifications. Revolution is the full mobilization of forces from the top to the
lowest stratum of society.
Rizal adhered in the political theory of John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau that revolution
should be last recourse of an aggrieved people. He advocated a revolution which starts from
godliness. Rizalian revolution is liberation of the people from superstition, ignorance and
fanaticism through education. It is a kind of revolution through instilling moral uprightness,
upholding ones dignity, recognition of the necessity of industry, and the quest for justice and
truth. Without education and without virtues, Jose Rizal did not believe that revolution can ever
succeed. He expressed his doubts when he asked, What if the slaves of today shall be tyrants of
tomorrow? As idealist, Rizal dreamed of a world state where education and science promote
the countrys growth and development. Facts reveal that Rizal had stressed the necessity of
reforms and the non-violent ways of correcting the defect of the Philippine socio-economic and
political systems.

Freemasonry
Rizal was aware of the necessity of establishing connection with the learned men of Europe for
the propaganda movement to succeed. At that time, freemasonry had proliferated in almost
parts of the world. Freemasonry advocates humanism and liberalism and its members are
valuable allies in the ilustrados struggle for freedom. Freemasonry in the Philippines attracted
patriotic Filipinos from among the educated propagandists down to the unlettered peasants. It
has however, occupied an awkward position in the history of the Philippines because it is either
freed from blames for its contribution in the outbreak of the Philippine revolution or its role
exaggerated to be faulted for Spains loss of the Philippines as one of its colonies.
Freemasonry started as secret organizations for men. These were non-religious and apolitical
fraternities of stonemasons in England and Scotland. Subsequently, the four pre-existing
Masonic lodges of Great Britain were organized to become the first Grand Lodge of the world on
June 24, 1717. In the 19
th
century, socio-economic and political milieu was conducive to the
growth of this kind of fraternity as it was the period known as the Age of Reason, the Age of
Enlightenment or the Age of Scientific Revolution. In almost parts of the world, freemasons
lodges emerged and even to these days, they have been interconnected.
Freemasonry is a non-religious, apolitical, international fraternity whose members believe in the
Supreme Being; members profess universal brotherhood; advocate mutual assistance; and,
spread learning and science. Membership to the fraternity does not require any religious
affiliation. It is enough that the potential members have faith in God, no matter how conceive,
Him to be.
Philosophes expressed supreme confidence in the power of reason. On the humanistic side, they
condemned the prevalent persecution of people without due process; the torture of prisoners
through physical and psychological abuses; being starved and exposed to illness; deported to
remote places; or publicly executed. Freemasons despised the European corrupt legal system,
and bitterly criticized the excesses of the Roman Catholic church and its clergy.
Anchored on the three overriding principles of fraternal love, truth and charity, freemasonry
served as alternative for the seemingly decadent religion. Like religious congregations,
freemasonry is complete with rituals. It generates charitable funds and undertakes philanthropic
activities. It advocates brotherhood and has a sense of community. The philosophes denounced
the Church for inciting fanaticism and intolerance which led to the horrors of the Crusades, the
Inquisition and the Wars of Reformation. Scientific discoveries and inventions combined with
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skepticism, freethinking and anti-clericalism gave justifications for the abandonment of
traditional authority, replacing them by the rational system of ethics and philosophy anchored
on scientific truth.
Freemasonry was not intended to rival churches. But unwittingly, it developed to be anti-clerical
and has caused anathema between itself and the Roman Catholic Church. It was because there
were extreme rationalists who lent full support for an enlightened and centralized government
in opposition to local power of the clergy and the old aristocracy. Extreme Masonic rationalists
were bent at destroying Christina churches in the 18
th
to 19
th
centuries. In sum, freemasons
were anti-clerical and hostile to scholastic learning and in some quarters, they were critical to
Christianity itself.
Just like the formation of the first grand Masonic lodge of the world, there was already pre-
existing freemasonry in the Philippines such as Primera Luz Filipina, the first Masonic lodge in
the country. It was founded in 1856 by Jose Malcampo y Monge, a Spanish naval captain who
would be governor general.
For the Filipino propagandists freemasonry was instrumental to their campaign. First,
freemasonry was anti-clerical. Second, the secrecy of the fraternity enabled propagandists and
revolutionaries to carry out clandestine activities. Masonic lodges served as centers of
conspiracy against frailocracy, and freemasons helped in the emancipation of the colonized from
their colonizers in different parts of the world.
In the Philippines, pioneer Masonic lodges were exclusive for Europeans only. Subsequently,
freemasonry admitted Filipinos. Marcelo H. del Pilar and Jose Rizal likewise founded a Masonic
lodge, Solidaridad. It aimed at fostering unity and cooperation in Madrid and in the Philippines,
and on December 19, 1912 the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Philippines
was established. Today, this is officially known as The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the Free
and Accepted Masons of the Philippines.
La Liga Filipina (Masonic in orientation) would be established in the country on July 3, 1892. It
was Jose Rizals last attempt to form a civic, political and social group in the country. Although it
was short-lived, when it ended, two new groups emerged: the elite ilustrados formed Cuerpo de
Compromisarios while the lowly ilustrados formed the revolutionary Katipunan, headed by
Andres Bonifacio. The secret revolutionary society transformed Masonic rituals and symbols into
organizational structures which retained hierarchy, ceremonies, and rituals. It was more radical
and it chose revolution as the last recourse of national struggle for freedom.
Why does the church forbid Catholics to join freemasonry? Purportedly because: first, it
competes with religion; second, it conspires against the Church and the authorities; third, it
contravenes the teachings of the Catholic church; fourth, it is a cult which is deistic in nature;
and, fifth, it usurps rights of the Church (it parodies and blasphemes the Church rituals).
On January 19, 1812 King Ferdinand VIII prohibited freemasonry in the Philippines. There were
papal decrees likewise that expressly prohibit Catholics from joining freemasonry. These are as
follows: Pope Clements decree in 1738, the Code of Canon Law in 1883, Code of Canon Law in
1890. It states, A person who joins an association which plots against the Church is to be
punished with a just penalty; one who promotes or takes office in such association is to be
punished with and interdiction

