Republic of the Philippines

Commission on Higher Education

St. Camillus College of Manaoag Foundation, Inc.
Higher Education Department
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION

Life, Works, and Writings of Jose

Rizal

Chapter 10
First Homecoming
1887-1888

DOC. FERRER
INTRUCTOR

PREPARED BY:
Karen A. Mejia
Rose M. Ragojos
 Introduction
This module was designed to appreciate and understand the life of Dr. Jose
Rizal, and to know the historical background of the world and of the Philippines
during his times. This module contains Rizal first Homecoming that happens in
1887 to 1888. On this module you will able to know the reasons why Rizal
decided to go back to Philippines and left Europe.

Objectives
At the end of the discussion the student should be able to:
1. Understand how Noli me Tangere affects the Filipinos,
2. Identify the reasons why Rizal decided to returned to the Philippines,
3. Appreciate the life, works, and writings of Rizal.

First Homecoming, 1887-1888

All the alluring beauties of foreign countries and all the beautiful memories of
his sojourn in alien lands could neither make Rizal forget his fatherland nor turn
his back to his own nationality. True that he studied abroad, acquired the lore
and languages of foreign nations, and enjoyed the friendship of many great men
of the Western world; but he remained at heart a true Filipino with
unquenchable love for the Philippines and an unshakeable determination to die
in the land of his birth. Thus, after five years of memorable sojourn in Europe,
he returned to the Philippines in August 1887 and practiced medicine in
Calamba. He lived the quiet life of a country doctor. But his enemies, who
resented his Noli, persecuted him, even threatening to kill him.
Decision to Return Home. Because of the publication of the Noli Me Tangere
and the uproar it caused among the friars, Rizal was warned by Paciano,
Silvestre Ubaldo, Chengoy. And other friends not to returned home. But he did
not heed their warning. He was determined to return to the Philippines for the
following reasons: to operate on his mother’s eyes; to serve his people who had
been long oppressed by Spanish tyrants; to find out for himself how the Noli
and his other writings were affecting Filipinos and Spaniards in the Philippines;
and to inquire why Leonor Rivera remained silent.
In the letter of Blumentritt, written in Geneva on June 19, 1887, Rizal
said “Your advice that I live in Madrid and continue to write from there is very
benevolent but I cannot accept it. I cannot endure the life in Madrid where
everything is a voice in a wilderness. My parents want to see me, and I want to
see them also. All my life I desire to live in my country by the side of my
family. Until now I am not Europeanized like the Filipinos of Madrid; I always
like to the country of my birth”.
In Rome, on June 29, 1887, Rizal wrote to his father, announcing his
homecoming. “On the 15th of July, at latest”, he wrote, “I shall embark for our
country, so that from the 15th to 30th of August, we shall see each other”.
Delight Trip to Manila. Rizal left Rome by train for Marseiiles, a French port,
which he reached without mishap. On July 3, 1887, he boarded the steamer
Dyemnah, the same staeamer which brought him to Europe five years ago.
There were 50 passengers, including 4 Englishmen, 2 Germans, 3 Chinese, 2
Japanese, many Frenchmen and 1 Filipino.
Rizal was the only one among the passengers who could speak many languages,
so that he acted as interpreter for his companions.
The steamer was enroute to the Orient via Suez Canal. Rizal thus saw this
historic canal for the second time, the first time was when he sailed to Europe
from Manila in 1882. On board, he played chess with fellow passengers and
engaged in lively conversation in many languages. Some passenger’s sand;
other played on the piano and accordion. After leaving Aden, the weather
become rough and some of Rizal’s books got wet.
At Saigon, on July 30, he transferred to another steamer Haiphong which
was Manila-bound. On August 2, this steamer left Saigon for Manila.
Arrival in Manila. Rizal’s voyage from Saigon to Manila was pleasant. On
August 3rd the moon was full, and he slept soundly the whole night. The calm
sea, illumined by the silvery moonlight, was a magnificent sight to him.
Near midnight of August 5, the Haiphong arrived in Manila. Rizal went
ashore with a happy heart for he once more trod his beloved native soil. He
stayed in the city for a short period of time to visit his friends. He found Manila
the same as when he left it five years ago. There were the same old churches
and buildings, the same holes in the roads, the same boats on the Pasig River,
and the same heary walls surrounding the city.
Happy Homecoming. On August 8th, he returned to Calamba. His family
welcomed him affectionately, with plentiful tears of joy. Writing to Blumentritt
of his homecoming, he said: “I had a pleasant voyage. I found my family
enjoying good health and our happiness was great in seeing each other again.
They shed tears of joy and I had to answer ten thousand questions at the same
time”.
 The rejoicing of Rizal’s return over, his family became worried for his
safety. Paciano did not leave him during the first days after arrival to protect
him from any enemy assault. His own father would not let him go out alone, lest
something might happen to him.
In Calamba, Rizal established a medical clinic. His first patient was his
mother, who was almost blind. He treated her eyes, but not performed any
surgical operation because her eyes cataracts were not yet ripe. News of the
arrival of a great doctor from Germany spread far and wide. Patients from
