The Relevance of the Jose Rizal Subject: An

Introduction
Starting the first-day lecture in the Rizal Course, a college instructor asked, “How
many girlfriends did Rizal have?”  Another blurted: “Was Rizal the father of Hitler and
Mao Zedong?” Both thought it was a clever way to arouse the students’ interest.
They were wrong.
With the implementation of the K-to-12 program, the Rizal Course once more raises
questions: What is the course all about? Is it being taught properly and effectively? If
not, who should be blamed for it?
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Laurel and Recto were branded as communists and threatened with

excommunication when they raised the idea of teaching Jose Rizal’s works in the
tertiary level. In the early 1950s, they thought knowing Rizal’s ideology would make
Filipinos realize that they have their own interests to promote and protect. The
sentiment during that time was to view the Americans as our eternal savior, and the
two nationalists were afraid that it could weaken the youth’s resolve to love their
nation and their countrymen better.
Fighting the odds and the invectives hurled at them, they persevered, resulting in the
passage of Republic Act No. 1425, the teaching of Rizal’s novels.
It is obvious that the subject was not about the failed love of Rizal and Leonor Rivera,
or about his being gay or not; nor was it about when and where “El Filibusterismo”
was printed. Knowing that Rizal had an elder brother, Paciano, who joined the 1896
revolution may speak well of their family. But whether he loved Suzanne Jacoby
more than Gertrude Beckett borders on the inane. Memorizing “Mi Ultimo Adios”
may be challenging to mass communication and language students, but could be
torture to others. What good will that do toward inculcating the values of patriotism,
honesty, courage, and fortitude in students?
It is no wonder that the Rizal Course has become boring, atrociously inane, and,
according to many, a waste of time and effort. Obviously, the issues raised were not
what the Rizal Course is all about.
What has gone wrong? How did these faulty conceptions on teaching Rizal come
about?
It’s primarily because we expect teachers to teach Rizal’s advocacies with passion
when they were never passionate about Rizal in the first place. For a long time, we
have allowed mentors who were only interested in their hourly wage to handle the
course. It is clear that the culprits are the teachers and administrators who do not
know the why and how of the Rizal Course. That’s why they devise ways to tease and
titillate their students, thinking it is the way to interest them. No wonder students
lose their interest early.
College students are more interested in learning the principles that will help them
resolve their personal dilemmas and problems. Where does learning about Rizal fit
in?  Maribel Q. Galindo was correct in saying, “A dead person cannot do anything 
about the life of the living, but the thoughts, ideals, dreams, principles, or
convictions that he left might be very influential to people’s life as a basis of getting
strength in their day to day existence. And that’s where the relevance of the Rizal
subject came in.”
The Rizal Course is about being loyal to your fellow Filipinos in times of crisis. It is
upholding the truth as you perceive it. It is being unafraid to do what is right. It is
contributing to the wellbeing of the community. Finally, it is about the love of your
neighbors and how you and they together can contribute to make this nation vibrant
and progressive. This is the theme of its discourse, and the reason for its being.
Students of the Rizal Course were forced to memorize dates because teachers I knew
required them to supply such information in their tests. If standardized testing even
in the field of math, science, and language “cannot measure the student’s ability to
communicate, empathize and get involved in solving problems in the community,”
how much more if students are required to know facts that are meaningless in
themselves? This was what Maita Ladrido, the AVP for learning innovation of
Assumption College, concluded (Inquirer, 4/22/18). At Assumption, they came up
with a new learning approach where students are “expected to gain empathy, critical
thinking, leadership skills, creativity, self-direction, and sense of national and global
citizenship through activities inside and outside the classroom.” Certainly, the Rizal
Course teacher can think of other ways to inculcate those virtues in students more
than requiring them to memorize dates.
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Today’s situation sways the ordinary Filipino to different persuasions. Given the
contentious issues that divide us, determining whether Rizal was gay or not would
appear stupid.
Rizal could serve as a model for all times, for all places, and for all people who
cherish freedom and justice. He condemned the corrupt thinking of his fellow Indios,
demanding that they live with dignity and pride, as much as he denounced the
abuses of the colonial rulers. He would have rejected political dynasties or the
economic disparity of foreign trade. He would have decried the millennials’ declining
participation and indifferent attitude. He would have denounced the politicians who
would rather promote their own agenda than that of the people. He would have
frowned upon those who would rather go abroad instead of employing their talents
to promote the welfare of their neighbors.
Learning is integrating our acquired experiences with the world we have constructed
on our own.
Louis Pasteur is reported to have said, “In the fields of observation, chance favors
only the prepared mind.”  Mel Thompson writes in “Understanding Philosophy”
(1995): “In life as in observation, the varied situations and crisis that chance throws
up present both hazards and opportunities.” He believes that a “person that is alert
and sensitive to what life is about, and who has already considered the fundamental
principles of what we can know or what we should do, will hopefully be better able
to grasp and use each situation to the full.”
Going back to the narrative of Rizal’s novels is no longer compelling since they were
already discussed in the secondary grades. Analyzing the plot of the “Noli” and “Fili”
and dissecting the meaning of his essays are more critical. “Everything we do is a
process where our past experiences, stored in memory, shape our choices and
intentions. The crucially important moment is a fleeting transition from past to
future.”
George Santayana said that those who do not know about the past are condemned
to repeat its mistakes. Rizal believed that those who do not know where they came
from will never get to where they are going. It has become a prophetic warning to
us.
 THE RIZAL BILL was as controversial as Jose Rizal himself.