The Union of the Church and the State
As a colony of the Spanish colonial empire, the Philippines was governed by the Crown of Spain
through the governor general in a strongly paternalistic system of government. The governor
general had wide discretionary powers on the imposition or withholding Royal decrees. This
power was known as cumplase. On July 31, 1889 the Spanish Civil Code was made applicable to
the Philippines, and the second was the Becerra Law issued on November 12, 1889. These
decrees empowered the civil governments to solemnize marriages, and to grant local autonomy
to the natives for them to exercise political rights through election. As a reaction, the friars
insisted that solemnization of marriage was their exclusive domain and the implementation of
Becerra Law was detrimental to their own choice of government officials. By virtue of cumplase,
the implementation of the law on civil marriages was withheld and the Becerra Law was applied
only to few selected local government units.
Friars had edge over civil government officials whose stay in the Philippines was limited by their
term of office. They controlled almost all institutions necessary for the emergence of
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enlightened citizenry: the school, mass media, government and the Church. Obscurantism and
irrelevance of curriculum and instruction pushed back the flow of liberal and humanistic ideas.
There was no academic freedom to speak of, and the school atmosphere was repressive.
Ironically, orthodoxy and prejudices drew out rebellious response from the students that
inflamed their nationalistic feelings.

The Best and the Worst Filipino Values
As a Filipino, Rizal knew the strength and weaknesses of his people. Somehow, there are also
fine qualities Filipinos can be proud of. They could be Spanish in origin and they are reflections
of refinement and nobility such as palabra de honor, delicadeza and amor propio among others.
Palabra de honor is a Filipinos gentlemans words. Delicadeza refers to ones consciousness of
his status in society, of hid moral ascendancy; and amor propio is self-esteem or self-respect.
Positively, amor propio is upholding ones honor or social image. Negatively, it is false pride
which is shielded against criticisms or actions, calculated to diminish or demolish ones
reputation or prestige.

