Rizal Law and its Importance

Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students are expected to:

a. Define the Rizal Law;

b. Portray the importance of Rizal Law.

Introduction

Keeping ourselves in check is often quite a difficult task to improve

on. We often forget the important things that we should be aware of. One example
that could greatly impact our interpersonal relationship is our VALUES. Without
being reminded, we tend to ignore our values and do something that we might
regret in the future. Just like the farmer that needs to take care of his crops, the
IT professional that needs to maintain the hardware system, and the student
that has to juggle and ensure proper growth is observed, we also need to have
our sense of Nationalism, personal discipline, and morality to be in check.
Fortunately, Rizal Law exists in order for us to be guided and be reminded that
we have a way to maintain deeper understanding of our civic conscience.

Today, we will discuss RIZAL LAW, as required by the Commission on

Higher Education, to maintain our sense of moral character development,
personal discipline, civic conscience and our duties as citizens.

Content

The Rizal Law

Rizal Law, also known as Republic Act No. 1425, authored by Senator
Claro M. Recto, 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 ELFILIBUSTERISMO,
authorizing the printing and distribution thereof, and for other purposes. (Rizal
Law, 1956)

Proponents of Rizal Law saw that “there is a need for re-dedication to the
ideals of freedom and nationalism for which our heroes lived and died.” (Rizal
Law, 1956)The main goal of this law is to encourage the youth remember Jose
Rizal, with “special fondness”, his works that have shaped the country as we see
it today. They want to emphasize Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo as the
constant source of patriotism for the youth, especially during their formative and
decisive years in school. Rizal Law was signed by President Magsaysay on June
12, 1956.

In the modern times, we are being bombarded with radical notion that
Filipinos are too difficult to love. Even Filipinos hate each other, and they hate
their nationality as well as expressed by the following statement.

“I hate being a Filipino, we have low reading comprehension.”

“Filipinos are so toxic! They never learn!”

“I can’t wait to move to another country, I’m sick and tired of living in the
Philippines.”

This is a call for us to re-evaluate ourselves and to understand that being

a Filipino is not to be hated, but to be embraced. This might be sketchy for now,
but with the Rizal Law, with the help of Rizal’s works, we can have a deeper
understanding of what our responsibilities are as a Filipino.

The Importance of Rizal Law

Maintenance is one of the most critical aspect of development. It helps us

keep what we already have and allows uninterrupted growth. Poor maintenance
will surely cause various problems along the path of personal development. Just
like a growing tree, branches will sprout beautiful branches if we take care of it
when it was still young.

Rizal Law allows us to maintain critical values of being a Filipino. These

are the development of Moral Character, Personal Discipline, and Civic
Conscience.

Moral Character
 Character - a distinctive mark by which one thing is distinguished
from others, and then primarily to mean the assemblage of qualities that
distinguish one individual from another. (Homiak, 2019).

Moral - relating to principles of right and wrong in behavior.

(Merriam-Webster. (n.d.)., 2020)

Moral Character defines a person’s unique identity which is

associated to his values. Each one of us has this certain uniqueness, a
personal quality that can only be ours. An identity that tells people who
we are as a person. And as a person, we should be responsible on handling
our values, on how we perceive a behavior to be right or wrong.

An example of unmaintained moral character is being a scammer.

You know very well that lying to other people just for personal gain is
wrong, however, some people are still doing it. People who do this might
have justifications like, “I am starving” or just “it’s easy money”, but if you
think about it, no matter what the reason is, taking advantage of honest
people will never be justifiable.

Personal Discipline

Personal Discipline is the ability to control oneself with the aim of

achieving a particular result. Considered to be one of the most difficult
tasks that one can master, but once learned, personal discipline can be a
powerful tool for development. It can be used to ensure that our focus is
maintained throughout our growth. Without self-discipline, we are prone
to distractions and temptations.

Just like a student, studying for an examination, we are tempted to

check our phones, check the latest trends in Facebook and/or Twitter, and
watch funny cat videos on YouTube. We remind ourselves that we have to
control and limit our freedom in order for us to attain our goal. This is self-
discipline – the ability to understand that with freedom comes
responsibility.
 Civic Conscience pertains to the moral obligation of being a citizen.
It is being conscious and active in understanding your role in the society
and/or community. This can be associated to different things. You can
have a good Civic Conscience by understanding and following the law. You
can also develop you Civic Conscience by being aware of the needs of the
community and lending a helping hand.

An example of this is reading fake news on Social Media. As a citizen,

what is our responsibility when it comes to people spreading false
information? It is our responsibility, as a citizen, to ensure that other
people are informed with the right information. In a world that is being
flooded by unfiltered jabber, we are obliged to seek for the truth and
educate our fellow Filipinos.