Retraction of Dr. Jose Rizal

Title

Creator

Nieva, F. A.

Language

English

Source

The Cabletow Volume II (New Series No. 3) January 1960

Year

1960

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

O* lit -----Retraction of Dr. Jose Rizal By BRO. DR. F. A. N1EVA A !<>t has been said, pro and con, on the controversial document ex hibited bv the Spanish friars contain ing the alleged retraction by that fore most lilipino national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. ol his belief in the principles of masonrx. For mv part, after having conscien tiously and thoroughly studied all the possible angles, all the possible motiva tions of the man, against the known facts o| history and the known facts about the man himself, the exposition ol uh.it I honestly believe to be true alter reading several books, pamphlets, critical examinations by different per sons, comments and remarks on the battle between Roman Catholics on one hand and the Masons and non Roman Catholics on the other, I have come to the definite and unshakable conclusion that the supposed retraction bv Dr. lose Rizal is nothing hut bunk, lull ol misleading impressions. In other words, the alleged retraction is nothing but a concoction of certain re ligious quarters who realize only t(«» well that without that alleged retrac tion. their cause stands to suffer the One mav ask: Who am 1 to make such positive observations and unshak able e■inclusion? I am nothing but a humble Mason, who outsiders himsell as suflicicntlv well read, endowed with enough na tive intelligence to understand much ol uhat is happening around us, and whose outlook of lile has l>cen broaden ed to a great degree bv his travels around the world before and after the 1 hen again one may ask: Hoiv did I arrive at such conclusions? The answer to that is simple enough. I have already stated before hand that I have made a conscientious and thorough study of all the possible angles ol the ease and all the possible motivations of the man. Dr. Jose Rizal. And as seen against the known facts ol history anti against the known cha racteristics ol the man himself, the claim of Dr. Rizal’s retraction assumes a hollow ground, in contrast to the solidity of the claim of Dr. Jose Rizal, who was willing to give his life for his convictions and beliefs, and would never be capable of an overnight change of heart after being closeted lor a brief period with a priest. lake this brief incursion into the Held of logic. Dr. Rizal embraced the Ideals of Masonry because the same ideals, mirrored his own ideals of free dom and democracy. Because .......... Rizal was exceptionally intelligent with a high sense ol patriotism and de votion to his people, lie t»M>k the Ideals ol Masonarv as his guiding principles lor the ultimate Ircedom of live FilipiDr. Rizal saw that the ideals of Ma sonry closely paralleled the tenets of of Christianity which arc to Believe in God. l.ovy Your Country and Love 101 Your People. The same ideals carried with it the supreme obligation to ful fill one’s duty toward God, his Coun try and his Fellowmen. IF we were to carry our logic fur ther, Dr. Rizal being a Mason, and above all, being what he was had nothing to retract; therefore, Dr. Rizal would rather die than be false to his convictions and belief. THE FORE GOING IS AS AIRTIGHT AS ANY OTHER PIECE OF LOGIC IN THE WHOLE HISTORY OF MANKIND. But Jet us taka into consideration the other pertinent facts surrounding the case. Dr. Rizal was shot to death by the Spanish Government, not pri marily because HE WAS A MASON, but principally because of his ceaseless efforts to emancipate the Filipino peo ple, through his books particularly the NOLI ME TANGERE and EL FL LIBUSTERISMO, which bored the abuses and the corruption of the Spa nish Government in the Philippines. These exposes served to inflame the Filipino people to aggitate for reform, and failing in this, to revolt jagainst the Spanish Government and the au thority of the church. These are the facts of history. The Roman Catholic Church has been guilty of the most serious crimes against humanity from the 1NQUISI" TORIAL PRACTICES in Europe to the outright usuqvation of temporal governmental powers in the Philip pines. But HAVE MASONS EVER BEEN ACCUSED AND CONVICT ED OF ANY CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY? NEVER! And Dr. Rizal would be among the first to real ize this fact. Then how could we, in the light of the foregoing true and in controvertible facts, ever believe that such a man of DR. RIZAL'S MORAL UBER AND CHARACTER, be cap able of