The Cleavages
Personal and emotional problems sapped Jose Rizal of his strength. From the Philippines, the
novel Noli Me Tangere was bitterly criticized and from Bulacan, came his staunch defender
Marcelo H. del Pilar, who was undertaking his anti-friar campaign in the market, in the cockpit
and whatever and wherever opportunity permitted him.
Marcelo H. del Pilar founded Diaryong Tagalog, which parodied the friars. He wrote pamphlets
and furtively spread them to acquire readerships. One of which was Caingat Cayo under the
pen name Dolores Manapat. He defended Rizals worked and became a marked man. He was an
invaluable propagandist, an astute politician, a conspirator whose ways contrasted the subtle
and idealistic Jose Rizal. He was a lawyer, and he was eleven years older than Rizal. He assumed
moral ascendancy over the Filipino community in Madrid and acted as its leader. He was
confident he could unite the ilustrados better then Jose Rizal.
There was collaboration among the ilustrados in Europe, they competed with each other too.
Cleavages began to emerge: differences among personalities and management styles created
factions; Marcelo H. del Pilar considered La Solidaridad as a private entity; the discipline instilled
by Rizal was pushed aside; del Pilar ignored compatriots backsliding to gambling and time-
wasting; articles written in La Solidaridad had softened their impact; and, there was creeping
sense of directionless among the Filipino community in Madrid. Eventually, two factions
surfaced: the Pilaristas and the Rizalistas; the situation was precarious to the movement in the
Philippines and in Madrid.
Marcelo H. del Pilar for asserted that La Solidaridad was an independent and private enterprise
while La Propaganda in the Philippines which underwrote the publication of La Solidaridad
wanted Jose Rizal to use the newspaper, as a vehicle of his political thoughts. Contrary to it, del
Pilar wanted the newspaper placed under his control and with the egging of Eduardo de Lete
and other pro-Spanish groups, election of responsible derailed.

The Prospects of Marriage against Faith and Self-Respect
Taking flight from the Solidaridad controversies, Jose Rizal found himself in Biarritz. Nelly
Bousted was a good prospect for marriage since she had the qualities Rizal was searching for
both socially and intellectually. She is strong-willed almost manly in her attitude and most of all,
a thinker like him. Financially, she was affluent. Rizal was attracted to her and Nelly was also the
choice of his compatriots to be his life-time partner. In spite of these, they differed in faith, and
Nelly demanded that he would embrace Protestantism first, if he would marry her. Despite, foe
delicadeza, Jose Rizal would neither allow himself to be a ward of his wife nor be imposed upon
to change his religion. Nelly was a temporary balm to his hurts; in spite of this, like his other
previous love affairs, it was doomed. Rizal dropped the prospect of marriage.

Distress or Eutress
As in Noli ME Tangere in 1884, Jose Rizal decided to pursue his own propaganda movement
alone. His disappointments were too much to bear; the rivalry among the propagandists in
Madrid; his disappointment in the failure of Calamba case; and , his sorrow for Leonors
Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal
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Gregor I. Alba


marriage to another fellow, were disappointments he transformed into an eutress (good stress).
All the frustrations he suffered had made him more focused in his second novel El
Filipusterismo. He was a writer and his edge over politicians was his wide latitude where he can
move about.
Jose Rizal persevered in what he believed in. in May of 1891, he completed El Filibusterismo and
he looked for an affordable printing press to have the book printed. From Brussels, he moved to
Ghent and stayed with Jose Alejandrino. He communicated to his brother Paciano his plan of
going home. For his part, Blumentritt begged Rizal not to go back to the Philippines anymore.
Some concerned friends also warned him of the dangers that waited for him in his country.
Wise counsel was for him to be in Hong Kong because his family could come to visit him or stay
with him there. For him to earn a living, he could exercise his profession as a general medical
practitioner and as ophthalmologist.
In the meantime, like the publication of Noli Me Tangere, there were so many ilustrados who
pledged to help defray printing expenses of El Filibusterismo, but palabra de honor seemed to
be dead. As Maximo Viola was the savior of Noli Me Tangere, wo were for the publication of El
FIlibusterismo. When El FIlibusterismo was out of press, there were so many congratulatory
letters sent to him, save Marcelo H del Pilars comment that Fili is inferior than Noli. In the end,
the radical-pacific means proved to be the most potent among the tools and strategies of
propaganda movement.

