RETRACTION

Did Rizal
Retract?
Introduction
Jose Rizal
•Jose Rizal is identified as a hero of the revolution
for his writings
•The great volume of Rizal's lifework was
committed to this end, particularly the more
influential ones,
• Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo.
What is retraction?
•Retraction is the act of

withdrawing or taking back a
statement or accusation.
Jose Rizal
• Such document purportedly exists,
allegedly signed by Rizal a few
hours before his execution.
• This document, referred to as "The
Retraction" declares Rizal's belief
in the Catholic faith, and takes back
everything he wrote against the
Church.
• The said document was found by Fr.
Manuel Garcia.
Below is the translated content of “The Retraction”:
I declare myself a Catholic, and in this Religion in which I was born
and educated I wish to live and die.
I retract with all my heart whatever in my words, writings, publications
and conduct has been contrary to my character as a son of the
Catholic Church. I believe and I confess whatever she teaches, and I
submit to whatever she demands. I abominate Masonry, as the enemy
of the Church, and as a Society prohibited by the Church. The
Diocesan Prelate may, as the Superior Ecclesiastical Authority, make
public this spontaneous manifestation of mine in order to repair the
scandal which my acts may have caused and so that God and the
people may pardon me.
Manila 29 of December of 1896
Jose Rizal
The Balaguer Testimony
“A doubtful account.”
•There are doubts about the retraction document, especially

because only one eyewitness account of the writing of the
document exists — that of the Jesuit friar Fr. Vicente
Balaguer.
•According to his testimony, Rizal woke up several times,
confessed four times, attended a Mass, received
communion, and prayed the rosary, all of which seemed out
of character.
“A doubtful account.”
•But since it is the only testimony of allegedly a

"primary” account that Rizal ever wrote a retraction
document, it has been used to argue the authenticity
of the document.
The Testimony of
Cuerpo de Vigilancia
First, what is this Cuerpo de Vigilancia?
•It was the intelligence service unit that the Spanish

authorities created in 1895 primarily assigned to
gather information on the activities of certain groups
of people suspected of planning a revolution against
the Spanish colonizers.
Moving on…
•Another eyewitness account surfaced in 2016, through the

research of Professor Rene R. Escalante.
•In his research, documents of the Cuerpo de Vigilancia
included a report on the last hours of Rizal, written by
Federico Moreno.
•The report details the statement of the Cuerpo de Vigilancia
to Moreno.
Below is the translated content of
The Testimony of Cuerpo de Vigilancia:
Most Illustrious Sir, the agent of the Cuerpo de Vigilancia stationed in

Fort Santiago to report on the events during the day in prison of the
accused Jose Rizal, informs me on this date of the following:
At 7:50 yesterday morning, Jose Rizal entered death row

accompanied by his counsel, Señor Taviel de Andrade, and the Jesuit
priest Vilaclara. At the urgings of the former and moments after
entering, he was served a light breakfast. At approximately 9, the
Assistant of the Plaza, Señor Maure, asked Rizal if he wanted
anything. He replied that at the moment he only wanted a prayer book,
which was brought to him shortly by Father March.
Señor Andrade left death row at 10 and Rizal spoke for a long while
with the Jesuit fathers, March and Vilaclara, regarding religious
matters, it seems. It appears that these two presented him with a
prepared retraction on his life and deeds that he refused to sign. They
argued about the matter until 12:30 when Rizal ate some poached egg
and a little chicken. Afterwards he asked to leave to write and wrote for
a long time by himself.
At 3 in the afternoon, Father March entered the chapel and Rizal
handed him what he had written. Immediately the chief of the firing
squad, Señor del Fresno and the Assistant of the Plaza, Señor Maure,
were informed. They entered death row and together with Rizal signed
the document that the accused had written.
At 5 this morning of the 30th, the lover of Rizal arrived at the prison
dressed in mourning. Only the former entered the chapel, followed by
a military chaplain whose name I cannot ascertain. Donning his formal
clothes and aided by a soldier of the artillery, the wedding of Rizal and
the woman who had been his lover were performed at the point of
death. After embracing him she left, flooded with tears.
“It supports the existence of the
Retraction Document.”
•This account of the Cuerpo de Vigilancia supports the
existence of the retraction document, giving it truthfulness.
“But it does not support the assumption
that Fr. Balaguer is a primary source.”
•However, nowhere in the account was Fr. Balaguer
mentioned, which makes the friar a mere secondary source to
the writing of the document.
Conclusion
“remains to be a controversy”
• The retraction of Rizal remains to this

day, a controversy.
• Many scholars, however, agree that the
retraction document does not tarnish
the heroism of Rizal.
• His relevance remained solidified to
Filipinos and pushed them to continue
the revolution, which eventually
resulted in independence in 1898.
THANK YOU

RETRACTION

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RETRACTION

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Did Rizal

•Retraction is the act of

•There are doubts about the retraction document, especially

•But since it is the only testimony of allegedly a

•It was the intelligence service unit that the Spanish

•Another eyewitness account surfaced in 2016, through the

Most Illustrious Sir, the agent of the Cuerpo de Vigilancia stationed in

At 7:50 yesterday morning, Jose Rizal entered death row

• The retraction of Rizal remains to this

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