            The mandatory Rizal subject in the Philippines was the upshot of this bill
which later became a law in 1956. The bill involves mandating educational
institutions in the country to offer a course on the hero’s life, works, and writings,
especially the ‘Noli Me Tangere’ and ‘El Filibusterismo’. The transition from being
a bill to becoming a republic act was however not easy as the proposal was met
with intense opposition particularly from the Catholic Church.

Largely because of the issue, the then senator Claro M. Recto—the main
proponent of the Rizal Bill—was even dubbed as a communist and an anti-
Catholic. Catholic schools threatened to stop operation if the bill was passed,
though Recto calmly countered the threat, stating that if that happened, then the
schools would be nationalized. Afterward threatened to be punished in future
elections, Recto remained undeterred.

Rizal's Life, Works, and Writings: Free Online Syllabus & Lectures 

Concerning the suggestion to use instead the expurgated (edited) version of

Rizal’s novels as mandatory readings, Recto explained his firm support for the
unexpurgated version, exclaiming: “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.” (Ocampo, 2012, p.
23)

The bill was eventually passed, but with a clause that would allow exemptions to
students who think that reading the Noli and Fili would ruin their faith. In other
words, one can apply to the Department RA 1425 and other Rizal laws

The Rizal Bill became the Republic Act No. 1425, known as the ‘Rizal Law’. 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 first section of the law concerns mandating the students to read Rizal’s
novels. The last two sections involve making Rizal’s writings accessible to the
general public—they require the schools to have a sufficient number of copies in
their libraries and mandate the publication of the works in major Philippine
languages.

Jose P. Laurel, then senator who co-wrote the law, explained that since Jose Rizal
was the founder of the country’s nationalism and had significantly contributed to
the current condition of the nation, it is only right that Filipinos, especially the
youth, know about and learn to imbibe the great ideals for which the hero died.
Accordingly, the Rizal Law aims to accomplish the following goals:

1. To rededicate the lives of youth to the ideals of freedom and nationalism, for
which our heroes lived and died

2. To pay tribute to our national hero for devoting his life and works in shaping
the Filipino character

3. To gain an inspiring source of patriotism through the study of Rizal’s life, works,
and writings.

So far, no student has yet officially applied for exemption from reading Rizal’s
novels. Correspondingly, former President Fidel V. Ramos in 1994, through
Memorandum Order No. 247, directed the Secretary of Education, Culture and
Sports and the Chairman of the Commission on Higher Education to fully
implement the RA 1425 as there had been reports that the law had still not been
totally carried out. In 1995, CHED Memorandum No. 3 was issued enforcing strict
compliance to Memorandum Order No. 247.