Facing the Storm
On September 18, 1892 he wrote Jose MA. Basa that he was on his way, bringing him eight
hundred copies of El Filibusterismo. He took the ship Melbourne and sailed from Marseilles to
Hong Kong.
After a month of sailing, on November 20, 1891, he reached Hong Kong. He occupied a room in
one of the houses owned by Jose Maria Basa. Hong Kong community mistook Jose Rizal for a
Spanish doctor and he attracted many patients. Few days from his arrival, his father Francisco
Mercado, Paciano and brother in-law Silvestre Ubaldo arrived with tales of persecution form the
Philippines. Silvestre and Paciano were deported to Mindoro, but were about to be transferred
to far away places when the authorities learned about Rizals homecoming. In Hong Kong, news
about his mothers arrest and imprisonment reached Jose Rizal.
Teodora Alonso was arrested for the second time. Her accusers found her guilty of improper use
of the family name Alonso for she should have used Realonda-Rizal. She suffered humiliation
and difficulties for being ordered to walk from Calamba to Santa Cruz, Laguna. When she
offered to pay for herself and her civil escort for a ride, she was refused. Aged sixty-four and
almost blind, she walked all the way, guided by one of her daughters. Upon reaching Santa Cruz,
the Civil Governor released her out of pity. Additionally, she was allowed to leave the country.
On June 21, 1892, he wrote Governor General Eulogio Despujol he would be coming home.
Steadfast in his faith, in the privacy of his room, Jose Rizal wrote two letters to be opened after
his death: first letter was addressed to his parents, family and friends; and, the second, to the
Filipino people. He entrusted these letters to Dr. Marques for publication in due time. On the
same day, he got his passport from the Spanish Consulate and with his sister Lucia they sailed
for Manila for five days. The Spanish Consul happily cabled Despujol, The rat is in the trap.

The Second Homecoming
They docked in Manila on June 26, 1892, and he and his sister Lucia were allowed to disembark
undistributed. Rizal was just wondering why the military officials met him in the port. He billeted
himself at Hotel de Oriente and in the afternoon, he had a courtesy call to the Governor General
in Malacaang. He was instructed to comeback in the evening. In the streets he was recognized
and followed by his countrymen soliciting his advice on their respective complaints. A
permission from the governor general granted to the fugitive members of his family to some
home but permission to come home for his sisters Trinidad and Josefa were held in abeyance for
few days.
On June 27 to 28, Rizal went to Malolos, San Fernando Pampanga, and TArlac. On the 29
th
, he
had his second interview with Despujol which lasted for one hour and a half. On the 30
th
they
met and he was officially informed of the governments disapproval of his Borneo project. While
seemingly friendly to him, Despujol secretly monitored Jose Rizals moves, and the houses he
Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal
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Gregor I. Alba


visited were searched. On July 3, Rizal launched La Liga Filipina. It was organized to replace the
defunct La Propaganda. The League was organized to effect reforms. Many Filipinos joined the
organization, and one of them was Andres Bonifacio.
Among other, La Liga Filipina aimed to:
1. unite the whole archipelago into one compact, vigorous and homogenous body;
2. provide mutual protection in every want and necessity;
3. defend the Filipinos against all violence and injustice;
4. encourage instruction, justice, agriculture, commerce; and
5. study and apply reforms.

