Isabelo de los Reyes
Encyclopedia
Isabelo Florentino De Los Reyes, Sr., also known as Don Belong (July 7, 1864 – October 10, 1938), was a prominent Filipino
politician
, writer
and labor activist in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was the founder of the Aglipayan Church
, an independent Philippine national church. For his writings and activism with labor unions, he was called the Father of Filipino Socialism
.
As a young man, he followed his mother's footsteps by initially turning to writing as a career; he won a prize at the age of 23 for his first book. He became a journalist
, editor
, and publisher in Manila
, and was imprisoned in 1897 for revolutionary activities. He was deported to Spain, where he was jailed until 1898. While living and working in Madrid
, he was influenced by the writings of European socialists and Marxists. Returning to the Philippines in 1901, he founded the first labor union in the country. He also was active in seeking independence from the United States. After serving in the Philippine Senate, he settled into private life and religious writing.
in Vigan, Ilocos Sur
. His mother was recognized as the first woman poet
of the Philippines. Due to their troubled marriage, Elias entrusted his 6-year-old son Isabelo to the care of Don Meno Crisologo, a wealthy relative. He was a writer in the vernacular. The boy was enrolled in a grammar school attached to the local seminary
run by Augustinians
; their harsh discipline made him a critic of the friars all his life. In 1880 at age 16, de los Reyes went to Manila
, where he finished the Bachiller en Artes
at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran
. After that, he studied law, history and palaeography
at the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas
.
for his Spanish-language book entitled El folk-lore filipino (Filipino Folklore). It was the same year that the Filipino writer Jose Rizal
published his first novel, Noli Me Tangere
in Berlin
. As a teenager, de los Reyes had been intrigued by the growing interest in the "new science" of el saber popular (folklore
). Manila's Spanish newspaper La Oceania Española asked readers to contribute articles on el folk-lore
and offered directions on how to collect material. Two months later de los Reyes set to work on the folklore of Ilocos, Malabon, and Zambales
, and what he called el folk-lore filipino. It became one of the greatest passions of his life. By 1886, as the French were starting serious study of folklore in relation to their own native traditions, de los Reyes was already producing a manuscript for publication.
After his father died when Isabelo was 18, the young man had to earn money to supplement an allowance from his mother. He pursued his passion for writing, contributing articles to most of Manila
's newspapers. In 1889 he founded El Ilocano, said to be the first newspaper written solely in a Philippine vernacular
. It was short-lived but influential. He continued to write and research extensively on Philippine history and culture, and was nicknamed Don Belong.
In late December 1898 in Madrid, he married Maria Angeles Lopez Montero, daughter of a retired Spanish infantry colonel. They also married in the Catholic Church. She died in 1910 during the birth of their ninth child.
De los Reyes married a third time in 1912, to Maria Lim, an 18-year-old Chinese mestiza
of Tondo
. They married in the independent Aglipayan Church, which he had helped found. They also had several children, and Maria died in childbirth in 1923. Before her death, she asked that they be married according to Catholic rites, which Don Belongo arranged. He and his three wives had a total of 27 children. He survived all his wives and 12 of his children.
With his own family spanning Catholic and Aglipayan traditions, Don Belong was tolerant of religious practice among his children. Isabelo de los Reyes, Jr., a son by his second marriage, was ordained as a priest and rose to Bishop of the Aglipayan Church. Four of his daughters: Angeles, Elisa, and Elvira by his second marriage, and Crescencia by his third marriage, became nuns of the Catholic Church.
church and governmental abuses during the movement for independence. He criticized the large haciendas of the friars while so many peasants were landless. In January 1897 he was arrested and held in Bilibid Prison for his part in the revolution. During this period, the writer Jose Rizal
was among those executed. A change in governors won de los Reyes a measure of leniency, and in April General Fernando Primo de Rivera
ordered him deported to Spain and prison in Barcelona
.
In 1898 de los Reyes was released and given a job in the Spanish government, as Counselor of the Ministry of the Colonies (Consejero del Ministerio de Ultramar), which he held until 1901. While in Madrid, he published articles critical of the United States
when they occupied the Philippines. He also published a biweekly newspaper, Filipinas ante Europa, which had the editorial logo: Contra Norte-America, no; contra el imperialismo, sí, hasta la muerte! (Against the Americans, no; against Imperialism, yes, till death!) It ran for 36 issues between 25 October 1899 and 10 June 1901. After closing (probably due to trouble with the authorities), it briefly reappeared as El Defensor de Filipinas, which ran monthly from 1 July to 1 October 1901.