Not known to many, there is another republic act that concerns the national hero.
Republic Act No. 229 is an act prohibiting cockfighting, horse racing, and jai-alai
on the thirtieth day of December of each year and to create a committee to take
charge of the proper celebration of Rizal day in every municipality and chartered
city, and for other purposes.

The Importance of Studying Rizal

The academic subject on the life, works, and writings of Jose Rizal was not
mandated by law for nothing. Far from being impractical, the course interestingly
offers many benefits that some contemporary academicians declare that the
subject, especially when taught properly, is more beneficial than many subjects in
various curricula.
            The following are just some of the significance of the academic subject:

1. The subject provides insights on how to deal with current problems

There is a dictum, “He who controls the past controls the future.” Our view of
history forms the manner we perceive the present, and therefore influences the
kind of solutions we provide for existing problems. Jose Rizal course, as a history
subject, is full of historical information from which one could base his decisions in
life. In various ways, the subject, for instance, teaches that being educated is a
vital ingredient for a person or country to be really free and successful.

2. It helps us understand better ourselves as Filipinos

The past helps us understand who we are. We comprehensively define ourselves

not only in terms of where we are going, but also where we come from. Our
heredity, past behaviors, and old habits as a nation are all significant clues and
determinants to our present situation. Interestingly, the life of a very important
national historical figure like Jose Rizal contributes much to shedding light on our
collective experience and identity as Filipino. The good grasp of the past offered
by this subject would help us in dealing wisely with the present.

of Education for exemption from reading Rizal’s novels—though not from taking
the Rizal subject. The bill was enacted on June 12, 1956.

3. It teaches nationalism and patriotism

Nationalism involves the desire to attain freedom and political independence,

especially by a country under foreign power, while patriotism denotes proud
devotion and loyalty to one’s nation. Jose Rizal’s life, works, and writings—
especially his novels—essentially, if not perfectly, radiate these traits. For one
thing, the subject helps us to understand our country better.

4. It provides various essential life lessons

We can learn much from the way Rizal faced various challenges in life. As a
controversial figure in his time, he encountered serious dilemmas and
predicaments but responded decently and high-mindedly. Through the crucial
decisions he made in his life, we can sense his priorities and convictions which
manifest how noble, selfless, and great the national hero was. For example, his
many resolutions exemplified the aphorism that in this life there are things more
important than personal feeling and happiness.

5. It helps in developing logical and critical thinking

Critical Thinking refers to discerning, evaluative, and analytical thinking. A

Philosophy major, Jose Rizal unsurprisingly demonstrated his critical thinking skills
in his argumentative essays, satires, novels, speeches, and written debates. In
deciding what to believe or do, Rizal also proved his being a reasonably reflective
thinker, never succumbing to the irrational whims and baseless opinions of
anyone. In fact, he indiscriminately evaluated and criticized even the doctrines of
the dominant religion of his time. A course on Rizal’s life, works, and writings
therefore is also a lesson in critical thinking.

6. Rizal can serve as a worthwhile model and inspiration to every Filipino

If one is looking for someone to imitate, then Rizal is a very viable choice. The
hero’s philosophies, life principles, convictions, thoughts, ideals, aspirations, and
dreams are a good influence to anyone. Throughout his life, he valued nationalism
and patriotism, respect for parents, love for siblings, and loyalty to friends, and
maintained a sense of chivalry. As a man of education, he highly regarded
academic excellence, logical and critical thinking, philosophical and scientific
inquiry, linguistic study, and cultural research. As a person, he manifested
versatility and flexibility while sustaining a strong sense of moral uprightness.