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SUBMITTED TO: MRS. MA. ESMERALDA ZARRAGA SUBMITTED BY: CHARMAINE MAGYAYA BSA 1101

VENERATION WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING

Veneration without Understanding (Does Rizal deserve to be our national hero?) By Renato Constantino

Rizal and the Revolution According to Renato Constantino, Rizal was not deserved to be our national hero because to be a hero, you should be a leader or to be part of the Revolution like the other countries. Since Rizal is not part of the revolutionary, and he repudiated and was totally against it, so he doesn’t deserve to be our national hero, according to him. But we didn’t know what does truly happen during his time, it means it is possible that there’s a wrong speculation to Rizal. We can’t have considered him as a traitor without a strong proof that tells Rizal is in favor with the Spaniards. Maybe Rizal didn’t support the revolutionary because he wants to end the colonization of the Spaniards in a peaceful way than ends it in bloody battle. For me Rizal was still a hero, because of his contributions that awaken the Filipinos. Revolutionaries fought the Spaniards using swords but Rizal fought the Spaniards using his pen, words are more powerful than strengths. His works awaken every Filipinos whose slept in fears and fought for our freedom.

An American- Sponsored Hero The American suggested that Philippine must have a national hero. Then, the Philippine Commission listed those heroes named Rizal, Bonifacio, Aguinaldo and Mabini but they are searching for the national hero whose governmental reformists that wants liberty in a peaceful way. For the American they admired Rizal and for them Rizal is the model hero over those revolutionary heroes. Because according to them, Aguinaldo is too militant, Bonifacio is too radical, and Mabini is unregenerate. But according to Constantino, Rizal is an AmericanSponsored Hero, in short, Rizal as being our national hero was a product of the American intervention. Rizal never advocated independence through inhumane way because he used his mind and he’s not being impulsive in his action and risk Filipinos lives to involved in a battle without

chances of winning. Even though the revolutionaries stand to attain our freedom, they are not totally prepared in that battle in return, many lives were lost. Swords versus Guns? In those two weapons we can determine what wins. That’s why Rizal use his pen than to involved himself in a fight where he knew what could happen.

The Role of Heroes Maybe Constantino was right, with or without Rizal there’s someone who possessed a particular talent that oppose the colonization of the Spaniards. And with or without those revolutionary heroes, there’s new heroes that will appear. And maybe his right that even without those people behind the revolution, our freedom can still achieve, but the question is when? Yes, we still achieved our freedom but without those heroes how many lives will lost again to make our freedom happen? And how long we will suffer under the Spaniards to achieve the freedom? We should not doubt if Rizal deserved to be our national hero because in the first place, he was the one that open the Filipino’s mind, eyes and consciousness. He is a hero in the sense that he was able to see the problems generated in historical forces, and take an active part in meeting these needs. He is still a hero even he refuses to lead the revolution. He is still a hero even they doubt his patriotism. Because he is a hero who became the beginning of freedom.

Innovation and Change We can’t prevent the changing world. All we have to do is go through in the flow of changes. It is not Rizal’s fault to live in the changing economy. During his time, the economic development is too fast to the point that you don’t have a choice but to put yourself in the line. You have to go along with the changes to survive, and that was Rizal did. Innovation and Changes in the economy improve different things, and I’m not against with that improvement but to the point that the Spaniards take advantage our resources to make the economy grow was another story. I believe that changes are not bad but if that change is harmful to the majority, that change is not good and if that change cause to others to do bad things, that change is not for the better, it is for worst.

The Ideological Framework Rizal did his works not just to awaken our minds but to tell us to not be concede by the Spaniards. The Spaniards wants us to be their slave, and that was Rizal restricts to happen. He did all those famous works of him, to give us knowledge and to tell us what the Spaniards did to the Filipinos and what we should do to end the slavery to the Filipinos. And yes, Jose Rizal had a big and great contributions to the history, he became the voice of freedom and he expressed the human liberty and human dignity along with the aspiration of all people.

The Concept of Filipino Nationhood You are a Filipino if you are born in the Philippines, but during the time of Rizal, even though they are born in the Philippines, we can’t consider them as a Filipino. The true Filipino, his/her loyalty is with his/her fellow Filipino. As of today, we can’t call ourselves a pure Filipino, why? Because we mostly use the language of those who invade our country. Yes, we are still a Filipino because we are born Filipino and we love our country but no one can call a pure Filipino.

The “Limited” Filipinos Maybe Jose Rizal didn’t underestimate or didn’t trust the Revolutionaries, he only wants are to patiently waiting, because he believed that sooner or later the Spaniards will abandon us after they have done what they want to do. If that time comes, no one will suffer and no more lives will endanger again. He only wants that there’s no more Filipinos be damned in the hands of the Spaniards. In the terms of education, I agree to Rizal that we need education to understand the situation but it doesn’t mean that we are stupid, he wants us to appreciate things, because we can appreciate things if we know the value and the essence of it. The chaos won’t stop if we continue to used weapon to weapon. All we need is education and unity to maintain our freedom, so that the sacrifices of our ancestors won’t be wasted.

The Precursors of Mendicancy In Rizal’s time, they want all Filipinos to be free in slavery but they didn’t want to leave the Spaniards, but they only wants are equality between Spanish and Filipino. Same as today, we want to maintain our freedom but we depend on America. In short, we want to feel freedom completely but we don’t want to let go and be an independent country. They want independence but not complete independence. Thinking that the rules and laws given by the Spanish and Americans were the right and only things to follow for a better society not realizing that every human person has their own mindset and acts as what their minds tells them to do not what other tells them to be.

Illustrados and Indios Yes, it was Bonifacio and the Katipuneros who embodied unity of revolutionary consciousness and revolutionary practice, it because Rizal refuse to join in the Revolution. But like Renato Constantino said, “He was a Filipino we can be proud of” but he is not a Filipino or a hero in ‘just a moment’. He is a hero, and still our national hero, no matter what Renato Constantino says, I will always say that Jose Rizal deserves to be our national hero. Maybe his presence was just a moment, but his contributions, his good deeds and his works proves that in ‘just moment’ he made all the Filipino proud of and he made all the Filipino awake and start to realize their rights. Yes, we can’t say that Rizal himself will be valid for all time but we must take his ideas as a weapon or guide to our aspiration.

Limitations of Rizal According to Renato Constantino, we are living in an age of anti-colonial revolutions. Maybe he is right that we all know all the good deeds, good characteristics and greatness of Rizal, but we didn’t know what are his weaknesses, his limitations and those that he can’t do. Cause all we know is he is our national hero, the wise man and the man who wrote a novel that awaken the Filipinos. But, nobody’s perfect, so even Rizal have his own flaws and mistakes and maybe one of his mistakes is these controversial aspects of his writings about his views on the friars and on the religion. Maybe there’s nothing wrong if Constantino wants to reveal some flwas of Rizal. But no matter what he reveals, it is done and the past will remain in the past.

Rizal was still our national hero because of his unpredictable contributions in the past and until now we still recognizing his patriotism.

The Negation of Rizal We don’t need new heroes, what we need is unity to solve our pressing problems. Because all of us can be a hero but in our own way, just like Constantino said “The true hero is one of the masses: he does not exist above them.” What we need is courage to speak and make an action to overcome the problems. We don’t have to imitate Rizal to become a hero, we don’t need to emulate Bonifacio to become a leader, what we need is to be ourselves with one goal and achieved it all together....