Author: Claro M.

Recto

Sponsored the
Bill in the Senate: Jose P. Laurel

Signed: June 12, 1956

Full name of the Law
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.
Only the following courses remain
required and compulsory by law:
Land Reform and Taxation,
National Service (formerly the ROTC),
Rizal course.
The last time the government took notice was in 1994.
Pres. Ramos ordered the Department of Education,
Culture and Sports (DECS) and the Commission on
Higher Education (CHED)

“to immediately and fully implement the letter, intent

and spirit of Republic Act No. 1425 and to impose,
should it be necessary, appropriate disciplinary action
against the governing body and/or head of any public
or private school, college or university found not
complying with said law.”
Memorandum Order 247, issued by Ramos
because some schools were not complying with the
law.
It renewed and strengthened the preparation for the
centennial death of Rizal in 1996 and, of course,
the centennial of the Declaration of Philippine
Independence in 1998.
The main opposition to this bill is the Catholic
Church, which equals its current opposition to
artificial methods of birth control
There is no law making Rizal our national
hero. He is such by tradition and
acclamation.
Rizal was made “official” when the
Department of Education in the 1950s
made a list of distinct icons of national
nature: the national tree is narra, the
national flower is sampaguita, the national
animal is the carabao, the national hero is
Jose Rizal, etc.
- mandates all educational
institutions in the Philippines to
offer courses about Jose Rizal
Important points from RA 1425:

• Re-dedication of the ideals of

freedom and nationalism

• Honoring the national hero and

patriot, Jose Rizal-remember
with special fondness and
devotion the lives and works that
have shaped the
national character
Important points from RA 1425:

• Life, works and writings of Jose

Rizal particularly his novels Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo,
should be a constant and inspiring
source of patriotism
Important points from RA 1425:

• Instill values of moral character,

civic conscience, personal
discipline and duties of citizenship
Section 1:

• Noli Me Tangere and El

Filibusterismo

- shall be included in the

curricula of all schools,
colleges and universities

- public or private
Section 1:

• Noli Me Tangere and

El Filibusterismo

- In the collegiate
courses, the original or
unexpurgated editions of the
Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo shall be used as
basic texts.
Section 2:
• It shall be obligatory on all schools,
colleges and universities to keep in
their libraries an adequate number
of copies of the original and
expurgated editions of the Noli Me
Tangere and El Filibusterismo

• Also Rizal’s other works and

biography.
Section 2:
• The said unexpurgated editions of
the Noli Me Tangere and El
Filibusterismo or their translations in
English as well as other writings of
Rizal shall be included in the list of
approved books for required
reading in all public or private
schools, colleges and universities.
Section 2:
• All schools, colleges and
universities are obligated to have
adequate number of copies of
Rizal’s two novels and his other
literacy pieces.
Section 3:
• The National Board of Education is
assigned to translate Rizal’s
writings into English, Tagalog and
other principal Philippine dialects.
Section 3:

- cause them to be printed in

cheap, popular editions

- cause them to be distributed,

free of charge, to persons
desiring to read them, through
the Purok organizations and the
Barrio Councils throughout the
country.
Section 4:

• Nothing in this Act shall be

construed as amendment or
repealing section nine hundred
twenty-seven of the Administrative
Code
Section 4:

- prohibits the discussion

of religious doctrines by public
school teachers and other
person engaged in any public
school
Section 5:

• A fine of three hundred pesos is

issued if the act was violated.
Significance

• It arouse Filipino nationalism

• Makes the Filipino people

remember who they are
and that they have their
own identity as a nation
CONCEPT OF A HERO
• The concepts of “hero” and
“heroism” seem to have existed
in all cultures on earth, in many
forms and varieties

• The word itself has probably

appeared first in ancient Greece,
where it was combined in the
name of one of the greatest
heroes of all times: Heracles.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Ancient Greece

• According to Robert Graves,

- an authority on Greek culture
- the name Hero is derived from
that of the great goddess Hera
so Hero means “Hera’s Glory.”

• Heracles, then, lived, acted and

died in the name and for the glory
of that goddess.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Ancient Greece

• One of the most famous Greek

heroes was the Athenian Theseus,
who sailed from his city to Crete to
fight against the Minotaur and
save his young countrymen and
women, who were supposed to
be sacrificed to a monster.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Ancient Greece

• In a book Graves describes

important feature of life of a hero
- dies not just to glorify his
Mother goddess but to save his
people — the tribe of which he
is chief — from all their yearly
sins and all possible
punishments.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Japan

• Japanese Yamato Take, who was

the son of a king was accredited
with slaying a dangerous serpent
of Omi.
- Similar deeds were performed
by Heracles.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Christians

• Jesus’ heroism was not apparent

in his physical powers but in doing
miracles. His death in agony on
the cross presents him as a classic
hero. Jesus was a classic victim
- like Heracles, he went up after
his death to heaven, to
become a proper deity.
CONCEPT OF A HERO
• The Hero then possessed the
three main characteristics of
heroism:

1. They performed outstanding

deeds
2. They risked their very being
for the sake of others rather
than for their own glory
3. They were all victims
CONCEPT OF A HERO
Rizal as a hero
1. Performed outstanding deeds
- used the pen to fight
2. Risked his very being for the
sake of his countrymen
- he waged a non-violent crusade
against the oppressors of his
countrymen
3. He is a victim
- suffered political martyrdom
WAS RIZAL AN AMERICAN SPONSORED HERO?

