Succeeding the arrival of Crisostomo Ibarra through the house of Captain
Tiago, where he had observed the country’s unchanged condition, unfolds another
unforeseen revelation discussed on Chapter IX entitled, “The Local Affairs.”
As the title suggests, this chapter encompasses various domestic activities in
the local subsuming the three conversations between Padre Damaso and Capitan
Tiago, between Padre Sibyla and an unmanned priest, and between the Governor-
General and his men. The facticity of the events and disclosed facts throughout the
three conversations discussed on this chapter were reflections of the society’s real
condition during Rizal's time. Specifically, the blandishment of power and reputation to
the superiority, as well as the government itself reigned by the Spaniards were given
emphasis by Rizal to open the blinded eyes of the Filipinos, creating a greater impact
to the readers of today’s generation as it remained evident to our present society.
To further understand the context, lessons and moral values enclosed on this
chapter, let us dive in to the following events and scenarios highlighted from this
chapter.

I. Power and Influence
Beginning with the private compromised held between Padre Damaso and
Capitan Tiago, the priest told him to believe and trust his plans over Maria Clara’s
wedding, which then confused and threatened Capitan Tiago. This scene shows the
power held by Spanish priest by that time which is more evident when Capitan Tiago
almost fell on his face in order to kiss his hand as a sign of respect. Today, priests and
other church leaders has still been respected by many Christian, which is definitely an
influenced from Spaniards, with the spiritual belief that they are God's primary
instrument. However, most of the Filipinos nowadays were no longer embraced by the
tradition of kissing their hands to show respect. More often than not, we focus and rely
more on our faith and on the words and readings written on the bible rather than the
people we see in church, which in my opinion, some only acts as servants of God on
the physical outside without engraving in on their hearts the right action they must do.

II. The Eternal Punishment of Sins
Meanwhile, Father Sibyla goes to visit a very old priest who remains unnamed.
The priest tells Sibyla that he’s dying and that he’s decided to let it happen rather than
undergoing surgery. The priest himself believe that it is time for him to pay for all his
sins; to all of the people who suffered on his hands. Even in today’s culture, it has been
part of our belief that it is through pain, sufferings and death where we can pay off for all
our wrongdoings in life. In my own perspective, this is really true as what Dr. Jordan
Petterson, a well-known clinical psychologist, have said that by bearing your sufferings,

you learn how to become a better person. This is true because our sufferings is actually
the result of our own actions, so best thing to do is to learn to pinpoint the reason
behind it and follow what is right. Sibyla then informs the old man of the incident the
previous night between Father Dámaso and Ibarra, and the two priests agree that
having Ibarra in the church would greatly benefit their religious order, since he is such a
wealthy and influential individual. This agreement of the two priest reflects how humans
were undeniably opportunistic; taking advantage of a certain situation despite of beliefs
and disposition.

III. Mankind’s Natural Iniquity
From the stance mentioned above, I realized that no one’s ever been an
opportunist for I, myself has taken other things for advantage. For instance, whenever
there is a school activity about video presentation, I wished to be grouped with someone
who has the skilled to do so. Or say when it comes to business, being an opportunist is
also required and it will not always bring you for the worst. However, it’s not the same
thing when religion is the spotlight. Indeed, Sibyla wants to use Ibarra’s strong social
standing to further empower the church, a fact that suggests that the friars not only gain
authority by securing the government’s endorsement, but also by ensnaring people like
Ibarra and Captain Tiago—respected individuals that can help endear them to the
community which seemed apparent to some officials who used their family’s strong
background to reach a particular position in the government, and this is no longer
surprising as it has been part of human’s nature.

IV. Faith and Devotion
Going deeper into the context of this chapter, Rizal then turns his attention to the
Captain General, who hears from somebody present at the dinner party that Father
Dámaso spoke unfavorably about him. He laughs this off, saying, “Women and friars
can do no harm. I mean to live in peace during the time left to me in this country, and I
want no more problems with men who wear skirts.” In private, though, he laments the
fact that the Philippines gives the friars so much power which, compared to our present
time, seemed actually true as evident by the high respect showed to them by most
Filipino Christians. To illustrate, the arrival of Pope Francis last 2015 was celebrated by
many Filipinos. The entire country assured the safety of the Pope as well as the
Filipinos who has participated the celebration. I admit that I and my family even joined
and has awakened each other’s devotion.

V. The Unending Pecking Order
On the other way around, Rizal also illustrates the boundary between the church
and the state, though by doing so, he also shows that only high-ranking government
officials are comfortable disputing the friars’ power. This obliquely proved that the

existence of social hierarchy in the Philippines became highly predominant as the
Spaniards entered to colonized our country. For sure, it does exist and happen to
everyone around the world. Even at schools and Universities, there exist a ranking of
honors, elected officers of uneven powers and such, all of which reflects hierarchy and
order.

VI. The Political State and the Church
There might have been quite similarity present from the past to the current
context of our state such as the division of the political state and the church. I realized
that the government has decided to implement and organized the internal affairs solely
as political compared to Rizal's time. The same thing with the church; howbeit, there are
times where both tend to overlap each other, which I think seemed inevitable, such as
the implementation of various controversial issues regarding same sex marriage and
the use of contraceptives. Other times, the political state itself coordinate with the
church regarding some important matter involving massive number of Christians such
as in feast where Mayor of cities contribute to the celebration.
To sum up, the foreground of this chapter circulates on the lessons, introspection
and moral values one could get upon reading the entire chapter. These are only few of
the immense reflections one could ponder from the works of Rizal.