CHAPTER 10
RIZAL’S FIRST HOMECOMING
(1887-1888)
DECISION TO RETURN HOME
Rizal was warned by Paciano (his brother), Silvestre Ubaldo( his
brother-in-law), Chengoy( Jose M. Cecilio) and other friends not to
return home.
July 29, 1887 - Rizal wrote to his father, announcing his
homecoming, “On the 15th of July, I shall embark for our country, so
that from the 15th to the 30th of August, we shall see each other.”
Rizal was warned by Paciano (his brother), Silvestre
Ubaldo( his brother-in-law), Chengoy( Jose M. Cecilio)
and other friends not to return home.
July 29, 1887 - Rizal wrote to his father, announcing his
homecoming, “On the 15th of July, I shall embark for our
country, so that from the 15th to the 30th of August, we shall
see each other.”
Rizal was determined to come back to the Philippines for
the following reasons:
1. To operate his mother’s eyes
2. To serve his people who had long been oppressed by
Spanish tyrants.
3. To find out for himself how the Noli Me Tangere and his
other writings were affecting Filipinos and Spaniards.
4. To inquire why Leonor Rivera remained silent.
DELIGHTFUL TRIP TO MANILA
Rizal left Rome by train for Marseilles, a French port.
July 3,1887 - he boarded the steamer Djemnah the same
steamer which brought him to Europe.
• There were 50 passengers: 4 Englishmen, 2 German, 3
Chinese, 2 Japanese, many Frenchmen and 1 Filipino
(Rizal)
• Rizal acted as an interpreter for his companions.
• The steamer enroute to the orient via the Suez Canal.
• He played chess with fellow passengers and engaged in
lively conversation.
• After leaving Aden, the weather became rough and some of
Rizals books got wet.
July 30, 1887 at
Saigon, Rizal
transferred to another
steamer, called
Haiphong which was
Manila-bounded.
August 2, 1887 –
Haiphong left Saigon
for Manila
ARRIVAL IN MANILA
August 3, 1887 - the moon was full and Rizal slept soundly
the whole night. The calm sea, illuminated by the silvery
moonlight, was a magnificent sight to him
August 5, 1887 - the Haiphong arrived in Manila.
HAPPY HOMECOMING
August 8, 1887 - Rizal returned to Calamba his family welcomes
affectionately, with plentiful tears of joy.
“ I had a pleasant voyage, I found my family enjoying good
health and our happiness was great in seeing each other again.
They shed tears of joy and I had to answer ten thousand
questions at the same time.”
When Rizal arrived in Calamba, rumors spread that he was a:
German spy
An agent of Otto Von Bismarck- the liberator of Germany
A Protestant
A mason
A soul halfway to damnation
Paciano - did not leave him during the first days after arrival to protect
him from enemy assault.
Don Francisco – did not permit him to go out alone.
In Calamba, Rizal established a medical clinic.
Doña Teodora - His first patient, who was almost blind.
He painted several beautiful landscapes in Calamba.
He translated German poems of Von Wildernath in
Tagalog.
Rizal, who come to be called “Doctor Uliman”
He earned P900 in a few months and P5000 before he
left
Rizal opened a gymnasium for young folks, where he
introduced European sports.
He tried to interest his townmates in: gymnastics,
fencing and shooting to discourage the cockfights and
gambling.
SAD MOMENTS WHILE RIZAL WAS IN CALAMBA
Leonor Rivera - Rizal tried to visit her in Dagupan but his
parents forbade him to go because Leonor’s mother did not
like him for a son-in-law.
Olympia Mercado-Ubaldo - dies because of child birth.
STORM OVER THE NOLI ME TANGERE
As Rizal was peacefully living in Calamba, his enemies
plotted his doom.
Governor General Emilio Terrero
wrote to Rizal requesting to come to Malacañang
palace.
somebody had whispered to his ear that the noli
contains subversive ideas.
Rizal explained to him that
he merely exposed the
truth, but did not advocate
subversive ideas.
he was pleased by Rizal’s
explanation and curious
about the book, he asked
for a copy of the novel.
Rizal had no copy that time
but promised to send one
for him.
RIZAL VISITED THE JESUITS FATHER
Rizal visited the Jesuits fathers to ask for their feedback on the
novel.
He was gladly welcomed by the following friars:
Fr. Francisco de Paula Sanchez
Fr. Jose Bech
Fr. Federico Faura - told Rizal that everything in the novel
was the truth and warned him that he may lose his head
because of it.
Governor-General Emilio Terrero - A liberal minded
Spaniard who knew that Rizal’s life was in jeopardy because
the friars were powerful.
Because of this he gave Rizal a bodyguard to protect him.
Don Jose Taviel de Andrade
• A young Spanish lieutenant who
came from a noble family
• He was cultured and knew
painting.
• He could speak French, English
and Spanish.
• They became good friends.
ATTACKERS OF NOLI
Archbishop Pedro Payo - A
Dominican Archbishop of
Manila
Sent a copy of the Noli to Fr.
