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The document discusses how Jose Rizal's older brother Paciano had a significant influence on Rizal and Philippine history. Paciano supported Rizal financially and emotionally as Rizal studied abroad. Paciano also faced exile and torture for his nationalist views and support of Rizal and the Katipunan revolution.

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Shin Nozen
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26 views1 page

Document 5

The document discusses how Jose Rizal's older brother Paciano had a significant influence on Rizal and Philippine history. Paciano supported Rizal financially and emotionally as Rizal studied abroad. Paciano also faced exile and torture for his nationalist views and support of Rizal and the Katipunan revolution.

Uploaded by

Shin Nozen
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Influence of Paciano Rizal on our National Hero

and on
The Course of our History
“In death as in life, we stand together, always a family, always a team. The brotherhood never
dies”. This quote from Marcus Luttrell reminds me when I hear the story of Dr. Jose Rizal and his
brother Paciano. As I remember, when I was in elementary school, every time I heard the word
“Hero.” I thought he was as brave as a superman; he could protect himself and fight for our Country
on his own without the help of anybody, but I was wrong.
Now that I have heard all about Rizal’s, I realize that beyond the hardest fight of every hero,
there is someone who is always at their back in every battle they face.
Jose Rizal’s older and only brother devotedly took care of the National Hero. As Nick Joaquir
said, “Without Paciano to back him up, it’s doubtful that Rizal would have gotten as far as he
reached” Paciano served as Rizal’s guardian while the latter was studying in Spain. He was a huge
influence to Rizal’s life. Paciano Rizal helped their parents choose the young Jose’s tutors and later
acted as Jose’s guardian in school. With an uncle, Paciano helped Rizal go to Europe in 1882 and was
the one who told their parents about Jose’s departure. For five years, he sent his brother a monthly
pension of 50 pesos, later 35 pesos. He also constantly updated his brother about what was going on
with their family and in the country through letters.
In Rizal’s letter to Blumentritt, he regarded Paciano as ‘The noblest of all the Filipinos” and,
quoting his friend Javiel de Andrade “The only man in the Philippines”. Rizal added: When I think of
him (Paciano) I find him, although a native, more generous and noble than all (the present)
Spaniards put together.
Paciano studied Latin under Maestro Justiniano Cruz before attending the Colegio de San Jose
in Manila. While in the city, he lived and worked with Fr. Jose A. Burgos, who earned the ire of the
Spanish friars by campaigning for the secularization movement. Jose begun to use the name Rizal
instead of Mercado, which the rest of his family used, in order to avoid the surveillance that the
Spanish authorities were already giving Paciano because of his connections with Burgos.
Paciano was prohibited from taking his final examinations because of his known closeness with
Burgos and for his outspokenness against friar abuses. Later on, land troubles with the religious
corporations in calamba caused his exile to Mindoro from September 1840 to November 1891. Jose
tried to appeal their care in the Spanish Cortes in Madrid but to no avail.
Paciano collected financial contributions to help sustain the propaganda movement. He also
supported the Katipunan by recruiting members in Laguna. In 1896, he was arrested and tortured
because he refused to sign documents. That could incriminate his brother and connect him to the
revolution.
After Rizal was executed, Paciano became a general of the Revolutionary Army. He was also
appointed as a military commander of the revolutionary forces In Laguna, where the American forces
captured him in 1900.

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