MARY CRONK FARRELL AUTHOR
  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • blog
  • Speaking
  • Contact
    • Contact Mary
    • Upcoming Events
    • News!

We Need More Heroes Like This Guy

12/4/2014

Comments

 
It seems a fitting week to write about a man taking a stand against oppression, about the kind of courage that refuses to back down from the powers of violence and injustice.


We had a lovely guest for Thanksgiving dinner, a young woman from the Philippine Islands. I asked her what holidays she celebrated in that country, and she told me about National Hero Day, December 30th.

The day honors José Rizal, a man so at peace with himself and circumstances that he faced his execution without a hitch in his heartbeat. (Click to tweet) That's what the doctor said who checked Rizal's pulse as he faced the firing squad in 1896.
Picture
Picture
José was born and grew up Laguna, a farming community in the Philippines. His intelligence became apparent early and his family gave him the best education available.

He decided study ophthalmology after his mother began to lose her eyesight. But due to discrimination against native Filipinos, Rizal was forced to leave his studies at Manila's Santo Tomas University. (American nurses were held at Santo Tomas when the Japanese made it a prison camp during WWII.) 

At 21, Jose caught a ship to Spain and enrolled in the Universidad Central de Madrid to finish is medical degree. He earned a second doctorate at the University of Paris and a third in Germany. He excelled at whatever he put his mind to, including art, poetry, science, philosophy and architecture. Some say he spoke ten languages, others say the number is 22.


José Rizal became a prolific writer and blistering critic of Spanish colonialism, laying bare the cruelties inflicted on native Filipinos by Spanish and Church authorities. His books sparked fury and fear around the world among powerful elites with a vested interest in colonialism. In the Philippines, his books proved a catalyst for revolution.


In 1892, Rizal had returned to the Philippines and formed a group to work for reform through peaceful and legal means. He believed, that united, Filipinos could protect themselves from violence and injustice and gain freedom from Spanish oppression.

Picture


Using nonviolent protest more than 25-years before Mahatma Gandhi led his campaign of civil disobedience against the British Empire, Rizal led tenants to protest ever-increasing rents, evictions, and the destruction of Filipino farms. 

His dauntless courage and his hope for Filipino freedom threatened the status quo. He was soon declared an enemy of the state, arrested and imprisoned. Without benefit of a trial, authorities deported Rizal to a remote town on the Philippine Island of Mindanao.

Dr Rizal Treating His Own Mother, Romeo Enriquez, 1960. Courtesy of the National Historical Institute, Manila, the Philippines



“…our liberty will (not) be secured at the sword’s point…we must secure it by making ourselves worthy of it. And when a people reaches that height God will provide a weapon, the idols will be shattered, tyranny will crumble like a house of cards and liberty will shine out like the first dawn” – José Rizal

Exile did not dampen Rizal’s fervor. In his four years of banishment, he built a school for boys, a hospital, water supply system and invented a machine for making bricks. He practiced medicine and scientific study, continued his artistic and literary works, farmed and kept up a wide correspondence with family and colleagues around the world.

In 1896, after Rizal was allowed to return to Manila, Filipino liberationists revolted against the Spanish. Though he was not involved, Rizal was arrested, charged with sedition, conspiracy and rebellion. He was sentence to death with no chance to face is accusers or defend himself. Dr. Jose Rizal was executed by a firing squad, December 30, 1896. He was 35.



The Filipino revolution against Spain never fully succeeded, and when the United States won the Spanish American War, Rizal’s native land became a possession of the U.S. A year later Filipinos tried again for independence, the First Philippine Republic declaring war on the U.S.A. The effort was short-lived.  

But later the U.S. Congress passed legislation forming a democratic government in the Philippines. One of Jose Rizal’s poems was read as evidence that Filipinos were not barbarians unable to govern themselves. Rizal penned My Last Farewell just hours before he faced the firing squad.
"It is a useless life that is not consecrated to a great ideal. It is like a stone wasted on the field without becoming a part of any edifice."
 – José Rizal
We need more heroes and heroines with courage like this. (Click to Tweet) 
Am I a stone wasted on the field without becoming part of any edifice? Are you?
Comments
    Picture
    I'm fascinated to discover little-known history, stories of people and events that provide a new perspective on why and how things happened, new voices that haven't been heard, insight into how the past brought us here today, and how it might guide us to a better future.
    I also post here about my books and feature other authors and their books on compelling and important historical topics.
    Occasionally, I share what makes me happy, pictures of my garden, recipes I've made, events I've attended, people I've met. I'm always happy to hear from readers in the blog comments, by email or social media.

    Archives

    December 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    October 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    December 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    July 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    November 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010

    Categories

    All
    Books
    Coffee
    Courage
    Day To Day
    Dealing With Demons
    Eat Drink & Be Mary
    Food
    Gardening
    Getkidzlit
    Historical Fiction
    History
    History & Literature
    Literature
    Media Literacy
    Nonfiction

Privacy Policy
​

I write about women whose courage has shaped our history. My work shines a light in shadowy forgotten corners, amplifies marginalized voices  and empowers us all to work constructively for what we believe in.  Sign up for my weekly newsletter and join the conversation.

Click to set custom HTML
© COPYRIGHT 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home
  • About
  • Books
  • blog
  • Speaking
  • Contact
    • Contact Mary
    • Upcoming Events
    • News!