One hundred and forty-eight years ago on Friday our national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal, was born. He was born to a patriotic couple, Don Francisco Mercado and Doña Teodora Alonzo, who instilled in him love of fellowmen, love of country, and love of God.

Dr. Rizal and his elder brother Paciano, witnessed the execution of Fathers Mariano Gomez, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora in 1872. On the way home, they made a pact that he would dedicate his life to free their country while Paciano would take care of his studies and their family. “Without 1872,” Dr. Rizal recalled the impact of this event on him, “there would not be now either a Plaridel or Jaena or Sanciangco. Without 1872, Rizal would be a Jesuit now and, instead of writing Noli Me Tangere, would have written the opposite.”

His sojourn in Spain sealed his fate with Bagumbayan. “My perdition began in Spain,” wrote Dr. Rizal acknowledging Spain’s liberal traditions led him to endeavor that the same liberal traditions be implanted in his country. Thus he championed the highest ideals of the civilized world -– the worth and dignity of the individual, the inviolability of human rights, and the equality of all men and races.

His works impressed upon the colonial masters the inevitable operation of historical lessons. “No rule by one country over another lasts forever,” he declared in his essay “The Philippines A Century Hence.” His Noli Me Tangere awakened his countrymen from their lethargy that if they did nothing against their oppression, they would remain slaves forever. His El Filibusterismo warned the colonial masters that the Filipino people would violently separate their country from Spain if nothing was done to redress the people’s sufferings. His La Liga Filipina suggested the means to avoid such violent separation. The colonial masters were deaf to his warnings. The rest is history.

June 19, 1861, is a great day that the Filipino people should proudly celebrate. This date represents the first pulse of a great life, the dawn of a grand era, and the first spark that lighted freedom for the downtrodden Filipinos.

Our observance of Dr. Jose P. Rizal’s 148th Birth Anniversary demonstrates our respect and admiration for him as well as our awareness of the lessons he bequeathed to us. A people who honor and remember their heroes are a people who would never consent to be enslaved by others.