Part 3 – Modules and Lessons

Module 1 - Introduction to the Life and Works of Rizal

Lesson 1: RA 1425: Rizal Law ( The Trials of the Rizal Bill)
Time allotment: 1.5 hrs (3hrs/week)
Learning Outcomes: At the end of the lesson the students should be able to:
1. Engage in the discussion about the enactment of RA 1425.
2. Analyze the issues and controversies raised during the passage of the bill.
3. Analyze the objectives and importance of teaching Rizal’s life, works and writings
4. Justify why Rizal was chosen as national hero of the Philippines.
5. Synthesize the major periods in the life of Rizal covered in the course.

Overview
In this unit, RA 1425 or Rizal Law will be studied and from within its context, the
major issues relative to its passage will be looked into until its final approval. We will
reflect on the impact and relevance of this legislation across history and the present
time.

ACTIVITY 1: TALKING DRAWINGS

Before you explore the new lesson, kindly familiarize yourselves with the images below
as they are the personalities behind the creation of the Rizal Law.

JOSE P. LAUREL
CLARO M. RECTO
RAMON MAGSAYSAY
 ACTIVITY 2: IT’S XIAO TIME: RIZAL LAW

Kindly watch the video by clicking the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03G1UmDVLKs
Based on the video
presented, answer the following questions:
1. What is the legal basis for the teaching of the life, works and writings of Rizal in
higher education institutions in the country?
2. Why is there a need to study the life, works, and writings of Rizal?

Reminder!
 Post your answers in our UBian LMS discussion section.
 The Context of the Rizal Bill
The postwar period brought much challenges and problems to the
Philippines. The paramount concern of the people and the government was to get
upon their feet from the stresses of World War II. As the Philippines dealt with
various challenges particularly the call for nation-building, some prominent
nationalistic individuals came to action by pursuing government measures to
instill patriotism and love of country in the hearts and minds of the Filipinos.
They were those inspired by their Philippine experience of the revolution for
freedom against Spanish colonizers and from the heroes of that period of
Philippine history.

The passage of the Republic Act No. 1425 or the Rizal Law was a measure
to primarily set to address “a need for re-dedication to the ideals of freedom and
nationalism for which our heroes lived and died”. There were disputes that raged
around this legislation. The passage of the law was met with fierce opposition in
both the Senate and the House of Representatives.

From Rizal Bill to the Rizal Law

April 03, 1956 April 17, 1956

 Senate Bill No. 438  Jose P. Laurel sponsored
 Filed by the Senate the bill as the Chairman of
Committee on Education the Committee; marked the
long-drawn disputations

Claro M. Recto, SB 438 main The Catholic Church began to

author, argued that under the police express that it was an attempt to
power of the state, it can require the discredit their religion, the novels
reading of the two novels in both contained views inimical to the
public and private schools. tenets of their faith; branded the
novle as heretical and impious

House Bill No. 5561, an May 02, 1956

identical version of SB 438, was The House Committee on
filed by Rep. Jacobo Z. Education approved the bill
Gonzalez on April 1956. without amendments.
 May 09, 1956
Laurel proposed amendments by
substitution; including in the curricula
the courses on the life, works and
Debates commenced on
writings of Rizal particularly Noli & Fili
May 09, 1956.
which should be read in their
unexpurgated or original forms

May 14, 1956 May 17, 1956

 Similar amendments were  The Senate and the House
adopted to the House versions were approved.
version.

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 1425 June 12, 1956

 This was passed otherwise President Magsaysay signed the bill
known as the into law; seemingly Rizal fulfilled his words
Rizal Law. through Filosofo Tasio in Noli said “I am
writing for the generations of Filipinos yet to
come, a generation that will be enlightened
and educated, a generation that will rad my
book and appreciate them without
condemning me as a heretic.

The Debates about the Rizal Bill: For and Against

According to Senator Jose P. Laurel…
“Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo must be read by all Filipinos. They must be
taken to heart, for in their pages we see ourselves as in a mirror, our defects as well as
our strengths, our virtues as well as our vices. Only then would we become conscious
as a people and so learn to prepare ourselves for painful sacrifices that ultimately lead
to self-reliance, self-respect and freedom.” Rizal was the founder of Filipino nationality
and the architect of the Filipino nation. Studying Rizal’s life, works and writings, Filipino
youth will be able to gain incorruptible confidence, direction, courage, and determination
to move forward towards an abundant life.
~ Senator Jose P. Laurel

Retrieved from:
flickr.com

According to Senator Claro M. Recto.