Manila and the provinces flocked to Calamba. Rizal, who came to be called
“Doctor Uliman” because he from the Germany, treated their ailment and soon
he acquired a lucrative medical practice. His professional fees were reasonable,
even gratis to the poor. Within a few months, he was able to earn P900 as
physician. By February, 1888, he earned a total of P5,000 as medical fees.
Unlike many successful medical practitioners, Rizal did not selfishly
devote all his time to enriching himself. He opened a gymnasium for young
folks, where he introduced European sports. He tried to interest his townmates
in gymnastics, fencing, and shooting so as to discourage the cockfights and
gambling.
Rizal suffered one failure during his six months of sojourn in Calamba.
His failure to see Leonor Rivera. He tried to go to Dagupan, but his parents
absolutely forbade him to go because Leonor’s mother did not like him for a
son-in-law. With heavy heart, Rizal bowed to his parents wish. He was caught
within the iron grip of the custom of his time that marriages must be arranged
by the parents of both groom and bride.
Storm over the Noli. Meanwhile, as Rizal was peacefully living in Calamba, his
enemies plotted his doom. Aside from practicing medicine, attending to his
gymnasium, which he established, and taking part in the town’s civic affairs, he
painted several beautiful landscapes and translated the German poems of Von
Wildernath in Tagalog.
A few weeks after his arrival, a storm broke over his novel. One day
Rizal received a letter from Governor General Emilio Terrero (1885-88)
requesting him to come to Malacanang Palace. Somebody had whispered to the
governor’s ear that the Noli contained subversive ideas.
Rizal went to Manila and appeared at Malacanang. When he was
informed by Governor General Terrero of the charge, he denied it, explaining
that he merely exposed the truth, but he did not advocate subversive ideas.
Pleased by his explanation and curious about the controversial book, the
governor general asked the author for a copy of the Noli so that he could read it.
Rizal had no copy then because the only copy he brought home was given to his
friend. However, he promised to secure one for the governor general.
Rizal visited the Jesuit fathers to ask for the copy he sent them, but they
would not part with it. The Jesuits, especially his former professor Fr. Francisco
de Paula Sanchez, Fr. Jose Bech, and Fr. Federico Faura were glad to see him.
He had a spirted discussion with Father Faura, who ventured an opinion that
“everything in it was the truth”, but added: “You may lose your head for it”.
Fortunately, Rizal found a copy in the hands of a friend. He was able to
get it and gave it Governor General Terrero. The governor general, who was a
liberal-minded Spaniard, knew that Rizal’s life was in jeopardy because the
friars were powerful. For security measure, he assigned a young Spanish
lieutenant, Don Jose Taviel de Andrade, as bodyguard of Rizal. This lieutenant
belonged to a noble family. He was cultured and knew painting, and could
speak English, French, and Spanish.
Governor General Terrero read the Noli and found nothing wrong with it.
But Rizal’s enemies were powerful. The Archbishop of Manila, Msgr. Pedro
Payo sent a copy of the Noli to father Rector Gregorio Echavarria of the
University of Santo Tomas for examination by a committee of the faculty. The
committee, which was composed of Dominican professors, submitted its report
to the father Rector, who immediately transmitted it to Archbishop Payo. The
archbishop in turn, lost no time in forwarding it to the governor general. This
report of the faculty members of the University of Santo Tomas stated that the
Noli was “heretical, impious, and scandalous in the religious order, and anti-
patriotic, subversive of public order, injurious to the government of Spain and
its function in the Philippine Islands in the political order.
Governor General Terrero was dissatisfied with the report of the
Dominicans, for he knew that the Dominicans were prejudiced against Rizal. He
sent the novel to the Permanent Commission of Censorship which was
composed of priests and laymen. The report of this commissions was drafted by
its head, Fr. Salvador Font, Augustinian Cura of Tondo, and submitted to the
governor general on December 29. It found the novel to contain subversive
ideas against the Church and Spain, and recommended “that the importation,
reproduction and circulation of this pernicious book in the islands be absolutely
prohibited”.
When the newspaper published Font’s written report of the censorship
commission, Rizal and his friends became apprehensive and uneasy. The
enemies of Rizal exulted and unholy glee. The banning of the Noli only served
to make it popular. Everybody wanted to read it. News about the great book
speared among masses. What the hated Spanish masters did not like, the
oppressed masses liked very much. Despite the government prohibition and the
vigilance of the cruel Guardia Civil many Filipinos were able to get hold of
copies of the Noli which they read at night behind closed doors.
Thanks to Governor General Terrero, there were no mass imprisonment
or mass execution of Filipinos. He refused to be intimidated by the friars who
clamored for harsh measures against people caught reading the novel and its
author.
Attackers of the Noli. The battle over the Noli took the form of a virulent war of
words. Father Font printed his report and distributed copies of it in order to
discredit the controversial novel. Another Augustinian, Fr. Jose Rodriguez,
Prior of Guadalupe, published a series of eight pamphlets under the general