Don Belong was not only a journalist, as he did much religious writing during his life, starting when he was first imprisoned. He helped to translate the Bible
into the Ilocano vernacular. He became one of the few convicts to translate the Scriptures
.
, Friedrich Engels
, Victor Hugo
, Pierre Joseph Proudhon, Mikhail Bakunin
, and other socialists of Europe. These books inspired him to introduce socialism
to the Philippines, where he became known as the first Filipino Marxist.
After returning, de los Reyes was jailed for inciting labor strikes against American business firms. Influenced by anarchism and Marxism during his imprisonment in Barcelona, in 1902 de los Reyes founded the first labor union in the country, the Unión Obrera Democrática. He wanted to protect Filipinos against what he perceived as the exploitation of labor by American capitalist institutions. In the same year, he and other UNO members launched the Philippine Independent Church
, to create a national church independent of the Pope and the Catholic Church
. He chose his fellow Ilocano
compatriot, Gregorio Aglipay
, as its first bishop.
In 1912 at the age of 48, Don Belong was elected as councilor of the city of Manila, and began his political career. Winning re-election, he served as councilor until 1919.
Beginning his campaign for the senate in 1922, in 1923, de los Reyes won a Senate seat in an election against Elpidio Quirino
to represent the Ilocos region.
After his term and the death of his third wife in childbirth, Don Belong returned to private life. He dedicated the remainder of his life to religious writings for the Aglipayan Church, in which he was made an honorary bishop. He wrote many sermons and other Christian literature, including the basic materials for the Aglipayan Church.
He also translated into Iloko the Gospels of the New Testament and the Acts of the Apostles.
Stricken with paralysis after a stroke in 1929, Don Belong was bedridden until his death in 1938. He was survived by 15 of his 27 children.
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and labor activist in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was the founder of the Aglipayan Church
Philippine Independent Church
The Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, (officially the or the IFI, also known as the Philippine Independent Catholic Church or in Ilocano: Siwawayawaya nga Simbaan ti Filipinas (in in Kinaray-a/Hiligaynon: Simbahan Hilway nga...
, an independent Philippine national church. For his writings and activism with labor unions, he was called the Father of Filipino Socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
.
As a young man, he followed his mother's footsteps by initially turning to writing as a career; he won a prize at the age of 23 for his first book. He became a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
, editor
Editor
The term editor may refer to:As a person who does editing:* Editor in chief, having final responsibility for a publication's operations and policies* Copy editing, making formatting changes and other improvements to text...
, and publisher in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, and was imprisoned in 1897 for revolutionary activities. He was deported to Spain, where he was jailed until 1898. While living and working in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, he was influenced by the writings of European socialists and Marxists. Returning to the Philippines in 1901, he founded the first labor union in the country. He also was active in seeking independence from the United States. After serving in the Philippine Senate, he settled into private life and religious writing.
Early life and education
Isabelo de los Reyes was born to Elias de los Reyes and Leona FlorentinoLeona Florentino
Leona Florentino was a Filipino poet in the Spanish and Ilocano languages. She is considered as the "mother of Philippine women's literature" and the "bridge from oral to literary tradition"....
in Vigan, Ilocos Sur
Ilocos Sur
Ilocos Sur is a province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Vigan City, located on the mouth of the Mestizo River is the provincial capital...
. His mother was recognized as the first woman poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
of the Philippines. Due to their troubled marriage, Elias entrusted his 6-year-old son Isabelo to the care of Don Meno Crisologo, a wealthy relative. He was a writer in the vernacular. The boy was enrolled in a grammar school attached to the local seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
run by Augustinians
Augustinians
The term Augustinians, named after Saint Augustine of Hippo , applies to two separate and unrelated types of Catholic religious orders:...
; their harsh discipline made him a critic of the friars all his life. In 1880 at age 16, de los Reyes went to Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, where he finished the Bachiller en Artes
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran
Colegio de San Juan de Letran
The Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Letran College, or simply Letran is a private Roman Catholic institution of learning located in Intramuros, Manila, in the Philippines. The college was founded in 1620. Colegio de San Juan de Letran has the distinction of being the oldest college in the...
. After that, he studied law, history and palaeography
Palaeography
Palaeography, also spelt paleography is the study of ancient writing. Included in the discipline is the practice of deciphering, reading, and dating historical manuscripts, and the cultural context of writing, including the methods with which writing and books were produced, and the history of...
at the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas
University of Santo Tomas
The Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines , is a private Roman Catholic university run by the Order of Preachers in Manila. Founded on April 28, 1611 by archbishop of Manila Miguel de Benavides, it has the oldest extant university charter in the...
