1 | Life and Works of Rizal 1

UNIT 1 – THE STUDY OF THE RIZAL COURSE

1.0 INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

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At the end of the chapter, you should be able to:

1. Identify the reasons for the study of the life of Rizal.
2. Relate the passing of the Rizal Law to the present legislative condition
of Philippines

1.1 INTRODUCTION

It is of great importance that students understand the rationale behind

having to take up a Rizal course in college. For high school students, the Noli
Me Tangere and the El Filibusterismo are injected into the Filipino subject as
part of the overall curriculum. In tertiary education, however, Rizal is a subject
required of any course, in any college or university in the Philippines.

In this chapter, the history of the Rizal Law and its important provisions is
discussed for the students to be more critically aware of the patriotic objectives
of the Rizal course as stipulated in R.A. 1425.

1.2 Topics /Discussion (with Assessment/Activities)

1.2.1 Why Study Rizal

Usually, during the first day of the course, the
professor asks the well-overused questions:
Why Study Rizal?
Why study Rizal?
_________________________
What is the importance of studying Rizal?
_________________________
Why is Rizal one of the minor subjects taken up
_________________________
in college?
_________________________
Why is Rizal included in the course outline?
_________________________
What relevance does Rizal have in college
_________________________
education?
_________________________
The answer to such questions can be _________________________
summed up in two points: _________________________
_________________________
1. First and foremost, because it is mandated _________________________
by law. ________________________
2. Secondly, because of the lessons contained
within the course itself.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 2

Let us discuss those reasons one by one:

WHY STUDY RIZAL: BECAUSE IT IS MANDATED BY LAW

The teaching of Jose Rizal’s life, works, and writings is mandated by Republic
Act 1425, otherwise known as the Rizal Law. Senator Jose P. Laurel, the person who
sponsored the said law, said that since Rizal was the founder of Philippine nationalism
and has contributed much to the current standing of this nation, it is only right that
the youth as well as all the people in the country know about and learn to imbibe the
great ideals for which he died. The Rizal Law, enacted in 1956, seeks 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.

WHY STUDY RIZAL: BECAUSE OF THE LESSONS CONTAINED

WITHIN THE COURSE

Aside from those mentioned above, there are other reasons for teaching the
Rizal course in Philippine schools:
1. To recognize the importance of Rizal’s ideals and teachings in relation to present
conditions and situations in the society.
2. To encourage the application of such ideals in current social and personal
problems and issues.
3. To develop an appreciation and deeper understanding of all that Rizal fought
and died for.
4. To foster the development of the Filipino youth in all aspects of citizenship.

1.2.2. What is Republic Act 1425 or Rizal Law?

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.

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Below are some of the important details of the law:

▪ House Bill No. 5561

▪ Senate Bill No. 438
▪ It is commonly known as the Rizal Act, established
on 12th of June 1956 by Senator Claro M. Recto.
▪ The law requires all schools, colleges, universities,
private or public to include in their curricula courses
on the life and works of Rizal. It also states that all
schools are required to have an adequate number of
copies of the copies of the original and unexpurgated
editions of El Filibusterismo and Noli Me Tangere,
as well as other works and biographies of Rizal. Claro Mayo Recto Jr. was a Filipino
▪ It was made effective on August 16, 1956. statesman, jurist, poet and one of the foremost
statesmen of his generation. He is remembered
for his nationalism, for "the impact of his
patriotic convictions on modern political
As stated in the preamble of RA 1425/Rizal Law; thought"

“Whereas today more than other period for history, there is a need for a re-direction to the ideals
of freedom and nationalism for which our heroes lived and died.”

“Whereas, all educational institutions are under the supervision of and subject to regulation by
the State, and all schools are enjoined to develop moral character, personal discipline, civic conscience,
and to teach the duties of citizenship.”

With the advent of technology that gives us access to modern ways of learning
and the Philippines’ exposure to other cultures; the possibility to forget about our
history is there. The purpose of the Rizal Law is to rekindle the flame of nationalism
in the hearts of the Filipinos, particularly the youth. The Rizal law’s aim is for students
to recognize the importance of Rizal’s ideals and teachings in relation to present
conditions and situations in the society as the youths are the future leaders of the
country. The application of such ideals in current social and personal problems and
issues is encouraged to develop appreciation and deeper understanding of all that
Rizal fought and died for to foster the development of the Filipino in all aspects of
citizenship.
1.2.3. Issues and Controversies over the Rizal Law

It is normal for bills to be debated in the upper and lower house of the Congress,
but the trial that the Rizal Bill underwent was beyond normal. With the sponsors of
the bill and the opposition not only coming from the people inside the Legislative Arm
but also the inclusion of the Catholic Church in the debates of this bill.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
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When the bill was brought to the senate by Senator Recto, there were but three
who opposed it. It was when Senator Jose P. Laurel sponsored the bill as the head of
committee of education that the exchange of arguments from the two sides started.
The Church played a big role in this fight because they are the ones who intervened
with the approval and signing of this bill into a law.