heading Cuestiones de Sumo Intereres (Questions of Supreme Interest) to blast
the Noli and other anti-Spanish writings. These eight pamphlets were intitled \as
follows:
1. Porque no los he de leer? (Why should I not read them?)
2. Guardaos de ello. Porque? (Beware of them. Why?)
3. Y_que me dice usted de la peste? (And what can you tell me of Plague?)
4. Cree usted que de veras no hay purgatorio? (Do you think there is really
no Purgatory?)
5. Hay o no hay infierno? (Is there or is there no hell?)
6. Porque triunfan los impios? (Why fo thr impious triumph?)
7. Que le parece a usted de esos libelos? (What do you think of these
libels?)
8. Confesion o condenacion? (Confession or Damnation?)
Copies of these anti-Rizal pamphlets written by Fray Rodriquez were sold
daily in the churches after mass. Many Filipinos were forced to buy them in
order not to displease the friars, but they did not believe what the author said
with hysterical fervor.
Repercussions of the storm over the Noli reached Spain. It was fiercely
attacked on the session hall of the senate of the Spanish Cortes by various
senators, particularly General Jose de Salamanca on April 1, 1888, General Luis
M. de Pando on April 12, and Sr. Fernando Vida on June 11. The Spanish
academician of Madrid, Vicente Barrantes, who formerly occupied high
government positions in the Philippines, bitterly criticized the Noli in an article
in La Espana Moderna (a newspaper of Madrid) in January, 1890.
Defenders of the Noli. The much-maligned Noli had its gallant defenders who
fearlessly came out to prove the merits of the novel or to refute the arguments of
the unkind attackers. Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Dr. Antonio Ma. Regidor, Graciano
Lopez Jaina, Mariano Ponce, and other Filipino reformists in foreign lands, of
course, rushed to uphold the truth about Noli. Father Sanchez Rizal favorite
teacher at the Ateneo, defended and praised it in public. Don Segismundo
Moret, former Minister of the crown; Dr. Miguel Morayta, historian and
statesman; and Professor Blumentritt, scholar and educator, read and liked the
novel.
A brilliant defense of the Noli came from an unexpected source. It was Rev.
Vicente Garcia, a Filipino catholic priest-scholar, a theologian of the Manila
Cathedral, and a Tagalog f the famous Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis.
Father Garcia, writing under the penname Justo Desiderio Magalang, a wrote a
defense of the Noli which was published in Singapore as an appendix to a
pamphlet dated July 18, 1888. He blasted at arguments of Fr. Rodriguez as
follows:
1. Rizal cannot be an “ignorant man”, as Fr. Rodriguez alleged, because he
was a graduate of Spanish universities and was recipient of scholastic
honors.
2. Rizal does not attack the church and Spain, as Fr. Rodriguez claimed,
because what Rizal attacked in the Noli were the bad Spanish officials
and not Spain, and the bad corrupt friars and not the church.
3. Father Rodriguez said that those read the Noli commit a mortal sin; since
he (Rodriguez) had read the novel, therefore he also commits a mortal
sin.
Later when Rizal learned of the brilliant defense Father Garcia of his novel,
he cried because his gratitude was overwhelming. Rizal, himself defended his
novel against Barrantes attack, in a letter written in Brussels, Belgium, in
February, 1880. In this letter he exposed Barrantes’ ignorance of Philippine
affairs and mental dishonesty which is unworthy of an academician. Barrantes
met in Rizal his master in satire and polemics.
During the days when the Noli was the target of a heated controversy
between the friars (and their minions) and the friends of Rizal, all copies of it
were sold out and the price per copy soared to unprecedented level. Both friends
and enemies of the Noli found it extremely difficult to secure a copy. According
to Rizal, in a letter to Fernando Canon from Geneva, June 13, 1887, the price he
set per copy was five pesetas (equivalent to one peso), but the price later rises to
fifty pesos per copy.
Rizal and Taviel de Andrade. While the storm over the Noli was raging in fury,
Rizal was not molested in Calamba. This is due to Governor General Terrero’s
generosity in assigning a bodyguard to him. Between this Spanish bodyguard,
Lt Jose Taviel de Andrade, and Rizal, a beautiful friendship bloomed.
Together Rizal and Andrade, both young, educated and cultured, made
walking tours of the verdant countryside’s, discussed topics of common interest,
and enjoyed fencing, shooting, hunting and painting. Lt. Andrade became great
admirer of the man he was ordered to watch and protect. Years later, he wrote
of Rizal: “Rizal was refined, educated and gentlemanly. The hobbies that most
interested him were hunting, fencing, shooting, painting, and hiking. I will
remember our excursion to Mount Makiling, not so much for the beautiful view.
As for the rumors and pernicious effects that result from it. There was one
believed and reported to Manila that Rizal and I, at the top of the mountain,
hoisted the German flag and proclaimed its sovereignty over the Philippines. I
imagined that such nonsense emanated from the friars of Calamba, but did not
take the trouble to make inquiries about the matter”.
What marred Rizal’s happy days in Calamba with Lt. Andrade were the
death of his older sister, Olimpia, And the groundless tales circulated by his
enemies that he was “a German spy, an agent of Bismarck, a Protestant, a
Mason, a witch, a soul beyond salvation, etc.”.
Calamba’s Agrarian Trouble. Governor general Terrero, influenced by certain
facts in Noli Me Tangere, ordered a government investigation of the friar estates
to remedy whatever iniquities might have been present in connection with land
