Module 6
The Shaping of Rizal's Heroic Leadership
At the end of the module, students should be able to:
1. To analyze the quality leadership of Rizal;
2. To integrate the dilemmas of Rizal's leadership in Spain;
3. To evaluate how La Liga Filipina established and its purpose.
Learning Content
Rizals Heroic Leadership
Rizal was considered as one of the pillars of Philippine independence, a leader in the struggle against
Spanish colonialism. A committed leader like him was important during the colonial era because there was
a need to unify Filipinos in their fight for independence. In the same way, a hero-leader like Rizal could
either initiate revolutionary activities or lead Filipinos in their campaign for gradual reform.
Filipino ilustrados in Europe during the 19" century who upheld similar principles and desired change in the
country constituted the reform movement. Rizal, one of the most decorated ilustrados in Europe, was seen
by the members of the propaganda movement as an inspirational figure. His practice as an eye surgeon did
not hinder him from becoming an accomplished leader and member of the reform movement. His charisma
gained him the popular support of Filipinos who regarded him as the guiding force of the liberation
movement and several local and international organizations. Supportive of this claim were his leadership
posts in La Solidaridad and La Liga Filipina.
While leading his compatriots, he unified the ranks of reformists and revolutionaries despite his limited
actions as a frontliner. His noble qualities as a leader elevated him into sainthood for he showed traits
attractive to the common tao. This expression of his noble desire to help the Filipinos was a great source of
encouragement for the Filipinos who were suffering from Spanish tyranny.
Rizal's uniqueness as a hero and leader was evident in his honest desire to free the country from the clutches
of the Spaniards. He was known as a man of peace because he did not resort to violence to fight the colonial
system. Moreover, he reminded and emphasized to the katipuneros the importance of a well-prepared and
Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal – First Semester A.Y. 2021 – 2022 NIPSC– Estancia Campus
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well-armed revolution. Rizal worked hard to pacify them for he knew that they could convince the natives
to rise up in arms against the Spaniards. Earlier these people already expressed their willingness to support
his proposed reforms in the archipelago (Romero et al., 2006).
Leadership Qualities of Rizal
Dr. Jose Rizal advocated a democratic type of leadership. His democratic principles were manifested
through intellectual style of leadership, idealism, optimism, and pragmatic realism. Aside from being a
hero-leader, he also possessed the following qualities:
1. Idealistic. Rizal thought that fighting toe to toe against a powerful adversary like the Spaniards was
not a practical move on the part of the revolutionaries. Before staging a revolution. Rizal told
Bonifacio to exhaust all possible alternatives first rather than go against Spain withough enough
preparation and equally powerful weapons. In the same way, Rizal was also calm and patient in
dealing with the abuses and injustices of the Spanish authorities. Though Rizal was bothered by the
sad plight of the native Filipinos, he believed that the solutions he offered to them were more
practical realistic, and attainable.
2. Objective. He did not let emotions interfere with his decisions. For as much as he could, he kept the
members of an organization united. He always prioritized the welfare of the organization and its
members. Hence, Rizal was an unbiased, rational, and objective leader.
3. Optimistic. Rizal believed that revolutions were not the only means to attain freedom. For him a
revolution was only necessary when the time or situation was ripe for it. To a certain extent, this
was true because he was hopeful that gradual reforms would take effect in the Philippines. He
presumed to believe that justice and freedom would always prevail over evil. He was fully
convinced that with the continued support of the patriotic Filipinos and a united front of oppressed
Filipinos, independence would be possible for the Philippines.
4. Democratic. It was already established that Rizal was not a power-hungry leader. Whenever there
was a need for a leader in the association or movement he was involved with, Rizal always insisted
that the person be selected through an election. Even if he was the organization's founder, he never
forced himself into a leadership position. As recorded, he acted as an adviser or honorary president
in some of the associations he was involved with or be helped establish. The La Liga Filipina and
other international organizations were some groups that he initiated.
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Campus Leadership of Rizal
If there are student organizations in the universities today, they also existed in Rizal's time. These student
organizations serve as training ground for future Filipino leaders. In its simplest definition, a student
organization is a body that looks after the welfare and rights of its members. During the colonial times,
most Filipino-led student organizations took up the cudgels for the Filipino students against the more
dominant Spanish students.
Class Organizations
In time, Rizal became a student-leader. Being involved with different organizations was a great learning
experience for Rizal as he was exposed to different challenges and responsibilities. He became a well-
rounded student-leader when he joined both academic and non-academic school organizations. The
campus-based groups he joined, in which he served either as a leader or president, were the Class Empire,
Literary academy, and Companerismo (comradeship).