On the side of Senator Recto was of course Senator Laurel who defended the
bill in the deliberations. Other representatives from the house also supported the bill
namely Congressmen Jacobo Z. Gonzalez, Emilio Cortez, Mario Bengzon, Joaquin
Roxas, Lancap Lagumbay, Quintin Paredes, and Senator Domacao Alonto of `
Mindanao.

On the other hand, the original bill was opposed by Senator Francisco Rodrigo,
Senator Mariano J. Cuenco and Senator Decoroso Rosales. Senator Rodrigo was a
former Catholic Action president while Senator Cuenco was the brother of an
Archbishop. From the lower house, it was also opposed by Congressmen Ramon
Durano, Jose Nuguid, Marciano Lim, Manuel Zosa, Lucas Paredes, Godofredo Ramos,
Miguel Cuenco, Congresswomen Carmen Consing and Tecia San Andres Ziga.

The sponsors argued that in reading Rizal’s words, we are able to see ourselves.
It is through the works of Rizal, the greatest Filipino patriot, which show not only the
strengths and virtues of the Filipinos but the Filipinos’ defects and vices as well.
Making the Filipino realize their flaws will prepare themselves for the sacrifices they
have to make to attain freedom. The only objective of the bill is to foster the better
appreciation of our national hero’s role in fighting for freedom under the colonialism
of the Spaniards, not to go against any religion.

However, the opposition argued that the bill would violate freedom of
conscience and religion. According to the letter submitted by the CBCP, Rizal violated
the Church’s laws specifically Canon Law 1399, which forbids books that attack or
ridicule any of the catholic dogmas or which defend errors condemned by the Holy
See. Not only that, they argued that among the 333 pages of Noli Me Tangere, only 25
passages are patriotic while 120 passages are anti-catholic. Rizal admitted before that
in these passages, he did not only attack the friars that acted falsely on the Filipino but
also attacked the Catholic Faith itself. Rizal himself included in his last will the
retraction of his statements about the Church in his two novels. They also stated that
it was not necessary to attack the Faith of the church to imbue nationalism on the
Filipinos. They suggested a Rizalian Anthology, where a compilation of all his works
which contain the nationalistic philosophy be provided as reading materials for the
students instead of his two novels. Francisco Rodrigo even said in a statement that
Filipinos can still venerate Rizal without having to read his works. Rizal would still
be a hero even if he did not write the two novels.

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As the debate on whether the bill should be approved seemed like it was never
ending, Senator Laurel created an amendment to the original bill or the Rizal Bill. In
this amended bill, Senator Laurel included other books, poems, and other works
written by Rizal and works by other authors about Rizal other than Noli Me Tangere
and El Filibusterismo. In addition, the reading of the unexpurgated version of the
novels was no longer compulsory to elementary and secondary levels due to the issues
it had with the Catholic Church. Finally, the bill also included that the works done by
Rizal should be read strictly in the original and unexpurgated form in the college level.

Senator Primicias, in accordance with the previous suggestion of student

exemption by Senator Lim also presented an additional amendment on the substitute
bill proposed by Senator Laurel that promulgates rules and regulation for the
exemption of students in reading the two
books, Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, settled in a written statement but not
from taking the course.

Below is a copy of the RA 1425 from the Official Gazette. Read and study the
content as it will be used for your assessment later:

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 6

Congratulations! You have just finished the first chapter of the module. I hope you have learned
a lot from the discussions. If you are to rate this material, do you think it contributed to your
knowledge regarding the issues, definitions, sources, and methodology in this course? Please
encircle your rating, 5 being the highest and 1 the lowest.

Thank you! You may now proceed to the next page for an assessment if indeed you have learned
enough from what were discussed in this section.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 7

1.3 ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION

Activity No. 1

Direction: Read each question carefully and write your discussion on the provided
answer sheet. A rubric for assessment is attached as your guide on how you will be
graded for this activity. Answer sheets attached in the last page of this learning
packet.

1. Look for comments and reactions of people regarding RA 1425 on the

internet. Compare and contrast the views of those in favor and against the
law, considering the context of the 1950s; would similar arguments still have
force today?
2. Reflect on your secondary education. Did your school comply with RA 1425?
How effective is the Rizal Law in instilling patriotism among secondary
school students?
3. What’s your stand about RA 1425? Write your discussion on the answer sheet
provided.
4. In your own words, discuss the significance of the Rizal Law to the present
time.