reversing himself in the face of death and with one thoughtless act, destroy all that he had stood for in all his life? Now I am convinced that only those who are so blindly prejudiced against MASONRY could be so stupid as to believe this canard being foisted by the Roman Catholic clergy upon the Fili pino people. For all these efforts to cut down the stature of MASONRY by the erection of the false figure of Dr. Jose Rizal, whose real image, because of these, has bcome dim in the minds of a great many of the Filipino Catholics. But the MASONS throughout the country remain unperturbed. For the MA' SONS know the truth and with the fundamental tenet of MASONRY which is the FATHERHOOD OF GOD AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF MEN. The MASONIC ORGA NIZATION throughout the world shall continue to prevail and gain the strength as time goes by. The Universal Declaration of Hu man rights and fundamental freedoms as approved bv the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on Decem ber 10. 1948 so close] v resembles the principles and philosophy of MASONRY that one is led to believe that the drafters of such remarkable document could either b- MASONS themselves or were at least, greatly influenced by the masonic teachings and principlesDr. Jose Rizal could not be capable of retracting his Masonic ties as the clergy would want the Filipino people to believe. For to believe in this mons trous LIE woud be the same as deny ing the blood, sweat and tears that the Filipino people have shed in their tin102 THE CABLE TOW Januai ry, I960 remitting strugple for freedom for nearly 400 yea?s. In view of the supreme ideals for which MASONRY strives, and taking into consideration the similarity of the principles and philosophy of masonry and Christianity which are belief in God, love your country and love your people. I believe, no person or group of persons of all religious beliefs, can afford to talk, and act against the prin ciple and philosophy of masonry, be cause if they do, they will become automatically pagans or non-ChristAny person who insists that Dr. Jose Rizal retracted his belief in the principle and philosophy of Masonry must be ignorant of that philosophy or too stupid to understand it. It is a con clusive evidence that a person who talks on a subject GREEK TO HIM or does not know what he is talking about is suffering from a mental AB ERRATION. * NINTH DISTRICT CONVENTION GIVES TO MHCC T11q seven lodges comprising the ninth Masonic district, with VWB Amando Ylagan as its District Deputy Grand Master, held its annual con vention on December 30, 1959. One of its acts was to donate P316.50 to the Masonic Hospital for Crippled Children. The amount consisted of PI42.25 which the convention of 1958 saved; P74.25 which the members gave and P100.00 from Masons of Somalia. Thc lodges which are members of the convention arc: Silanganan No. 19, Pasig, Rizal; Muog Lodge No. 89; Ma rikina No. 119, Marikina, Rizal; Quezon Citv No. 122, Quezon Citv; T. M. Kalaw No. 136, San Juan, Rizal; and Ralael Palma No. 147, Quezon Citv. NOTES AND COMMENTS Patawarin po or gome h nasai or I beg your pardon. On page 64, July issue, WB, Pablo C. Mariano should have been reported as Deputy Com missioner of Customs, not Deputy Col lector. Bro. Isidro Angangco of High Twelve No 88 is the Collector of Cus toms. While browsing through copies of newsletters in Grand Lodge, we came across manv attractive and newsy letters. Some are printed, some mim eographed; always they are valuable to the members of the lodges who may not be present at the meetings either due to illness or distance. Wc make special mention of those put out bv Yokusuka Naval Lodge No. 120 and Kanto Lodge No. 143. Out side pages arc printed in permanent form and inside pages are mimeog raphed for economy, convenience and timeliness. Our congratulations to the newly installed officers of all thc lodges in this Grand Jurisdiction. Wc look for ward to their presence at thc Annual Communication in Manila on April 26, 27 & 28, 1960. If the Brother Secret aries will be good enough to send their reports early, we shall have a correct and complete record to he printed in thq April issue of this magazine. For the new year, wc dedicate to each one thc immortal poem, verv Ma sonic, of Bro. Rudvard Kipling on the back cover. In this business of living, mav each one of us be more concerned with making a life; not just making a living. .All about us is filth, within us is the light that gives wisdom, strength and bcautv.

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