REFLECTIONS OF A FILIPINO- Jose Rizal

When I contemplate the present struggle between the religious corporations and the advanced groups of
my country, when I read the numerous writings published by this and that group in defense of their ideas
and principles, I’m prompted to ask myself at times if I, a son of the country, ought not to take part in
the struggle and declare myself in favor of one of the two groups, for I should not be indifferent to anything
concerning my native land. 
Or, if I’m more prudent and have learned my lesson better, my role should be to remain neutral, to witness
and watch the struggle, to see which party wins and immediately take its side in order to gather more easily
the fruit of victory.
My life has been one of continuous doubting and continuous vacillation. Which party should I side? Let’s
examine closely the matter and afterwards we shall see.

What are the advantages of being anti-friar?

Nothing really. The more I analyze the thing the more I find it silly and imprudent. This thing of struggling
so that the country may progress… the country will progress if it can and if it cannot, no. Moreover, what
do I care if the coming generation would enjoy more or less freedom than I, have better or worse
education, if there be justice for all or there be none… 
The question is that I, my number one, don’t have a bad time; the question is the present. A bird in
my hand is worth more than one hundred flying, says the proverb. Charity begins at home, says another.
Here I have two proverbs in my favor and there’s not even half a proverb against me.
For the present, in fighting the religious orders, one risks being imprisoned or exiled to some island… Well,
not so bad. I like travelling to know the islands, a thing that cannot be done better than by going as an
exile. Passports are unnecessary and one travels more safely. Go to jail? Bah, everybody goes to jail. In
that way, one gets free house, for as it is, there I don’t pay. 
Deportation and jail are nothing, but if… if number one is finished, if they take advantage of a mutiny and
they charge me as its leader. A council of war tries me and they send me to the other life? Hmm! It’s a
serious matter to be an anti-friar.

What do I care if the friars don’t want the education of the country? 

They must have a reason. I agree with them. Since I was a child, I have had a hard time going to school
and a harder time getting out of it… because the teacher at times kept me a prisoner. Let there be a vote
on the matter and see how all the children will vote for the friars, asking for the suppression of every kind of
teaching… 
That the friars oppose the teaching of Spanish… and what’s the matter with that? For what do we need
Spanish? To know the beautiful stories and theories of liberty, progress, and justice and afterwards
get to like them? To understand the laws, know our rights and then find in practice other laws and other
things different from them. Of what use is the knowledge of Spanish?
We can speak to God in all languages… if it were Latin I say, well. The curate says that God listens first to
the prayers in Latin before those in Tagalog. That’s why Masses are in Latin and the curates live in
abundance and we the Tagalogs are badly off. But Spanish? To understand the insults and swearing
of the civil guards? For this purpose there’s no need to know Spanish. It’s enough to understand the
language of the butt of guns and have the body a little sensitive. 
And of what use is it to us since we are forbidden to reply, because one can be accused of
resisting authority and because the very same civil guard tries the accused, a prison sentence is certain.
The truth is that I like to travel and see the islands, though tied elbow to elbow. In this matter of not
teaching Spanish, I agree with the friars.
Now, they may say this and that about the friars, that they have many women, paramours, that they don’t
respect married women, widows, or maidens and the like. On this matter I have my private opinion. I say if
one can have two, three, and four women, why should he not have them? Women are to blame. 
Besides there’s something good about the curate. He does not let his paramours die of hunger, as many
men do, but he supports them, dresses them well, protects their families, and leaves a good bequest to his
daughters or nieces. And if there’s any sin in it, he’ll absolve them at once and without great penance.
Frankly speaking, if I were a woman, and I had to prostitute myself, I would do it to curate… for the time
being, I’ll be the paramour of a semi-Jesus Christ, or of a successor of God on earth. In this regard, I
believe that the enemies of the friars are merely envious. They say that they monopolize all the estates,
get all the people’s money. The Chinese do the same. 
In this world, he who can enrich himself enriches himself, and I suppose that a friar for the mere fact of
being a friar is not less of a man. Why then should not the Chinese and the merchants be persecuted?
Moreover, who knows? 
Perhaps they take away our money to make us poor so that we may quickly get to heaven . Still we
have to thank them for their solicitude. They are also accused of selling their scapulars, belts, candies,
rosaries, and other things. This is to complaint just for the sake of complaining. Let him buy who wants to
buy, he who doesn't don’t. 
Every trader sells her merchandise at the price he likes. The Chinese sells histinapa sometimes two for a
centavo, and at other times, three for two centavos. If we tolerate this practice of the Chinese dealer, why
should we not tolerate this practice of the curate-trader of scapulars? Is the curate perchance less of a man
than the Chinese? I say it is purely ill will
Let them shout and say that with his money and power the friar imposes on the government; what does it
matter to me? What do I care if this or that one should give the order if after all I’ll have to obey? Because,
if the curate doesn't give the orders, any corporal of the carabineers will do so, and everything would be the
same. In the final analysis, I see no reason whatsoever to go against the friar curates.

