Jose Rizal’s “Mi Último Adiós” and Jesus’ Parable of the Pearl

Jesus spoke of the parable of the pearl (Matthew 13:45) to pair it with the parable of the hidden treasure (Matthew 13:44). These parables are considered as one set, because both of these liken the Kingdom of Heaven to an object of great value, for which we are willing to do anything, as we seek it first.  For us to appreciate this set of parables on the Kingdom, we must first understand these kerygmatic words of Jesus, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”(Matthew 6:33) from his sermon on the mount.

Perhaps, it is easier to associate the Kingdom to the pearl, compared to the hidden treasure, for an obvious reason.  Though we do not know what kind of treasure the hidden treasure is, we know that pearl is a beautiful treasure.  To illustrate the beauty of the Kingdom, the pearl is a fitting metaphor.

The parables make a point that we are willing to do anything, at any cost, in order to attain the Kingdom – just as the man in the parable of the hidden treasure sold everything in his possession to buy the treasure he found and hid together with the field and just as the merchant sold everything in his possession to purchase the pearl of great value.

As the merchant liquidated everything he had to obtain just the precious pearl, Jesus’ message in the parable of the pearl tells us that we shall pay even the ultimate price for the Kingdom of Heaven, if we really want it. In order to appreciate this parable, can we pay our own life to get the pearl, which is a metaphor of the Kingdom?  If the pearl as the Kingdom is compared to a nation welove enough to sacrifice your life for, we are willing to become martyrs for the pearl.  A great example of this is Jose Rizal of the Philippines.

Shortly before his martyrdom, Rizal hid his poem, known as “Mi Último Adiós”, and told his close family members, who visited him in the prison where the poem can be found. The words of the first stanza of the poem are:

Adiós, Patria adorada, región del sol querida,
Perla del mar de oriente, nuestro perdido Edén!
A darte voy alegre la triste mustia vida,
Y fuera más brillante, más fresca, más Florida,
También por ti la diera, la diera por tu bien.

Sensing his execution imminent, Rizal left his words to his beloved nation, the Philippines. Note that he likened the Philippines to “perla del mar de oriente” (pearl of the Orient sea). Because he was not able to see his beloved “pearl”, the Philippines, to become free from the Spanish oppression in his life time, he also compared to “perdido Edén”(lost Eden), even evoking John Milton’s poignant poem, “Paradise Lost”.

Though his beloved nation, the Philippines, is beautiful as “perla del mar de oriente”,  she is now like “perdido Edén”.  In this, there is a parallel to his own life, as he was about to be executed.  Just as his life is about to be lost to the execution, his beloved “perla del mar de oriente”, the Philippines,  would be like “perdido Edén”, as she was not delivered from the hands of the colonial oppression in his life time. Yet, Rizal put his hope for the Philippines as he was willing to put his own life for this, by these words: A darte voy alegre la triste mustia vida, y fuera más brillante, más fresca, más Florida, también por ti la diera, la diera por tu bien.

Though Rizal willingly paid his own life for the precious “perla del mar de oriente” that Rizal loved more than anything else, the desired effect of this “purchase” did not become reality upon his death. It was until, at least, 1946, when the Philippines started with her own full sovereignty, after the Japanese rule and the American rule, following the Spanish rule.

Had Jesus preached the parable of the pearl after the martyrdom of Rizal, he might have said something like, “Look, Jose Rizal of the Philippines is a good example to put this parable to his heart, if I further compare the Kingdom to the Philippines” – or any nation where there is a heroic martyr, who paid his or her own life for it.

Jose Rizal sure loved his country, the Philippines, and its people. That is why he awakened the slumbered senses of his fellow Filipinos to a fresh sense of nationalism, not in a violent revolutionary way but rather through his pen and poignant words. Without Rizal’s words, neither Andres Bonifacio nor Emilio Aguinaldo would have earned their places in the Philippine history. Both of them were influenced by Rizal in their efforts to gain independence of the Philippines from Spain.  Because of this, Rizal was deemed as a threat to Spanish governance of the Philippines and eventually executed on 30 December, 1896. In this regard, Jose Rizal is a martyr for the Philippines.

Rizal knew the risk to himself in raising the awareness of his fellow Filipinos to the critical needs for dignity and sovereignty. Nevertheless, he carried on his mission to awaken the Filipino mind to what the Philippines deserved.  He risked himself to raise the Filipinos awareness to their need to overcome slave-like docile colonial mentality, which allowed not only the Spanish colonial authority. He also challenged the Catholic Church in the Philippines for its oppressiveness and internal moral corruption.  He wanted his beloved Philippines and its people to be delivered from oppressive hands of the Spanish colonial authority and spiritually poisonous grip of false shepherds of the Church in the Philippines.

A juxtaposition can be drawn between Jose Rizal and Jesus, as Jesus used his kerygmatic words to save the world from sin-inducing grips of Satan. The words of Jesus includes parables to deliver his teaching. Likewise, Rizal masterfully used parabolic words to make his points. For example, through his works, “Noli Me Tángere”, and its sequel, “El Filibusterismo”, Rizal tactfully put his own voice through his alter egos in certain characters in the stories. Just as the words of Jesus awaken us to realize our sinfulness and moral problem in the world and to seek the Kingdom of Heaven, Rizal’s allegorical words through his alter egos prompt the Filipinos to realize the problem of the Philippines and to stand up for justice for the nation.

The words of Jesus cost his own life. Likewise, Rizal also had to pay his own life for his words. Jesus paid his own life to purchase our salvation, which can be the pear to him. Rizal paid his own life to purchase “perla del mar de oriente”.  The salvation that Jesus purchased for us is on its way, and so is “perla del mar de oriente”, as the Philippines is not as free as what Rizal envisioned through his prophetic words in “Noli Me Tángere” and “El Filibusterismo” yet, in spite of its “independence” in 1946. Therefore, we, too, need to purchase the pearl of great value, in light of Jesus’ parable of the pearl, juxtaposing the Kingdom and justice on earth .