Beato, John Geronimo II M.

202009186
BSA – 4 Page 1 of 5
Activity 2

Position on the Rizal Reason and Motivation Basis for their Position
Law for the Position
Claro M. Recto and In favor of the Rizal • They felt the need • The lived
Jose P. Laurel Bill to re-instill in the experiences of Dr.
minds of the youth Jose Rizal and his
the ideals of invaluable
freedom and contributions to the
nationalism that country’s struggle
was lived by Dr. for independence
Jose Rizal. was the
• The novels Noli Me
Tangere and El
Filibusterismo, was
a constant reminder
of what patriotism
meant for Dr. Jose
Rizal. Hence, it
was necessary
create an avenue
for these literary
works to be studied
and internalized by
the youth.
The Roman Catholic Not in favor of the • They condemned • Church Laws
Church Rizal Bill the novels and • The two most
forbade their prominent novels
reading for the of Jose Rizal when
youth as the novels taken at face value,
are often looked especially by the
upon with disfavor youth may be
as attacking the detrimental to the
Catholic faith. latter’s perception
• They argued that if of the church and
the youth, when left Catholicism in
to their own general.
devises as they are • Certain passages
exposed to the and excerpts from
writings of Jose the novels can be
Rizal present misused when
danger because the taken out of context
young will most that is why the
likely take the church didn’t favor
works of Jose Rizal the enactment of
at face value, the Rizal Law.
without digging • Some members of
deeper to what he the Catholic
was trying to Church opposed the
convey. bill due to concerns
Beato, John Geronimo II M. 202009186
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• The novels portray about Rizal's

the friars to be criticisms of certain
“licentious scamps” church practices
and the impression and figures. They
that it gives is that argued that the state
they represent the should not interfere
Catholic Priesthood in educational
in its entirety. matters related to
• The characters religion.
portrayed in the • Fr. Cavanna
novels depicted apparently changed
“liberal Catholics”, many parts and
i.e., those who have even removed
lost their faith. whole pages from
Which the Catholic the draft submitted
church disliked. by Fr. Horacio de le
• Rizal was still Costa in the
viewed by the making of the
majority of the “Bishops’
Catholic church in Statements.”
a different light as • The statement that
opposed to how Fr. was published by
Horacio de le Costa the Catholic church
views him and his at that time
works. It is effectively
evidenced by the villainized Jose
apparent Rizal and his works
downplaying of in the eyes of the
who Jose Rizal is general Catholic
as a person and his population because
works from the Fr. Cavanna
draft submitted by deliberately chose
Fr. Horacio de le to interpret the
Costa to the Bishop works of Jose Rizal
“Statement” as an attack on the
Church itself.

Fr. Horacio de le Costa, In favor of the Rizal • Because of the • Fr. Horacio views
SJ Bill significance of Jose the novels of Jose
Rizal, his life and Rizal as a source of
his works, Fr. moral, social, and
Horacio believed political wisdom
that it’s right and for Filipinos
just that his • His interpretation
writings should be of the works of
more widely Jose Rizal was also
circulated and read based on accurate
in order to develop historical
a sane and scholarship and
constructive
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nationalism within contemporary

the youth. nationalist vision.
• He viewed Jose • Jose Rizal’s most
Rizal as someone valuable ideas
who possessed about nationalism
moral virtues the and patriotism are
make-up true contained in his
patriotism through two novels that is
his lived why he felt the
experiences and his need for a law like
works. the RA 1425 – The
• One of the main Rizal Law.
reasons Fr. Horacio • Rizal isn’t just a
was in favor of the national hero for all
bill was because the things that he
Jose Rizal wasn’t has done for the
overly biased Filipinos and the
towards the country, but he is
Filipinos, he also also a national hero
acknowledged that because he was a
the Filipinos were moral teacher – he
also a victim of was an example of
their own vices and not succumbing to
defects the conventional
• Rizal wasn’t means of fighting
against the church, colonialism. He did
rather, he was it through his pen
against the abuses and paper
that came with the • While there are
church and the crimes in which the
colonial rule, i.e., characters were
the scandals in the made to commit by
church during his Jose Rizal, and
time. there may have
• Fr. Horacio been real life
contradicts to the situations that
position of the resembled such
Catholic church as atrocities as
the contents of depicted in the
Rizal’s novels novels, Fr. Horacio
doesn’t constitute de le Costa asserted
any serious danger that at the end of
to the faith or the day, Jose
morals of the Rizal’s works were
mature and well- of fiction and not
instructed Catholic. history.
• The novels should • Rizal is relevant
not be taken at face and that his life and
value, although works should be
there are certain studied by the
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parts or chapters youth because he is