taxes and with tenant relations. One of the friars’ estates affected was the
Calamba Hacienda which Dominican Order owned since 1883. In compliance
with the governor general’s orders, dated December 30, 1887, the civil
Governor of Laguna Province directed the municipal authorities of Calamba to
investigate the agrarian conditions of their locality.
Upon hearing of the investigation, the Calamba folks solicited Rizal’s help in
gathering the facts and listing their grievances against the hacienda
management, so that the central government might institute certain reforms.
After a thorough study of the conditions in Calamba, Rizal wrote down his
findings which the tenants and three of the officials, which were formally
submitted to the government for action, were the following:
 1. The Hacienda of the Dominican order comprised not only the lands
around Calamba, but also the town of Calamba.
2. The profits of the Dominican order continually increased because of the
arbitrary increase of the rentals paid by the tenants.
3. The hacienda owner never contributed a single centavo for the celebration
of the town fiesta, for the education of the children, and for the
improvement of agriculture.
4. Tenants who had spent much labor in clearing the lands were disposed of
said lands for flimsy reasons.
5. High rates of interest were charged the tenants for delayed payment of
rentals, and when the rentals could not be paid, the hacienda management
confiscated their carabaos, tools, and homes.
Farewell to Calamba. Rizal’s exposure of deplorable conditions of tenancy in
Calamba infuriated further his enemies. The friars exerted pressure on
Malacanan Palace to eliminate him. They asked Governor General Terrero to
deport him, but the latter refused because there was no valid charge against
Rizal in court. Anonymous threats against Rizal’s life were received by his
parents. The alarmed parents, relatives and friends (including Lt. Traviel de
Andrade) advised him to go away, for his life was in danger.
One day Governor General Terrero summoned Rizal and “advised’ him to leave
the Philippines for his own good. He was giving Rizal a chance to escape the
fury of the friars’ wrath.
This time Rizal had to go. He could not very well disobey the governor
general’s veiled orders. But he was not running like a coward from a fight. He
was courageous, a fact which his worst could enemy not deny. A valiant hero
that he was, he was not afraid of any man neither was he afraid to die. He was
compelled to leave Calamba for two reasons: his presence in Calamba was
jeopardizing the safety and happiness of his family and friends and he could
fight better his enemies and serve his country’s cause with greater efficacy by
writing in foreign countries.
A poem for Lipa. Shortly before Rizal left Calamba in 1888 his friend from
Lipa requested him to write a poem in commemoration of town’s elevation to
villa (city) by virtue of the Becerra Law of 1888. Gladly, he wrote a poem
dedicated to the industrious folks of Lipa. This was the “Himno Al Trabajo” or
Hymn to Labor. He finished it and sent it to Lipa before his departure from
Calamba.
 Vocabulary
Sojourn- stay somewhere temporarily.
Benevolent-well-meaning and kindly.
Embark- go on board a ship, aircraft or other vehicle.
Voyage- a long journey involving travel by sea or in space.
Pleasant-giving a sense of happy satisfaction or enjoyment.
Trod- walk in a specified way.
Gratis-without charge or free.
Subversive-seeking or intended to subvert an established system or institution.
Jesuit-a member of the society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic order of priests
Heretical-believing in or practicing religious heresy.
Impious-not showing respect or reverence, especially for a god.
Scandalous-causing general public outrage by a perceived offense against
morality or law.
Pernicious-having a harmful effect especially in a gradual or subtitle way.
Discredit-loss or lack of reputation or respect.
Displease-make someone feel annoyed or dissatisfied.
Excursion-a short journey or trip, especially one engaged in as a leisure
activity.
Arbitrary-based on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or
system.
Grievances-a real or imagined wrong or other cause for complaint or protest,
especially unfair treatment.
Friars-a member of any of certain religious orders of men, especially the four
mendicant orders.
 Questionnaires
I. Multiple choice
1. When Rizal wrote to his father to announce his return home?
a. June 26, 1887 b. June 29,1887
c. July 29,1887 d. July 26,1887
2. What is the name of the steamer that Rizal ride to Europe?
a. Salvadora b. Haiphong
c. Djemnah d. Belgic
3. How many passengers with Rizal on his trip to Europe?
a. 50 b. 40
c. 30 d. 60
4. When did Rizal turn to Calamba?
a.August 8 b. August 9
c. September 8 d. September 9
5. In Calamba Rizal established first clinic, who is his first patient?
a. His sister’s Olimpia. b. His mother
c. Lt. Andrade. d. His brother Paciano
6. He requesting Rizal to come to Malacañang Palace.
a. Jose Andrade b. Rev.Pedro Collantes
c. Gov. Gen Terrero d. Francisco Rizal
7. Rizal’s favorite teacher in Ateneo who defend him and praise Rizal in public.
a. Father Sanchez. b. Father Rodriguez
c. Father Collantes d. Father Vida
8. He is the defender of Noli using the pen name Justo Desiderio.
a. Marcelo H. Del Pilar b. Graciano Lopez Jaena
 c. Rev. Vicente Garcia d. Father Rodriguez
9. He is assigned by the governor to protect Rizal against the friars and enemies of
Noli.
a. Paciano b. Justo Desiderio
c. Jose Andrade d. Father Garcia
10. When did Rizal left the Calamba?
a. 1887 b.1888
c. 1884 d. 1886
II. IDENTIFICATION