As Rizal envisioned it, the league was to be a of mutual aid and self-help society, dispensing
scholarship funds and legal aid, loaning, capital and setting up cooperatives. These were
innocent, even nave objectives that could hardly alleviated the social ills of those times, but the
Spanish authorities were so alarmed that they arrested Rizal on July 6, 1892. It was just a scant
three days after the Liga was organized.
Rizal was detained in Fort Santiago for eight days (July 6 to 14, 1892). In sum, form Hong Kong
Rizal stayed in Manila only for eighteen days: two days were spent visiting nearby provinces,
practically ten days as a freeman, and eight days as a prisoner.







































Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal
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Gregor I. Alba



CHAPTER VII
EXISTING AND LIVING IN DAPITAN

Jose Rizal was imprisoned in Fort Santiago. Without his knowledge his deportation was decided
by Governor General Eulogio Despujol in collaboration with the Jesuits. Dapitan was under the control of
the Jesuits fathers, and they thought that by conniving, they could work on Jose Rizals retraction and
for him to be able to return to the Roman Catholic fold.
On July 14, 1892 in the cover of darkness, Jose Rizal left Manila aboard the steamer Cebu to an
unknown destination. The ship captain had to open his sealed instruction from the governor general,
only after they passed Corregidor. They landed in the shore of Dapitan on July 17, 1892. Rizal had to
choose whether to stay in the convent or in the military headquarters.
Staying with the Jesuits though, had preconditions: first, Jose Rizal should recant what he had
written against the friars; he must rectify his errors; and, he should go through the required religious
rituals to regain his being a Catholic. Rizal chose to stay in the military headquarters. The commanding
officer was Captain Ricardo Carnicero, young and a free thinker.
As soon as Rizal settled himself in Dapitan, he asked the military officers permission for him to
cultivate land from the town square to the seashore, and set about planting fruit trees. He worked with
Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez, S.J., and with the help of the Dapiteos they constructed a big relief of
Mindanao map out of stones, earth and grass. They installed lampposts at every corner of the town; and
constructed water system, for drinking and irrigation purpose. They recycled old tile roofing for ditches;
used bamboo tubes for piping; and, produced cement by burning corrals for concreting. Jose Rizal
invented a simple machine to produce bricks needed for construction.
Two months after his arrival in Dapitan, he won a lottery ticket bought by Captain Carnicero. He
bought a stretch of land along the coast of Talisay. He became an entrepreneur, likewise he was
preoccupied by his being a farmer, a teacher, and an engineer rolled into one.

Josephine Bracken arrived in Dapitan together George Taufer, her foster father. Jose Rizal
cohabited with her and they were denied canonical marriage. It was a year of live-in relationship that
produced a still-born baby.

On July 1, 1896, Andres Bonifacio sent his emissary, Pio Valenzuela, to Dapitan in the guise of a
blind patient, seeking medical attention of Jose Rizal. Away from the other patients, Valenzuela revealed
to him who he was and told him the purposes why he was sent there: first, to warn him that revolution
would break out any time and Rizal would certainly be implicated; second, there would be series of
uprisings and national attack; third, Katipunan needed logistics and strategies; fourth, to seek advice
from him; fifth, to ask for wise counsel; and lastly, they offered to take him out of Dapitan. Jose Rizal
opposed the revolution. He refused the offer to spirit him out of Dapitan. He advised Katipunan to seek
the help of Antonio Luna to obtain financial aid from the elite.

On July 30, 1896 General Carnicero handed him a letter from Governor General Ramon Blanco
which allowed him to render medical services to the Spanish soldiers in Cuba. When the news spread in
the community, everyone he associated with in Dapitan was sad. He had stayed in Dapitan for four years
and led a prolific kind of life. He touched lives and had beautiful memories of place of exile. On July 31,
1896 he said goodbye to the Dapiteos.

Great minds find their eloquent expression in their solitude whether they are free or in captivity.
Parenthetically, Dapitan presented an opportunity for Jose Rizal to confront himself and to choose,
either to simply live or exist. He chose to exist and to lead a lived life. All of Rizals dream could have
been stolen at the stage of his life but he confronted himself in his solitude and faced squarely what he
shoul. Conclusively, four years of life in Dapitan was never wasted. Jose Rizal did not only live but existed
when he led his life with sense, with purpose, and with direction.





Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal
NONESCOST 2013-2014
Gregor I. Alba