.
Early career
In 1887, at the age of 23, de los Reyes won a silver medal at the Exposición Filipina in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
for his Spanish-language book entitled El folk-lore filipino (Filipino Folklore). It was the same year that the Filipino writer Jose Rizal
José Rizal
José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda , was a Filipino polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is regarded as the foremost Filipino patriot and is listed as one of the national heroes of the Philippines by...
published his first novel, Noli Me Tangere
Noli Me Tangere (novel)
Noli Me Tangere is a novel by Filipino polymath José Rizal and first published in 1887 in Berlin, Germany. Early English translations used titles like An Eagle Flight and The Social Cancer, but more recent translations have been published using the original Latin title.Though originally written in...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. As a teenager, de los Reyes had been intrigued by the growing interest in the "new science" of el saber popular (folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
). Manila's Spanish newspaper La Oceania Española asked readers to contribute articles on el folk-lore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and offered directions on how to collect material. Two months later de los Reyes set to work on the folklore of Ilocos, Malabon, and Zambales
Zambales
Zambales is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is Iba. Zambales borders Pangasinan to the north, Tarlac and Pampanga to the east, and Bataan to the south. The province lies between the South China Sea and the Zambales Mountains. With a land area of...
, and what he called el folk-lore filipino. It became one of the greatest passions of his life. By 1886, as the French were starting serious study of folklore in relation to their own native traditions, de los Reyes was already producing a manuscript for publication.
After his father died when Isabelo was 18, the young man had to earn money to supplement an allowance from his mother. He pursued his passion for writing, contributing articles to most of Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
's newspapers. In 1889 he founded El Ilocano, said to be the first newspaper written solely in a Philippine vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
. It was short-lived but influential. He continued to write and research extensively on Philippine history and culture, and was nicknamed Don Belong.
Marriage and family
At the age of 20, de los Reyes married in the Catholic Church, despite his personal feelings about its problems. He and his wife had children, but she died of illness in 1897 while he was in Bilibid Prison.In late December 1898 in Madrid, he married Maria Angeles Lopez Montero, daughter of a retired Spanish infantry colonel. They also married in the Catholic Church. She died in 1910 during the birth of their ninth child.
De los Reyes married a third time in 1912, to Maria Lim, an 18-year-old Chinese mestiza
Mestizo
Mestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
of Tondo
Tondo, Manila
Tondo is a district of Manila, Philippines. The locale has existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish, referred to as "Tundun" in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. One of the most densely populated areas of land in the world, Tondo is located in the northwest portion of the city and is primarily...
. They married in the independent Aglipayan Church, which he had helped found. They also had several children, and Maria died in childbirth in 1923. Before her death, she asked that they be married according to Catholic rites, which Don Belongo arranged. He and his three wives had a total of 27 children. He survived all his wives and 12 of his children.
With his own family spanning Catholic and Aglipayan traditions, Don Belong was tolerant of religious practice among his children. Isabelo de los Reyes, Jr., a son by his second marriage, was ordained as a priest and rose to Bishop of the Aglipayan Church. Four of his daughters: Angeles, Elisa, and Elvira by his second marriage, and Crescencia by his third marriage, became nuns of the Catholic Church.
Writing and exile
As a journalist, de los Reyes almost faced the firing squad for attracting the ire of Spanish authorities in highlighting SpanishSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
church and governmental abuses during the movement for independence. He criticized the large haciendas of the friars while so many peasants were landless. In January 1897 he was arrested and held in Bilibid Prison for his part in the revolution. During this period, the writer Jose Rizal
José Rizal
José Protacio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda , was a Filipino polymath, patriot and the most prominent advocate for reform in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial era. He is regarded as the foremost Filipino patriot and is listed as one of the national heroes of the Philippines by...
was among those executed. A change in governors won de los Reyes a measure of leniency, and in April General Fernando Primo de Rivera
Fernando Primo de Rivera
Fernando Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte, 1st Marqués of Estella, 12th Count of Peña Vélez, 17th Count of Torres Rovellas, 23rd Count of Sobremonte was a Spanish politician, and soldier....
ordered him deported to Spain and prison in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
.