Rector Gregorio Echevarria,
in the University of Santo
Tomas to examine the novel.
UST AND RIZAL
The committee that examines the Noli Me Tangere were composed of
Dominican professors.
The report of the faculty members from UST about the Noli states that
the novel was:
“heretical, impious and scandalous in the religious orders
, injurious to the government of Spain and and its
function in the Philippine Islands in the political order.”
Governor-General Terrero was dissatisfied with the report
so he sent the novel to the Permanent Commission of
Censorship which was composed of priests and laymen.
Fr. Salvador Font – Augustinian friar cura of Tondo and
was the head of the commission.
The group found that the novel contain subversive ideas
against the Church and Spain and recommended that the
importation, reproduction and circulation of the perricious
book in the islands be absolutely prohibited.
The newspaper publishes font’s written report
The banning of the Noli Me Tangere served to make it
popular
The masses supported the book.
Fr Jose Rodriguez – Augustinian Prior of Guadalupe
Publishes a series of eight pamphlets under the
heading questions of supreme interest to blast the Noli
and other anti-Spanish writing.
Copies of anti-Rizal pamphlets were sold after mass
Many Filipinos were forced to buy them in order not to
displease the friars.
NOLI ME TANGERE IN SPAIN
The novel was fiercely attacked in the session hall of the senate of
the Spanish cortes.
Senators:
General Jose de Salamanca
General Luis de Panado
Sr. Fernando Vida
Vicente Barrantes– Spanish academician of Madrid who formerly
occupied high government position in the Philippines bitterly
criticised the novel in an article published in the Madrid
newspaper, La España Moderna.
DEFENDERS OF NOLI ME TANGERE
Propagandists such as Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Graciano Lopez-
Jaena, Antonio Ma. Regidor, Mariano Ponce rushed to uphold the
truths of the Noli.
Father Francisco de Paul Sanchez – Rizal’s favourite teacher in
ateneo defended and praised the novel in public.
Don Segismundo Moret - former Minister of the crown.
Prof. Miguel Morayta - historian and statesman
Prof. Ferdinand Blumentritt – Rizal’s bestfriend.
Rev. Fr. Vicente Garcia - A Filipino catholic priest scholar,
a theologian of the Manila Cathedral and a Tagalog
translator of the famous imitation of Christ by Thomas
Kempis.
Under the pen name Justo Desiderio Magalang, he wrote a
defence of the novel published in Singapore.
Rizal tried because of his gratitude to his defenders
especially to Fr. Garcia who defended him unexpectedly.
He attacked Barrantes by exposing his ignorance of
Philippine affairs and mental dishonesty Which is unworthy
of an academician.
Because of the interest of both enemies and protectors of
the Noli the price of the book increased from five pesetas
per copy to 50 pesetas per copy.
CALAMBA’S AGRARIAN TROUBLE
Influenced by the novel, Governor- General Emilio Terrero ordered a
government investigation of the friar estates to remedy whatever
inequities might have been present in connection with land taxes
and with tenant relations.
One of the friar estates affected was the Calamba hacienda by the
Dominican order since 1883.
Upon hearing about the investigation, the people of Calamba asked
helped from Rizal to gather the facts and lists he grievances so the
the government might institute certain agrarian reforms.
FINDINGS SUBMITTED BY RIZAL
1. The hacienda of the Dominican order comprised not only the
lands around Calamba, but whole town in Calamba.
2. The profits is the Dominican order continually increases
because of the arbitrary increase of the rentals paid by the
tenants.
3. The hacienda owner never contributed a single centavo for the
celebration of the town fiesta, for the education of the children,
and for the improvement of agriculture.
FINDINGS SUBMITTED BY RIZAL
1. Tenants who spent much labour in cleaning lands were
dispossessed of the said lands for flimsy reasons.
2. High rates of interest were arbitrarily charged the tenants for
delayed payment of rentals. When the rentals couldn’t be paid, the
hacienda management confiscated the work such as; animals,
tools, and farm implements of the tenants.
FAREWELL TO CALAMBA
Rizal’s exposure to the deplorable condition angered the friars.
The friars exerted pressure to Malacañang to eliminate Rizal.
They asked Gov. Gen. Terrero to deport Rizal but the latter refuses
for there is lack of charges against Rizal in court.
Anonymous threats in Rizal’s life alarmed his parents. Siblings,
Andrade his body guard, friends, and even Terrero, thus they all
advised him to leave the country.
RIZAL’S REASON FOR LEAVING THE PHILIPPINES
His presence in Calamba was jeopardizing the safety and
happiness of his family and friends.
He could fight better his enemies and serve his country’s
cause with greater efficacy by writing in foreign countries.
HIMNO AL TRABAJO
A Poem for Lipa - shortly before rizal left in 1888, he was asked by a
friends to write a poem in commemoration is the town’s cityhood.
Himno Al Trabajo (hymn to labor) is the poem dedicated to the
industrious people of Lipa.
FAREWELL PHILIPPINES
On February 3, 1888, Rizal left his country with a heavy
heart.
But this is for own good and the safety of his family and
friends.