Class Empire in Ateneo
During Rizal's time in Ateneo, the academic standing of students determined their seating arrangement.
This seating arrangement was designed to gauge the aptitude of Ateneans. Everyone had the chance to
become an emperor. The emperor was considered the brightest student in class. To become an emperor, the
aspirant should obtain the highest grades in the class. In essence, the emperor was the most intellectually-
gifted student. Rizal entered Ateneo at a very young age. He was initially assigned to the last seat of the
Carthaginian Empire. It was the seat usually occupied by the poorest student in the class. But Rizal was
intelligent, so he took the challenge to rise from the lowest position. He studied very hard until he got to the
highest seat of the Carthaginian Empire. He became emperor after only a month. Being class emperor was,
for Rizal, an achievement and an ennobling experience. The role of the emperor was to defend his empire
against the other empire. At the end of the school year, the winning emperor was hailed as the most
excellent student in class. Rizal maintained this position until he finished his Bachelor of Arts in Ateneo in
1887 (Palma, 1949).
Student Organizations
Rizal developed his leadership skills by participating in extracurricular activities. He became an active
member of various organizations in Ateneo. The experiences he acquired in those organizations were
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factors that shaped his leadership skills and other values. Rizal also became a member of a number of
academic societies in Ateneo such as the Academy of Spanish Literature and the Academy of Natural
Sciences. These academies were exclusive to Ateneo students gifted with exceptional talents in literature
and the sciences. Because of his devotion to the Virgin Mary, Rizal was accepted as a member of a
religious society. He also served as secretary of Marian Congregation in Ateneo. Rizal was likewise elected
president of the Academy of Spanish Literature in Ateneo from 1880 to 1881. While serving as president,
he wrote a zarzuela titled Junto Al Pasig (Beside the pasig). This zarzuela was staged in Ateneo during the
annual celebration of the Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception on December 8.
Student Comradeship
Hostilities between Spanish and Filipino students at the University of Santo Tomas were common place
during Rizal's time. The Filipino students were frequently maligned, insulted, and discriminated upon by
the Spanish students and by some Spanish professors. The Spanish students came up with names such as
Filipino Indio, and Filipino Chonggo to insult and mock Filipino students. In response, they called Spanish
students Kastilang bangus. These student conflicts frequently led to actual melees outside the campus
(Palma, 1949).
In 1880, Rizal founded a secret society which he called Companerismo (comradeship). This student society
aimed to protect the welfare and the rights of Filipino students at UST. The members of the organization
were called "companions of Jehu." which was patterned after the name of the Hebrew general who fought
the Armenians and ruled the Kingdom of Israel for 28 years (843-816 B.C.). Rizal led the Filipino students
in various street fights. Despite his unintimidating physique, he was an expert in self-defense, an art which
he learned from his uncle Jose Alberto. For that, he was called the "small but terrible" defender of brown-
skinned students.
Leadership Conflict of the Compatriots
Rizal contributions as a propagandist or reformist can never be overemphasized. His dedication to the
movement had been proven in the past. He devoted his life and service to ease the plight of Filipinos. He
also served as a role model and inspiration to his compatriots. He was truly a prodigious writer productive
for he published a variety of scholarly essays and literary pieces. But no matter how good Rizal's intentions
were, he was still confronted with disagreements among dissenting members of the reform movement.
Suddenly, his dreams for reform became compromised. In addition, after chastising some members of the
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movement for leading a life contrary to the groups' principles (i.e, gambling, drinking, womanizing), Rizal
started having difficulty in getting the support from members (Schumacher, 1997).
Since then, Rizal's leadership became unstable. He lost popular support among the Filipinos in Madrid. His
leadership crisis became more evident when the reformists in Madrid were divided into two camps: the
Rizalistas and Pilaristas. The two respected leaders became rivals for the position of responsible. The
leadership rivalry between Rizal and Del Pilar was settled through an election in February 1891. The
election was conducted for three consecutive days because on the first and second days, Rizal won in the
voting but did not get the stipulated two-third votes to capture the position. On the third day of voting,
Mariano Ponce campaigned for Rizal and rallied support for his victory. Rizaľs triumph (Brillantes, 2004)
over the more politically astute Del Pilar confirmed once and for all his leadership of the Filipinos in Spain.
Rizal, though, was unhappy occupying a position of leadership without the complete support of the group's
members. This prompted him to concede his position to Del Pilar. He desired unity rather than lead a group
with disgruntled members.