Let’s see now if there are advantages in siding with them against the liberal Filipinos.
The friars say that these are all atheists… that I don’t know I know only one called Mateo, but
it doesn't matter. They say that they will all go to hell… Frankly, though we ought not to judge harshly
anyone, the successor of Christ on earth is exempt from this injunction. He should know better than
anybody else where we are going after death, and if he doesn't know, I say that nobody will know it better. 

The friars exile many of their enemies; of this I can’t or I shouldn't complain. I had a lawsuit and I won it
because it happened that my adversary was an anti-friar and he was exiled when I was almost in despair
of winning the case, for I had no more money to bribe the desk officials and to present horses to the judge
and the governor. God is most merciful!

They charged administratively Captain Juan, who had a very pretty daughter whom he forbade to go to
the convent to kiss the curate’s hand. Well done! That’s doubting the holiness of the curate and he truly
deserve deportation. Moreover, what’s he going to do with his daughter? Why guard her so carefully if,
after all, she’s not going to be a nun? And even if she had to be a nun, don’t certain rumors somewhere
around say the nuns of St. Claire and the Franciscan friars understand each other very well? What’s bad
about that? 

Aren’t the nuns the wives of Jesus Christ? Aren’t the friars his successors? Why so many women for him
alone? Nothing, nothing, the friars are right in everything and I’m going to side with them against
my countrymen. The Filipino liberals are anti-Spaniard. The proof that they are is… that the friars say so.
But if the liberals win? If, tired, persecuted, and desperate for so much jailing and exiling, they throw all
caution to the wind, they arm themselves as in Spain, behead their enemies, killing them in revenge may
also reach me. Here! Here! Let’s consider well if this is possible.

Is a massacre of the friars possible in the Philippines? Is it possible here a slaughter to that which occurred
in Spain thirty years ago as they say? No, a Filipino never attacks one who is unharmed, one who is
defenseless. We see it among boys who are fighting. The biggest one does not use all his superior
strength but fights the smallest with only one arm; he doesn't start the attack before the other one is ready. 

No, the Indio may be stupid, simple, fanatical, and whatever one may say, but he always retains a
certain gentlemanly instinct. He has to be very, very much offended, he has to be in the last stage of
despair to engage in assassinations and massacres of a similar kind. But, if they should do the friars what
the friars did to the heretics on St. Bartholomew’s day in France?

History says that the Catholics took advantage of the night when the heretics were gathered in Paris and
beheaded and assassinated them… if the anti-friar Filipinos, fearing that the friars may do to them what
they did in France, take advantage of the lesson and go ahead. Holy God! If in this supreme struggle for
survival, seeing that their lives, property, and liberty are in danger, they should stake everything and allow
themselves to be carried away by excesses, by the terror that present circumstances inspire? Misfortune of
misfortunes! 

What would then become of me if I side now with the friars? The best course is not to decide. So long as
the government does not appease the minds of the people, it’s bad to take part in these affairs. It might be
desirable to deport, to send to the gallows all the liberal Filipinos to extirpate the seed… but, their sons,
their relatives, their friends… the conscience of the whole country? Are there today more anti-friars than
before 1872?

Every Filipino prisoners or exile opens the eyes of one hundred Filipinos and wins as many for his party. If
they could hang all Filipinos and leave only the friars and me to enjoy the country, that would be the best
but… then I’ll be the slave of all of them. I’ll have to work for them, which would be worse. What is to be
done? What is the government doing? Liberalism is a plant that never dies, said that damned
Rizal… Decidedly I’ll remain neutral: Virtue lies in the middle ground.

Yes, I’ll be neutral. What does it matter to me if vice or virtue should triumph if I shall be among the
vanquished? The question is to win, and a sure victory is a victory already won. Wait for the figs to ripen
and gather them. See which party is going to win, and when they are already intoning the hymn, I join them
and I sing louder than the rest, insult the vanquished, make gestures, rant so that the others may believe in
my ardor and the sincerity of my convictions. Here’s true wisdom! 

That the fools and the Quixotes allow themselves to be killed so that mine may triumph. Their ideal
is justice, equality, and liberty! My idea is to live in peace and plenty! Which is more beautiful and more
useful, freedom of the press, for example, or a stuffed capon? Which are greater, equal rights or some
cartridges equally full of gold coins? Equality for equality, I prefer the equality of money, which can be piled
up and hidden. Let the friars win; let the liberals win, the question is to come to an understanding
afterwards with the victors. 
What do I care about the native land, human dignity, progress, patriotism? All that is worthless if
one has no money!