Miguel de Unamuno, Rector of Spain’s world-famous Universidad de Salamanca, called Dr. Jose P. Rizal the “Tagalog Christ.” This Tagalog Christ was born on June 19, 1861. No heavenly signs heralded his birth. He was just one of the many babies born on that day.

The ideals inculcated in him by his parents, his experiences in his country and abroad, and the goals he set to pursue in his life distinguished Rizal from all other Filipinos born before and after him. From his parents, Don Francisco Mercado and Doña Teodora Alonzo, Rizal imbibed the ideals of loving his fellowmen, his land of birth, and God Almighty. The events of 1872 directed his life and set his date with Bagumbayan Field. “Without 1872,” he wrote, “there would not be now either a Plaridel, or Jaena, or Sanciangco. Without 1872, Dr. Rizal would be a Jesuit now and, instead of writing Noli Me Tangere, would have written the opposite.”

The defining moment in Rizal’s life occurred when he and his elder brother Paciano witnessed the execution of Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora. On the way home after the execution, he and Paciano made a pact: Rizal would dedicate his life to free their country from foreign domination while Paciano would take care of Rizal’s studies and their family. His sojourn in Spain cemented his fate. “My perdition began in Spain,” Rizal said later, as he acknowledged the influences of Spain’s liberal traditions and how these traditions strengthened his resolve to free his country and people.

In Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, Rizal exposed the many ills in colonial Philippines. His La Liga Filipina suggested solutions to the country’s ills.

His works planted and nourished the seeds of liberty in the hearts of his countrymen. “No rule by one country over another lasts forever,” Rizal wrote to his countrymen. He told them that they would remain slaves forever if they did nothing about their oppressed condition.

The colonial authorities refused to heed Rizal’s and the other Filipino reformists’ warnings. They executed Rizal and many other Filipino patiots. But by killing Rizal, they transformed him into a national icon through which the Filipino people rallied and brought to fruition Rizal’s libertarian dreams.

Today (Saturday) we observe the 149th Birth Anniversary of our National Hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal. “The race that has produced a Rizal is a great race. The Filipino race produced Rizal.”