International Organizations
Rizal's Involvement
Joining and establishing organizations in Europe became possible for Rizal because he enjoyed more
freedom in the continent. It was a great opportunity for him to get involved in various organizations. His
agenda included learning new knowledge and consulting scholars to advance and promote Philippine
studies. In line with his scholarly endeavors, he became the principal organizer of a social society which he
envisioned as a bastion of Philippine and cultural studies. Some of the associations he joined were the
Hispano-Filipino Association, Solidarity, Freemansonry, Kidlat Club, Indios Bravos, R.D.I.M. Society, and
the International Association of Filipinologists.
Hispano-Filipino Association. This association was established to fast-track the institution of reforms in
the Philippines and to protect the rights of Filipinos under Spanish colonial rule. The association was
founded in Madrid in July 1888 and was formalized on January 12, 1889 with Spaniards and Filipinos as
founding members. The association elected Dr. Miguel Morayta, a pro-Filipino Spanish liberal and
professor from Madrid Central University, as the association's president. Another Spaniard, General Felipe
de la Corte, was elected vice president of the association. De la Corte was a long-time resident of the
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Philippines. He wrote essays about the Philippines and was a well-known reform advocate. Gagelonia
(1964) noted that this association also intended to secure justice for the displaced Calamba tenants as well
as their families. As stated by Agoncillo (1990), the reformists, at first, worked individually, but later on,
realized the advantages of pooling their resources and efforts.
The Solidarity (La Solidaridad). Some Filipino pioneer members of the Hispano-Filipino Association had
apprehensions about the organization. This led them to form a new association called La Solidaridad
(Gagelonia, 1964).
It was a patriotic society of Filipinos based in Barcelona. During that time, Rizal was in London doing his
historical studies when he learned about the organization. Rizal was unanimously voted as la Solidaridad's
honorary president. The association was inaugurated on December 31, 1888 with the following elected
officers: Galicano Apacible, President; Graciano Lopez-Jaena, Vice-President; Manuel Santa Maria,
Secretary; Mariano Ponce, Treasurer; and Jose Ma. Panganiban, Accountant. Graciano Lopez-Jaena
founded the eponymously named official organ of the association -- La Solidaridad. As the official paper of
the patriotic movement, it aimed (Gillego, 1990):
1. To work peacefully for political and social reforms;
2. To portray the deplorable conditions of the Philippines so that Spain may remedy them;
3. To oppose the evil forces in the Spanish government and in the Catholic Church;
4. To advocate liberal ideas and program; and
5. To champion the legitimate aspirations of the Filipino people.
The Masonry. Despite the despotic rule of the Spanish monarch, socially relevant organizations thrived in
Spain. Freemasonry was one of the popular organizations during Rizal's time. Defined simply, it is an
institution which provides assistance to people with similar interests. Freemasonry (De Pedro, 2006), in
essence, is a secret society concerned with the rational study of ethical and social issues. A few months after
Rizal arrived in Spain, he joined the Freemasonry where he met distinguished scholars and nationalist
writers who also wanted to bring about reforms in their respective countries. Rizal became interested in the
organization because some of his Filipino friends were also members. The basic teachings of Freemasonry
were virtue, science, and labor. The other thrusts of the brotherhood included liberty, equality, and
fraternity. The members of Masonry during Rizal's time were mostly professionals, intellectuals, and
serious "agents of justice". Rizal became a member of different Masonic lodges in Spain composed mostly
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of Filipino members (Schumacher, 1997). The teachings and principles of these lodges gave more reason
for Rizal to fight for institutional reforms in the Philippines. The Spanish mother lodge was called Gran
Oriente Espanol. When Rizal was in Madrid, he was not an active member of the Freemasonry. His
affiliation with the organization, though, became a very controversial issue. The controversy was especially
heightened when he requested a Jesuit priest to solemnize his marriage to Josephine Bracken. Another
incident of rejection occurred when he was not admitted to the mission house of the Jesuits in Dapitan
because of his Masonic affiliation.
Kidlat Club. Rizal founded Kidlat Club on march 19, 1990. Kidlat Club was a temporary social society and
the only one bearing a Tagalog name. It was intended as a get-together group for Filipinos in Prague. The
club was called Kidlat, the Tagalog word for lightning, because it was formed quickly. The members of the
club included Jose Rizal. Antonio Luna, Juan Luna, Gregorio Aguilera, Fernando Canon, Lauro Dimayuga,
Julio Llorente, Guillermo Puatu, and Baldomero Roxas. The members were called paisanos, meaning
compatriots. The club had no officers. The club lasted until the 1889 Universal Exposition in Paris
(Guerrero, 1963).