• The Spaniards, the Filipinos and

the Americans raised Rizal to the
rank of supremacy among our
heroes.
- Thus Rizal’s life, works and
martyrdom raised him to the
highest place in the
pantheon of our
revolutionary heroes
WAS RIZAL AN AMERICAN SPONSORED HERO?

• His supremacy was acknowledge

by his contemporaries(Aguinaldo,
Bonifacio, etc.)
- Spanish writers acknowledge
his fame
- American colonial legislators
who came to admire our
people through his history
acknowledge him as well
WAS RIZAL AN AMERICAN SPONSORED HERO?

• It is simply not true that there was

ever any colonialists’ meeting or
plot to impose Rizal as the National
Hero of the Philippines.

• The decision to honor him in this

way was made by the Filipinos,
for the Filipinos.
1. The doctrines of Rizal are not for
one epoch but for all epochs. They
are as valid today as they were
yesterday. It cannot be said that
because the political ideals of Rizal
have been achieved, because of
the change in the institutions, the
wisdom of his counsels or the value
of his doctrines have ceased to be
opportune. They have not.“
- Rafael Palma
2. As a towering figure in the
Propaganda Campaign, he took
an "admirable part" in that
movement w/c roughly covered
the period from 1882-1896.
3. Blumentritt, after reading
Rizal’s Noli, wrote & congratulated
its author, saying among other
things: "Your work, as we Germans
say, has been written w/ the blood
of the heart...
4. If Rizal’s friends & admirers praised
w/ justifiable pride the Noli & its
author, his enemies were equally
loud & bitter in attacking &
condemning the same.
5. The proponents & opponents of the
Rizal Law engaged themselves in a
bitter & long drawn-out debate the
finally resulted in the enactment of
a compromise measure, now
known as RA 1425.
6. Cong. Henry Allen Cooper of
Wisconsin delivered an eulogy of
Rizal & even recited the martyr’s
Ultimo Pensamiento on the floor of
the U. S. House of Representatives
in order to prove the capacity of
the Filipinos for self- government.
7. No Filipino has yet been born who
could equal or surpass Rizal as a
"person of distinguished
valor/enterprise in danger,
fortitude in suffering.”
8. Dr. Frank C. Laubach, an
American biographer of Rizal,
spoke of the hero’s great
courage.
9. To the bigoted Spaniards in Spain
& in the Philippines, Rizal was the
most intelligent, most courageous,
& most dangerous enemy of the
reactionaries & the tyrants
10. Fernando Acevedo, who called
Rizal his distinguido amigo,
compañero y paisano", wrote the
letter from Zaragoza, Spain, on 25
Oct 1889: "I see in you the model
Filipino; your application to study
& you talents have placed on a
height w/c I revere & admire."
11. The Bicolano Dr. Tomas Arejola
wrote Rizal in Madrid, 9 Feb 1891,
saying: "Your moral influence
over us is indisputable."
12. Guillermo Puatu of Bulacan wrote
this tribute to Rizal:
Among the foreigners who recognized Rizal as the
leading Filipino of his time were Blumentritt, Napoleon
M. Kheil, Dr. Rheinhold Rost, & Vicente Barrantes. Prof.
Blumentritt told Dr. Maximo Viola in May 1887 that
"Rizal was the greatest product of the Philippines &
that his coming to the world was like the appearance
of a rare comet, whose rare brilliance appears only
every other century."
13. Napoleon Kheil of Prague,
Austria, wrote to Rizal & said:

Dr. Rost, distinguished Malayologist &

librarian of the India office of London,
called Rizal "una perla hombre"
14. Don Vicente Barrantes
admitted that Rizal was ‘the first
among the Filipinos"
15. Even before the outbreak of the
revolution against Spain in 1896,
many instances can be cited to
prove that his country here &
abroad recognized Rizal’s
leadership. In the early part of
1899 he was unanimously elected
by the Filipinos in Barcelona &
Madrid as honorary pres. of la
Solidaridad.
16. In the early part of 1899 he was
unanimously elected by the
Filipinos in Barcelona & Madrid as
honorary pres.
17. In Paris, he organized & became
chief of the Indios Bravos. In Jan
1891, Rizal was again unanimously
chosen Responsable (chief) of
the Spanish-Filipino Association.
18. He was also the founder &
moving spirit in the founding of
la Liga Filipina on Manila in
3 Jul 1892.
19. A year after Rizal’s execution,
Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo & the other
revolutionary chiefs exiled to
Hong Kong held a
commemorative program there
on 29 Dec 1897 on the occasion
of the 1stanniversary of the hero’s
execution & martyrdom.
20. Of utmost significance in the
public’s appreciation for Rizal’s
patriotic labors in behalf of his
people were the tributes paid by
the revolutionary government to
his memory.
21. On 20 Dec 1898 at the
revolutionary capital of Malolos,
Pres. Aguinaldo issued the
1stofficial proclamation making
30 Dec of that year as
"Rizal Day".
22. It should be further noted that
both the La Independencia,
edited by Gen. Antonio Luna, &
the El Heraldo de la Revolucion,
official organ of the revolutionary
government, issued a special
supplement in honor of Rizal in
one of their December issues
in1898.
23 . Cecilio Apostol, on 30 Dec of the
same year, wrote these lines:

"!Duerme en paz las sombras de la nada,

Redentor de una Patria esclavizada!
!No llores de la tumba en el misterio
Del español el triunfo momentaneo:
Que si Una bala destrozo tu craneo,
Tambien tu idea destrozo un emperio!
24. The Filipinos were not alone in
grieving the untimely death of
their hero & idol, for the
intellectual & scientific circles of
the world felt keenly the loss of
Rizal, who was their esteemed
colleague & friend.
25. Among the scientific neurological
services held especially to honor
Rizal, the one sponsored by the
Anthropological Society of Berlin
in 20 Nov 1897 at the initiative of
Dr. Rudolph Virchow, its president,
was the most important &
significant. Dr. Ed Seler recited the
German translation of Rizal’s "My
Last Farewell" on that occasion.
26. The newspapers, magazines, &
other periodicals throughout the
civilized world – in Germany,
Austria, France, Holland, London,
the US, Japan, Hong Kong &
Macao, Singapore, Switzerland, &
in Latin American countries—
published accounts of Rizal’s
martyrdom in order to render
homage to his greatness.
27. Beyond the shadow of a doubt
that the Great Malayan, by his
own efforts & sacrifices for his
oppressed countrymen, had
projected himself as the foremost
leader of the Philippines until the
moment of his immolation.
28 . The idea of naming the district of
Morong after Rizal came from
Dr. Pardo de Tavera, a Filipino, &
not from Judge Taft,
an American.
29. Dr. Laubach’s view about the
question is as follows:
The tradition that every American hears when he reaches
the Philippine Islands is that W. H. Taft, feeling that the
Filipinos needed a hero, made one out of Rizal. We trust
this book (Rizal: Man & Martyr—O.) will serve to show how
empty that statement is. it speaks well for Taft that he was
sufficiently free from racial prejudice to appreciate in
some measure the stature of a great Filipino. It was a
Spaniard who did more than any other to save Rizal for
posterity—Retaña whose work (Vida Escritos del Dr. Jose
Rizal, Madrid, 1907), is by far the most complete &
scholarly than we have(in1936—O.). like Rizal, he lost all
his money in the cause of the Filipinos, & died a poor
man.
30. Granting that Taft commission
chose Rizal out of several great
Filipinos as the No. 1 hero of his
people, still we can say that what
the commission did was merely to
confirm a sort of fait accompli, &
that was that Jose Rizal had
already been acclaimed by his
countrymen & the scientific world
as the foremost hero &
martyr of the land of
his birth.
31. William Cameron Forbes, an
ardent admirer of Rizal & the
governor-general of the
Philippines during the
construction of the Rizal
Mausoleum on the Luneta, is
appropriate at the point of
acknowledging Rizal as national
hero through placing his picture
on the postage stamp and
currency, naming
Land marks after him etc.
32. While the foremost national
heroes of other countries are
soldier-generals, like George
Washington of US, Napoleon I &
Joan of Arc of France, simon
Bolivar of Venezuela, Jose de San
Martin of Argentina, Bernardo
O’Higgins of Chile, Jimmu Tenno
of Japan, etc., our greatest hero
was a pacifist & a civilian whose
weapon was his quill.
33. Great men said about the pen
being mightier & more powerful
than the sword. Napoleon I
himself, who was a great
conqueror & ruler, said: "There are
only two powers in the world; the
sword & the pen; and in the end
the former is always conquered
by the latter".
34. The following statement of Sir
Thomas Browne is more
applicable to the role played by
Rizal in our libertarian struggle:
"Scholars are men of peace; they
bear no arms; but their tongues
are sharper than the sword; their
pens carry further & give a louder
report than thunder. I had rather
stand in the shock of a basilisk
than in the fury of a
merciless pen".
35. Quoted from Bulwer: "take away
the sword; states can be saved
w/o it; bring the pen!
36. The Austrian savant Prof.
Blumentritt judged him as "the
most prominent man of his own
people" and "the greatest man
the Malayan race has produced".
36. The Austrian savant Prof.
Blumentritt judged him as "the
most prominent man of his own
people" and "the greatest man
the Malayan race has produced".
36. The Austrian savant Prof.
Blumentritt judged him as "the
most prominent man of his own
people" and "the greatest man
the Malayan race has produced".