🕊️ Introduction
Dr. José Rizal, the national hero of the Philippines, was not just a reformist but a moral and intellectual conscience of his time. Living under Spanish colonial rule, he saw firsthand how the Catholic Church hierarchy—especially the Spanish friars—held immense power over education, government, land, and the spiritual lives of Filipinos.
Through his writings, particularly his letters and his two great novels, Noli Me Tángere (1887) and El Filibusterismo (1891), Rizal exposed corruption, hypocrisy, and abuses committed by certain members of the clergy.
However, it is vital to understand that Rizal did not attack the Christian faith itself—he differentiated between true religion and corrupt religious practice.
📜 1. Rizal’s Writings and What They Exposed
| Work / Letter | Date | Main Exposed Issues | Historical Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Noli Me Tángere | 1887 | Hypocrisy, sexual abuse by friars, superstition, and manipulation of the poor. | Opened Filipino eyes to moral and political oppression under clerical power. |
| El Filibusterismo | 1891 | Greed of the friars, control of education, and exploitation of native clergy. | Inspired nationalist awakening and revolutionary consciousness. |
| Letter to the Young Women of Malolos | 1889 | Criticized friars who suppressed women’s education and independence. | Encouraged Filipina women to pursue education and critical thinking. |
| Letters to Ferdinand Blumentritt & Marcelo del Pilar | 1880s–1890s | Distinguished true religion from superstition; denounced corruption of friars, not faith itself. | Influenced reformist and nationalist movements. |
✉️ A. The Letter to the Young Women of Malolos (1889)
In his letter addressed to the brave young women of Malolos, Rizal praised their courage to seek education despite the friars’ opposition.
He wrote:
“Ignorance is the bondage of men because it deprives them of liberty… God’s greatest gift to man is reason.”
— José Rizal, Letter to the Young Women of Malolos (1889)
This was revolutionary at a time when friars discouraged female education, claiming it would corrupt modesty. Rizal’s defense of women’s education exposed the Church’s control over intellectual freedom and its manipulation of moral authority for political ends.
📖 B. The Novels: Noli Me Tángere and El Filibusterismo
Rizal’s novels were fictional mirrors of real colonial society.
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Noli Me Tángere depicted friars as hypocritical, power-hungry, and abusive:
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Padre Dámaso: represented arrogance and moral corruption.
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Padre Salví: symbolized lust and exploitation hidden under the guise of sanctity.
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The death of Sisa, the mother of Crisostomo Ibarra, showed how peasants suffered under both civil and religious tyranny.
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El Filibusterismo showed how the same Church continued to suppress enlightenment and education.
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Rizal portrayed the Church as an obstacle to social progress and justice.
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Yet, he still upheld God’s moral law, emphasizing true faith over superstition.
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“I unmasked hypocrisy which, under the guise of religion, came to impoverish and to brutalize us.”
— José Rizal, Letter to Hidalgo
🧭 2. Rizal’s Distinction Between True Faith and False Religion
Contrary to what some claim, Rizal was not anti-Catholic — he was anti-abuse. He admired Jesus Christ, upheld the moral teachings of Christianity, and even defended the Bible’s ethical wisdom.
Rizal’s European education and exposure to the Enlightenment helped him see that true religion uplifts reason, love, and justice, while false religion enslaves people through fear and ignorance.
| True Religion (According to Rizal) | False Religion (According to Rizal) |
|---|---|
| Promotes reason, education, and virtue. | Suppresses thought and education. |
| Teaches compassion and love of neighbor. | Instills fear, superstition, and blind obedience. |
| Seeks truth and justice. | Exploits faith for power or wealth. |
| Frees the soul. | Enslaves the conscience. |
📚 3. Catholic Reactions and Historical Context
The Spanish friars and colonial authorities interpreted Rizal’s works as subversive:
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The Archbishop of Manila condemned Noli Me Tángere as heretical and impious.
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The Catholic hierarchy petitioned to ban the novel, calling it dangerous to religion and government.
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Despite this, many Filipino priests, educated laymen, and reformists secretly admired Rizal’s courage.
Later, during the debate over the Rizal Law (RA 1425, 1956) — which required the teaching of Rizal’s novels in schools — Catholic bishops once again opposed the measure, fearing it could harm the faith of young Catholics.
Nevertheless, the law passed, proving that truth, once revealed, cannot be silenced.
🧩 4. The Bigger Picture: Church, Reform, and Legacy
While Rizal exposed the Church’s moral and political abuses, his goal was reform, not destruction.
He desired a Church purified of corruption, where priests lived up to the Gospel.
His vision was similar to the calls of early Church reformers and even the teachings of Catholic theologians who recognized that:
“The Church is holy, but made up of sinners.”
— Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 827
Thus, Rizal’s criticisms are not inherently anti-Christian — they reflect the Church’s own principle of self-examination and moral renewal.
🕰️ Timeline: Rizal’s Writings and Catholic Reaction
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1887 | Publication of Noli Me Tángere — exposed friar abuses and social injustices. |
| 1889 | Letter to the Young Women of Malolos — advocated for women’s education and condemned friar manipulation. |
| 1891 | Publication of El Filibusterismo — denounced corruption and greed in the Church and government. |
| 1896 | Rizal executed for sedition; friars influence Spanish authorities to suppress reformists. |
| 1956 | Rizal Law (RA 1425) passed; Catholic Church opposed but later accepted teaching of his works in schools. |
💬 Quote Box: Rizal’s Vision of True Religion
“To doubt God is to doubt one’s conscience, and to doubt one’s conscience is to act against God.”
— José Rizal, Letter to Mariano Ponce (1889)
This statement captures Rizal’s balance: faith guided by reason — not blind faith guided by fear.
✅ Conclusion
José Rizal’s writings indeed exposed the moral decay and abuses that had crept into the colonial Church’s system. But his fight was never against Catholicism itself — it was against the misuse of religion for oppression.
His letters and novels inspired a moral awakening among Filipinos and called both Church and State to accountability.
Today, even many Catholics honor Rizal’s courage, acknowledging that his criticisms were a mirror the Church needed to face — to return to the true message of Christ: truth, justice, and love.
📚 Sources & References
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José Rizal, Noli Me Tángere (1887); El Filibusterismo (1891)
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Letter to the Young Women of Malolos (1889)
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Rizal, Letters to Ferdinand Blumentritt and Mariano Ponce, in Epistolario Rizalino
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Ambeth Ocampo, Rizal Without the Overcoat, 1990
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Rizal Law (RA 1425), Official Gazette of the Philippines
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Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 827
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Philippine Studies Journal, Ateneo de Manila University
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