In defense of the Friars
A response to the anti-friar narratives present in the Philippines Antonio Jose Rubi Dedicated to the memory of Fray Julian Bermejo (1777 – 1851), military priest of Southern Cebu who fought and defended his people. For most Filipino youth, the Spanish friars are seen as villains who oppress Filipino people during the colonial era, specifically regarding Rizal’s novels Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, especially when it comes to Father Damaso, the main villain of the first novel. The novels inspired many revolutionaries to go anti-Catholic and to kill friars. But contrary to the bias being propagated by schools and many youths of today, many Spanish friars are not the Padre Damaso in stories. In fact, some of them were protectors of oppressed people. For example, Father Martin de Rada, an Augustinian priest in fact protested against the Encomienda system being pushed by Spanish conquistadors, and the first Bishop of Manila, Domingo de Salazar, campaigned agains...