IS RIZAL SUBJECT STILL

RELEVANT ON TODAY'S WORLD?

Group 3 - Novavax

 Following the reclaiming of Philippine independence after

suffering from foreign occupation, the country then faced
post-colonization aftermath of national chaos and distress.
This state of public concern urged the government to push
for the rekindling of the spirit of nationalism through
proposing a law that honors one of the heroes that fought
for the welfare of Filipino people, Jose P. Rizal. In June
of 1956, RA No. 1425 was finally enacted—a law which
mandated the curriculums of all colleges and universities
to include courses regarding the life and works of Jose
Rizal, especially his most notable ones which are Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
 This Republic Act remains in effect up until now,
henceforth, making us the latest scholars from the
academe to take the subject. However, it has now been
more than a century since Rizal died and roughly eight
decades since the last foreign colonization.

Considering both the progressive and regressive shift in

public trends, societal issues, and national interests,
can we still consider the subject in question relevant
and why?

 According to Hernan Abaya, author of Betrayal in The Philippines

and a witness of the condition of the country before and after the
implementation of the Republic Act 1425, the nationalist reawakening
began on the campus of University of the Philippines in 1984 prompted
by the Noli-Fili law. He saw the positive impact the law had brought
to the country at the time.

The Republic Act made the youth well aware of the contributions
and principles of Jose Rizal who greatly symbolizes significant
nationalism and unconditional love for his country. The essence of
freedom and independence was substantially emphasized. Furthermore,
it implies that national identity is of the utmost important legacy
that national heroes have earned by sacrificing their own lives. Jose
Rizal's exemplified intelligence combined with humility and the
prestige that comes with service has pushed him to be a role model
for the youth of this country.
 Rizal was Asia's first modern nonviolent proponent
of political reforms due to his peaceful methods of
reform. The Rizal law provides a platform for the youth
to learn about Rizal's ideals and it strengthens the subject
of Philippine history. Filipinos are capable of achieving
great things in life and, like our heroes, we can excel in
our ways. If problems might occur in the future or exist
until this day, the past might help to find possible
solutions and then this can be our time to become heroes for
our country, too.
 On the contrary, there have been discussions saying the
implementation of such a subject is ineffective at large. Mona Lisa
Quizon, a journalist from Philippine Daily Inquirer pointed out that
despite people having taken the subject, the most they can only
remember of him was either the fact of him being the national hero in
the 1-peso coin or his characters in his famous novels.

Upon the discussion of the law to the senate, it was said that there
were three who opposed it. The Church being one, who argued that it
would violate freedom of conscience and religion. Jose Rizal's notable
works were known to strongly condemn the Spanish Catholic friars,
therefore the law is wreaking confusion within educational
establishments between faith and nationalism, compromising the faith
of the people. Youth might question the credibility of the church,
including its teachings and traditions. Not so much as a critical
point though, especially in this juncture given that we are long past
the era of subjugation from the church.
 This does not discount the fact, however, that the relevance of events from the past may
already bear little significance to what is happening now. And although it is possible to
adapt the learnings and life lessons taught in historical texts, certain situations in the
present may not call for such wisdom.

Rizal’s literature was known to play a huge part in the change of society’s history.
Within our present time, we fail to inspire discipline and insights of politics in
educating the youth. This leads to producing students without adequate knowledge in
becoming involved citizens of this country. The younger generations are created to be
ignorant as to what and how to indulge with society's problems.
Politics is merely discussed and learned from school catering
students to live inside their own bubble. This enables
students to live their own privileged life and not take part
in the significant events of the country. This makes the
schools and educators liable for stimulating the minds of the
students with proper morals & values and engagement in
societal issues. A grown adult from the product of these
ideals will most likely result in a country capable of coming
up with evaluative measures and effective solutions.

According to Dr. Maribel Q. Galindo, a professor in LPU

Davao, said that 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 is where the
relevance of the Rizal subject came in.
 Based on the philosopher, poet, and novelist George
Santayana (1905), those who do not know about the past are
condemned to repeat its mistakes. Rizal believed that
people who do not know where they came from will never get
to where they are going. It can be interpreted such that
in everything we do, a process in which our memories of
prior experiences affect our choices and intentions.

In conclusion, we deem it necessary to still be taught

about this subject considering whatever happened in
history will continue to be relevant and will live on
influencing decisions both collectively as a nation and
individually as our own person.