Rubric for Assessment of the Essay

POINTS CRITERIA
Excellent to Very Good.
There is one clear, well-focused idea.
Excellent command of subject matter.
Evidence of independent thought.
40-33
Supporting arguments relate to main claim and are well-organized.
Idea stands out and is supported by details.
Relevant, telling, quality details give important information, going
CONTENT beyond the obvious or predictable.
40% Good to Adequate.
Idea is clear but supporting information is general.
A reasonable command of subject matter.
32-25 A capacity for independent thought, though not fully realized.
Sufficient substantiation of claim.
Supporting details are relevant, but one or more key issues is
unsupported.
24-17 Fair to Poor.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 8

Idea is somewhat clear but more supporting details are needed.

Relative absence of independent thought.
Inconsistent substantiation of claim.
Supporting details and information are somewhat relevant, but key
points are unsupported.
Failing.
Vague or unclear thesis. Inadequate command of subject matter.
Unexamined, clichéd thinking.
16-0
Inadequate substantiation of claims.
Supporting details are a seemingly random collection of
information, unclear, or not related to the topic.
Excellent to Very Good.
Clear organization.
Introduction is inviting, states the thesis, and previews the
30-25
structure of the paper.
Details are in logical order.
Conclusion is strong and states the point of the paper.
Good to Adequate.
Clear organization. Introduction clearly states thesis and previews
structure, but is not particularly inviting to reader.
24-19
Details are in logical order, but may be presented in less interesting
ways.
Conclusion is recognizable and ties up almost all loose ends.
Fair to Poor.
ORGANIZATION
Significant lapses in organization. Introduction states thesis but
30%
does not adequately preview the structure, nor is it particularly
18-13
inviting.
Some details not in logical or expected order and this is distracting.
Conclusion is recognizable, but does not tie up all loose ends.
Failing.
Poor, hard-to-follow organization.
There is no clear introduction of the main topic or structure of the
paper.
12-0 There is no clear conclusion, the paper just ends.
Little or no employment of supporting evidence - reader left to fill
in gaps; thesis meagerly (if at all) established and introduction
vague or too brief + weak or non-existent conclusion = seeming
total disregard for progression of ideas
Excellent to Very Good.
Extremely fluent and articulate relation of ideas; effective,
powerful tone and language use; quotes, paraphrases and
STYLE
20-18 summaries expertly woven into own writing; structural design
20%
versatile and complex.
A variety of thoughtful transitions show how ideas are connected.
Pacing is well-controlled.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 9

Good to Adequate.
Reasonably fluent relation of ideas; attempt at tone and language
use somewhat effective; quotes, paraphrases and summaries left
wholly or partially disconnected, and/or repetitiously or
17-14 formulaically set up; structure lacks variety and/or complexity.
Transitions clearly show how ideas are connected, but there is little
variety.
Pacing is well-controlled, but there is a lack of elaboration in some
areas.
Fair to Poor.
Problematic written voice (possibly halting, blunt, confusing,
nonacademic) - ideas unclear; inappropriate and/or mundane tone
& language use; quotes, paraphrases and summaries few and not
employed properly ("stranded"); no attempt at sentence variability;
13-10
generally repetitious tone and language.
Some transitions work well; connections between other ideas are
fuzzy.
Pacing is well-controlled, but sometimes the same point is
repeated.
Failing.
Incoherent relation of ideas; essentially no thought behind tone
and language use; few or no appropriate quotes, paraphrases or
summaries; faulty and/or inappropriate structural makeup and
9-0
grammatical sense.
Inadequate transitions between ideas and paragraphs.
Pacing is uneven, same point repeated, or too much time on
details.
Excellent to Very Good.
10-9 Few errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, sentence
structure and grammar.
Good to Adequate.
8-7 Occasional errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, sentence
MECHANICS &
structure and grammar, but meaning is not obscured.
GRAMMAR
Fair to Poor.
10%
6-5 Frequent errors of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, sentence
structure and grammar; meaning confused or obscured.
Failing:
4-0 Dominated by errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization,
sentence structure and grammar; meaning at times unidentifiable.
GRADE
EQUIVALENT

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
 1 | Life and Works of Rizal 10

1.4 REFERENCE

1. Constantino, R. The making of a Filipino: A story of Philippine colonial politics,

(1982) R. Constantino
2. Laurel, J. Jr., The trials of the Rizal bill. Historical Bulletin vol. 4, no.2 (1960)
3. Schumacher, J. The Rizal Bill of 1956: Horacio de la Costa and the Bishops,
(2011) Philippine Studies 59 no. 4
4. [Link]
5. [Link]
m
6. [Link]
7. [Link]
[Link]

1.5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The images, tables, figures, activities and information contained in this module
were taken from the references cited above and the URL’s indicated in some
images used.

C. M. D. Hamo-ay
1 | Life and Works of Rizal 11

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