Born on June 19, 1861 and was martyred on December 30, 1896, Jose Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda was a polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era.
He was born to a rich family in Calamba, Laguna and was the seventh of eleven children.
He attended the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, earning a Bachelor of Arts, and enrolled in Medicine at the University of Sto. Tomas.
He continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid in Spain, earning the degree of Licentiate in Medicine.
He also attended the University of Paris and earned a second doctorate at the University of Heidelberg.
Rizal was a polyglot conversant in 22 languages.
He was a prolific poet, essayist, diarist, correspondent, and novelist whose most famous works were his two novels "Noli me Tangere" and 'El Filibusterismo'.
As a political figure, according to historical account, Jose Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organisation that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan led by Andres Bonifacio and Emilio Aguinaldo/
He was a proponent of achieving Philippine self-government peacefully through institutional reform rather than through violent revolution, although he would support "violent means" as a last resort.
History also has it that Rizal had the belief that the only justification for national liberation and self-government is the restoration of the dignity of the people.
He was quoted having said, "Why independence, if the slaves of today will be the tyrants of tomorrow?" The general consensus among Rizal scholars was that his execution by the Spanish helped bring about the Philippine Revolution.
I have been always very much interested in Rizal's works and life since I met my former Philippine mentor, the late Monsignor Professor Dr. Dr. Hermogenes E. Bacareza, who was our chaplain in the Philippine Community in Berlin already during the 1980s.