“Rizal did not pretend to teach religion when he wrote those books. He aimed at
inculcating civic consciousness in the Filipinos, national dignity, personal pride, and
patriotism and if references were made by him in the course of his narration to certain
religious practices in the Philippines in those days, and to the conduct and behavior of
erring ministers of the church, it was because he portrayed faithfully the general
situation in the Philippines as it then existed.” During deliberations over Senate Bill 438
which began on April 23, 1956, after it was filed by the Committee on Education on April
3, 1956, Senator Laurel, Senator Claro M. Recto and other pro-legislators hailed Rizal
for his aim to inculcate in the Filipinos civic consciousness, national dignity, personal
pride and patriotism in writing the two novels. The original author or main proponent of
the Rizal Bill was Sen. Claro M. Recto, making Noli and Fili compulsory readings in all
colleges and universities in the country. He fiercely defended it against the clamor of the
Catholic Church not to pass the law because it would defy religious freedom and would
ridicule the Catholic faith. Noli Me Tangere would put into ridicule the Catholic faith and
it appeared as heretical or impious.

~ Senator Claro M. Recto

Retrieved from:
wikipedia.com
AGAINST
“A vast majority of our people are, at the same time, Catholic and Filipino citizens. As such, they
have two great loves: their country and their faith. These two loves are not conflicting loves.
They are harmonious affections, like the love for his father and for his mother. This is the basis
of my stand. Let us not create a conflict between nationalism and religion, between the
government and the church.”…
Senator Soc Rodrigo

Retrieved from:
pinterest.com

Approval of the Bill

The month-old controversy of RA1425, better known as Rizal Bill ended on May 12,
1956 with unanimous approval of amendments and specified that college and university
students would have an option of reading unexpurgated versions of Noli Me Tangere
and El Filibusterismo (Spanish, English or Filipino). The bill was finally enacted on June
12, 1956 upon the signing of Ramon Magsaysay.

President Ramon Magsaysay

Photo taken from: officialgazette.gov.ph

Rizal Law and the Teaching of Rizal Course

From the policy statements of the Rizal Law enacted in 1956, the teaching of the life, works
and writings of our national hero seeks to accomplish the following objectives:

 To rededicate the lives of the youth to the ideals of

freedom and nationalism, for which our heroes lived and
died;
 To pay tribute to our national hero for devoting his life and
works in shaping the Filipino character; and
 To gain an inspiring source of patriotism thru the study of
Rizal’s life, works and writings.
 The teaching of Rizal Course in higher education institutions in our country today is
anchored on the patriotic policy statements of Rizal Law and the patriotic goals set by the then
Board on National Education (Capino et al, 1997). These goals are as follows:

 To recognize the relevance of Rizal’s ideals, thoughts,

teachings and life values to present conditions in the
community;
 To apply Rizal’s ideas in the solution of day-to-day
situations and problems in contemporary life;
 To develop and understanding and appreciation of the
qualities, behavior and characters of Rizal; and
 To foster development of moral character, personal discipline, citizenship and
vocational efficiency among the Filipino youth.

Rizal: A True Filipino Hero

Who Chose Rizal To Be Our Country’s National Hero?
Among the country’s national heroes, Jose Rizal stands out. To many Filipinos, he is
the national hero of the Philippines. Actually, Rizal is only one of the country’s national
heroes who include Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, Marcelo H. del Pilar and others.
They helped guide in the formation of the Filipino national spirit and the Philippine
nation-state.
HISTORIAN STATEMENT
 Contrary to the beliefs of many
Filipinos, Rizal was not an American-
sponsored hero.
 He claimed that it was the Americans
who were responsible for endorsing
him as the Philippine national hero.
 He cited the efforts of the Taft
Commission in 1901 which picked
Rizal from a group of heroes which
included:
Emilio Aguinaldo
Andres Bonifacio
RENATO CONSTANTINO Apolinario Mabini
Other factors:
(1969)
 Rizal was already dead at the time the
Americans began their aggression in the
Philippines.
 No embarrassing anti-American quotations
 could ever be attributed to Rizal.
 Rizal’s dramatic martyrdom had already
made him the symbol of Spanish oppression.
 Rizal is a hero in the sense that he was able
to see the problems generated by historical
forces, discern the new social needs created
by the historical development of new social
relationships, and take an active part in
meeting these needs. He was a hero
considering that he served the Filipino
people by consciously articulating the
unconscious course of events.
Tedoro Agoncillo writes that Rizal was
acceptable as a national hero to the
Americans because:
 He was the symbol of assimilation, which was
their policy then in the Philippines.

 Rizal never favored revolution but the slow

process of revolution through education which
suited American objectives.