Indios Bravos. It was an organization formed in 1889 to replace the Kidlat Club in Paris. The society had
one main objective: to excel in various intellectual fields and physical activities. With this objective, Rizal
enthusiastically headed the society because he wanted to show Filipino ingenuity and capability to the
foreigners present at the Universal Exposition, especially to the Spaniards who refused to recognize the
talents of the Filipinos. One of the main events of the Exposition was a Buffalo Bill show which featured
the proud American Indians. These American Indians wore their native attire with brilliant flare while
riding their horses. Rizal and the paisanos of the Kidlat Club moved around the exposition grounds, and
were amazed upon seeing the proud American Indians. He explained to his compatriots not to resent the
Spaniards for calling Filipinos indios. Instead, they should be proud of being indios (Guerrero, 1963). From
now on, Rizal said, "We shall be Indios Bravos," which means "Brave Indians".
R.D.L.M. Society. The acronym R.D.L.M. stands for Redencion de los Malayos (Redemption of the
Malays). It was a society founded by Rizal in Paris during the 1889 Universal Exposition. Rizal's
biographers considered R.D.L.M. a mysterious society because of its name. Rizal opted to name the society
using an acronym because he wanted to keep it a secret. Like most clubs or societies during that time,
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R.D.L.M.'s structure was patterned after the Freemasonry. The limited membership of the organization,
which consisted mainly of Rizal's closest friends in Paris, added more mystery to it. Some of R.D.L.M.'s
members were Fr. Jose Maria Changco, a Filipino priest; Marcelo H. del Pilar; Mariano Ponce; Jose Ma.
Basa; Baldomero Roxas; Gregorio Aguilera; and Julio Llorente. The ultimate aim of the society was the
redemption of the Malay race through the propagation of useful scientific, and historical knowledge among
Filipinos.
International Association of filipinologists (IAF). This initiative of Rizal to bring together the scholars
from different fields began in Paris during the 1889 Universal Exposition. This association aimed to unite
all international scholars who were interested to study the Filipino culture. Rizal's first proposed the idea of
the IAF to Dr. Blumentritt on January 14, 1889. Blumentritt immediately expressed his approval of it.
The term Filipinology refers to the scientific study of the Philipines' historical, geological, and cultural
beginnings. Thus members of this association should be interested in Philippine history and should
contribute ideas for the development of Philippine culture and its people. The inaugural convention of the
association in 1889 was facilitated by Rizal. The invited scholars in the inauguration were mostly renowned
personalities in Europe, namely Dr. A.B. Meyer, H. Kern, and Dr. Czepelak (Epistolario Rizalino). The
convention, though, did not push through because during that time, the French government discouraged
groups and activities of such nature.
Although Rizal was disappointed with the way the Spanish officials handled his proposed reforms for the
Philippines, he never lost hope. When the La Liga Filipino was established, Rizal's hope was rekindled. He
envisioned the organization as a league that would set a ring structure to tactically attack Spanish forces in
the archipelago in due time. The league's motto was Unus instar omnium (one likeall). Its countersign
consisted of three dots (..). In January
1892, while in Hong Kong, Rizal conceptualized La Liga Filipina, Rizal came up with an organization that
would again jump-start his plans. Rizal saw La liga Filipina as an organization of Filipinos all over the
archipelago. Those who were sympathetic to the cause of liberty in the Philippines would be brought
together to have one goal and to set up a united front against Spain.
La Liga founded in Tondo. La Liga Filipinas was a secret society founded by Rizal on July 3, 1892 during a
meeting with fellow reformists at the house of Filipino-Chinese Doroteo Ongjungco. During the said
meeting, the election of the officers was also [Link] presided over the meeting, although he was not
Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal – First Semester A.Y. 2021 – 2022 NIPSC– Estancia Campus
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elected in any of the league's positions. As founder of La Liga Filipina, though, he was considered as its
honorary president (Gagelonia,1964).
Assessment
Answer the following questions:
1) What are the qualities of Rizal that makes him a heroic leader?
2) How did Rizal overcome his leadership dilemmas in Spain?
3) Explain how and La Liga Filipina was established and its purpose.
References
Agoncillo, T. A.(1956). The revolt of the masses: The study of Bonifacio and Katipunan.
Quezon City:UP Press.
Pangilinan, Michael C. et al. (2018). Life and Works of Dr. Jose P. Rizal (A Modular
Approach based on the new CHED Curriculum. Mindshapers Co. Inc.
Capino, D. et al. (2005). Rizal's life, works and writings: Their impact on our national
identity. Quezon City: Bookman, Inc.
Life and Works of Dr. Jose Rizal – First Semester A.Y. 2021 – 2022 NIPSC– Estancia Campus
Irene A. Bargo, LPT, MAT School of Arts and Sciences