a. Hymn to Labor g. August 8, 1887

b. August 1887 h. June 3,1887

c. July 30, 1887 i. Paciano

d. August 5, 1887 j. Doctor of Ulliman

e. Father Rodriguez k. Suez Canal

___1.
f. SeaWhat
Canalthe people call of him since he came
l. Father from Germany?
Sanchez
___2. When Rizal returned to the Philippines.
___3. When did Rizal boarded Djemnah.
___4. When he transferred to Haipong from Saigon to Manila.
___5. When the steamer arrived in Manila.
___6. When Rizal returned to Calamba, Laguna.
___7. Who never left him after his arrival to protect him?
___8. He published 8 pamphlets to blast Noli Me Tangere.
___9. A historical canal that Rizal saw for the second time.
___10. A poem that Rizal wrote before he left Calamba.
III. ENUMERATION
1-4. Reasons Rizal was determined to return to the Philippines.
5-10. What are the pamphlets that Fr. Jose Rodriguez wrote to blast the Noli.
IV. ESSAY!!!!!(10POINTS)
What is Rizal failure during his six months of his sojourn in Calamba?

******Answer Key******
I.
1.b 6.c
2.c 7.a
3.a 8.c
4.a 9.c
5.b 10.b

II.
1. J 6.G
2.B 7.I
3.H 8. E
4.C 9. K
5.D 10. A

III.
1. To operate on his mother’s eyes
2. To serve his people who had been long oppressed by Spanish tyrants
3. To find out for himself how the Noli and his other writings were affecting
Filipinos and Spaniards in the Philippines
4. To inquire why Leonor Rivera remained silent.
5. Porque no los he de leer? (Why should I not read them?)
6. Guardaos de ello. Porque? (Beware of them. Why?)
7. Y_que me dice usted de la peste? (And what can you tell me of Plague?)
8. Cree usted que de veras no hay purgatorio? (Do you think there is really no
Purgatory?)
9. Hay o no hay infierno? (Is there or is there no hell?)
10. Porque triunfan los impios? (Why fo thr impious triumph?)
11. Que le parece a usted de esos libelos? (What do you think of these libels?)
12.Confesion o condenacion? (Confession or Damnation?)