TEODORO AGONCILLO
(1986)
 In making Rizal as our Filipino national hero, a
number of conclusions can be drawn:

 Since the Filipinos love peace, they have chosen

to magnify a man of peace above the men of war.
 Because Filipinos are lovers of freedom and
justice, they have given their worship to a man
who gave up all comforts and pleasures of peace
for their sake.
 Filipinos prize virtue more than victory, and
sacrifice above success.
Leon Ma. Gurrero
 Rizal was the first Filipino.
(1998)  This was because it was Rizal who first called the
Philippines his fatherland.
 It was he who taught his countrymen that they
could be something else, Filipinos who were
members of the Filipino nation.
 He was the first to work towards the unification of
 the Philippine archipelago into a compact and
homogeneous body based on common interests
and mutual protection.

In reality, it is the Filipinos themselves who chose Rizal as their national hero. This
could be seen in tributes to him during his lifetime and immediately after his death. Here
are the reasons why:

1. The Katipunan considered him the honorary leader

of the Katipunan.
 His guidance was sought by its emissaries when Dr.
Pio Valenzuela visited him in Dapitan in 1892.
 Rizal’s name was one of the passwords of the secret
society which swore to fight for the country’s
freedom.

2. Two years after his death, General Emilio Aguinaldo

issued a decree on December 20, 1898.
 It ordered that December 30, the anniversary of Rizal’s
3.execution
On December 30, 1898,be
at Bagumbayan, a group of masons
commemorated as erected
“a day ofa
mourning
simple for Rizal andinother
monument Daet,victims of the Norte.
Camarines Philippine
The
Revolutions.This decree became the basis of the yearly
erection of
celebration of the first
Rizal monument in his honor manifests the
Day.
 The Philippine
early Commission
admiration set aside
of the Filipinos December 30 as a
for Rizal.
day of observance, by virtue Act No. 345.
The monument bore the words “A Jose Rizal” (To Jose
Rizal), as well as the words “Noli Me Tangere” and “El
Filibusterismo”, and the word “Morga” which refers to
the book “Sucesos en las Islas Filipinas” annotated by
4. Act No. 243 of the Philippine Commission authorized
Rizal in 1890 to correct Spanish misinterpretations in the
the establishment of Rizal’s monument in Luneta.
book written by Antonio Morga during the 17th century.
 Though it was erected during the American regime, it
is the Filipino people that helped build the monument
through public subscriptions.

5. By virtue of Act No. 137 of the Philippine

Commission, Rizal Province, formerly part of the
province of Manila, was named in Rizal’s honor.

6. As a sign of admiration and respect, Filipino

businessmen named their businesses after Rizal.
 A bank (Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation
[RCBC])
 A cement brand (Rizal Masonry Cement)
 A match (Phimco Posporo)
\

7. The basic unit of Philippine currency, the present

one-peso coin bears his likeness.
 All one peso denominations bear his image.

To further widen your knowledge about the Rizal Law, you may read the article by
clicking the following link:

READING # 1: RIZAL LAW

Republic of the Philippines. (1956). Republic Act No. 1425.

Retrieved from: https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1956/06/12/republic-act-no-1425/
 ACTIVITY 3: THOUGHT PAPER
Justify the importance of studying Rizal’s life, works and writing by constructing a
thought paper.
Reminders!
 Your paper should reflect your understanding of the objectives of the Rizal Law.
 It must be composed of three paragraphs:
1) Paragraph 1: Introduction
2) Paragraph 2: Body
3) Paragraph 3: Conclusion
 Each paragraph should contain a minimum of 5 sentences.
 If you are to get some information from the book or from the internet, make sure
to cite your reference in APA Format.
 Your works must be posted on our UBian LMS.

ACTIVITY 4: INFOGRAPHIC MAKING

Create an infographic timeline showcasing the historical development behind the
creation of Rizal Law.
DIRECTIONS:
 Use the sample above as your guide in creating your infographic. You may also
look for other formats on the internet or you may create your customized
infographic design.
 Rubric for this activity will be posted on your LMS accounts.
 Post your outputs on our UBian Discussion Forum.

Resources
 Mañebog, J., et al. (2018). Life and Works of Rizal: Biography, Writings, and Legacies
Of Our Bayani. 105 Engineering Road, Araneta University Village, Potrero, Malabon
City: Mutya Publishing House, Inc.
 Obias, R., Mallari, A., & Estella, J. (2018). The Life and Works of Rizal. 839 EDSA,
South Triangle, Quezon City: C&E Publishing, Inc.
 Garcia, C., De Viana, A., & Cruz, C. (2015). Rizal and the Development of Filipino
Nationalism: A Textbook on the Life, Works, and Writings of Our National Hero. 707
Tiaga corner Kasipagan Streets Barangka Drive, Mandaluyong City: Books Atbp.
Publishing Corp.
 Republic of the Philippines. (1956). Republic Act No. 1425. Retrieved from:
https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1956/06/12/republic-act-no-1425/