that “gray areas”, not just a national
one should look hero, but a moral
beyond the lines teacher and a moral
and interpret the example
works of Jose Rizal
with an open mind.

Activity 3

Movie Title: Jose Rizal (1998)

Directed By: Marilou Diaz-Abaya

Synopsis: The film starts as Jose Rizal is imprisoned in Fort Santiago in large part due to his dissident
activities. Meanwhile, in a small field in Balintawak, Andres Bonifacio and his fellow secret organization,
the Katipunan, commence the uprising against the tyranny that stemmed from the Spanish colonization in
the iconic tearing of their cedulas scene to send a message to the colonizers that they are no longer willing
to be under the Spanish Rule.

In this film, the focus continuously shifts between the present-day imprisonment of Jose Rizal
and the flashbacks of his life. The flashbacks began as far as his early childhood days and his education. It
continued until he was an adolescent that was eager for knowledge. He was depicted as someone who
would go above and beyond just to be educated. The flashbacks also showed hi various love interests and
affairs all the way until his life as a doctor. Perhaps one the highlights of this film was during the time he
started writing two of his most iconic and revered novels, i.e., Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.

The film delves into publicizing the truth about the atrocities of the Spanish Colonial rule. The
abuses that took place during, scandals involving the priests and the Catholic church, and what life was
like during such terrible times. Jose Rizal was characterized as someone who was never afraid of
speaking about the truth despite living in an otherwise dystopian society. He always believed and sought
after the truth through rationalization. Even when he was imprisoned and charged with three counts of
rebellion, sedition, and illegal association, he remained unfazed and continued his plight for freedom.
Perhaps the defining characteristic of Jose Rizal’s struggle for freedom was his unconventional means.
Throughout history, when people talk about the fight for freedom, they almost always correlate it to an
armed conflict or rebellion. For Jose Rizal, he was against such means as he believed that the pen and
paper was as mighty as the sword.
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The lived experiences of Jose Rizal have greatly influenced the natives to revolt as illustrated in
the scene wherein the Katipuneros were moved when he was imprisoned for the last time before his
execution. Such event compounded their burning desire to break free from the grasps of the Spanish
colonial rule. Arguably the greatest evidence of Rizal’s impact on the natives was when Andres Bonifacio,
the leader of the Katipuneros who was known for his aggressive and seemingly barbaric ways of striving
for freedom was inspired and was in fact a fan of Jose Rizal and his works. They may have had different
ideals and philosophies when it came to striving for freedom, it doesn’t change the fact that Jose Rizal
and his works left an impression to his fellow countrymen.

His portrayal in the movie is as close as it gets to the actual life that Jose Rizal lived and
experienced. He was portrayed not only as a writer, son, doctor, brother, lover, but also a hero of the
country. His life and works are forever immortalized as an example of an indomitable spirit, a symbol of
fearlessness, and an icon of patriotism. Even in his darkest hours, he has never wavered and stood firm on
his principles and philosophies.

References:

José Rizal (1998) | Biography, drama, history. (1999, July 25). IMDb.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0186257/

Republic Act No. 1425. (n.d.). Official Gazette. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1956/06/12/republic-

act-no-1425/