In 1898 de los Reyes was released and given a job in the Spanish government, as Counselor of the Ministry of the Colonies (Consejero del Ministerio de Ultramar), which he held until 1901. While in Madrid, he published articles critical of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
when they occupied the Philippines. He also published a biweekly newspaper, Filipinas ante Europa, which had the editorial logo: Contra Norte-America, no; contra el imperialismo, sí, hasta la muerte! (Against the Americans, no; against Imperialism, yes, till death!) It ran for 36 issues between 25 October 1899 and 10 June 1901. After closing (probably due to trouble with the authorities), it briefly reappeared as El Defensor de Filipinas, which ran monthly from 1 July to 1 October 1901.
Don Belong was not only a journalist, as he did much religious writing during his life, starting when he was first imprisoned. He helped to translate the Bible
Bible translations (Ilocano)
The Ilocano Bible, published in 1909, is the second Bible to be published in any Philippine language, after the Tagalog which was published in 1905....
into the Ilocano vernacular. He became one of the few convicts to translate the Scriptures
Bible translations (Ilocano)
The Ilocano Bible, published in 1909, is the second Bible to be published in any Philippine language, after the Tagalog which was published in 1905....
.
The Philippines and politics
On July 1, 1901, the Spanish government permitted Don Belong to return to the Philippines. He brought many books with him, among which were those written by Karl MarxKarl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
, Friedrich Engels
Friedrich Engels
Friedrich Engels was a German industrialist, social scientist, author, political theorist, philosopher, and father of Marxist theory, alongside Karl Marx. In 1845 he published The Condition of the Working Class in England, based on personal observations and research...
, Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
, Pierre Joseph Proudhon, Mikhail Bakunin
Mikhail Bakunin
Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin was a well-known Russian revolutionary and theorist of collectivist anarchism. He has also often been called the father of anarchist theory in general. Bakunin grew up near Moscow, where he moved to study philosophy and began to read the French Encyclopedists,...
, and other socialists of Europe. These books inspired him to introduce socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
to the Philippines, where he became known as the first Filipino Marxist.
After returning, de los Reyes was jailed for inciting labor strikes against American business firms. Influenced by anarchism and Marxism during his imprisonment in Barcelona, in 1902 de los Reyes founded the first labor union in the country, the Unión Obrera Democrática. He wanted to protect Filipinos against what he perceived as the exploitation of labor by American capitalist institutions. In the same year, he and other UNO members launched the Philippine Independent Church
Philippine Independent Church
The Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, (officially the or the IFI, also known as the Philippine Independent Catholic Church or in Ilocano: Siwawayawaya nga Simbaan ti Filipinas (in in Kinaray-a/Hiligaynon: Simbahan Hilway nga...
, to create a national church independent of the Pope and the Catholic Church
Roman Catholicism in the Philippines
The Roman Catholic Church in the Philippines is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, in full communion with the Pope.With 73.8 million members in 2005, it is the predominant religion, making the Philippines the third largest "Catholic" nation in the world after Brazil and Mexico, as well as one...
. He chose his fellow Ilocano
Ilocano people
The Ilocano or Ilokano people are the third largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group. Aside from being referred to as Ilocanos, from "i"-from, and "looc"-bay, they also refer to themselves as Samtoy, from the Ilocano phrase "sao mi ditoy", meaning 'our language here.' The word "Ilocano" came from...
compatriot, Gregorio Aglipay
Gregorio Aglipay
Gregorio Labayan Aglipay was the first Filipino Supreme Bishop of the Philippine Independent Church.-Early life:...
, as its first bishop.
In 1912 at the age of 48, Don Belong was elected as councilor of the city of Manila, and began his political career. Winning re-election, he served as councilor until 1919.
Beginning his campaign for the senate in 1922, in 1923, de los Reyes won a Senate seat in an election against Elpidio Quirino
Elpidio Quirino
Elpidio Rivera Quirino was a Filipino politician, and the sixth President of the Philippines.A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered politics when he became a representative of Ilocos Sur from 1919 to 1925. He was then elected as senator from 1925–1931...
to represent the Ilocos region.
After his term and the death of his third wife in childbirth, Don Belong returned to private life. He dedicated the remainder of his life to religious writings for the Aglipayan Church, in which he was made an honorary bishop. He wrote many sermons and other Christian literature, including the basic materials for the Aglipayan Church.
Works
- Biblia Filipina (Philippine Bible);
- Oficio Divino (Mass-Book);
- Catequesis (Catechism);
- Plegarias (Prayers);
- Genesis Cientifico y Moderno (Scientific and Modern Genesis); and
- Calendario Aglipayano (Aglipayan Calendar).
- Ang Singsing ng Dalagang MarmolAng Singsing ng Dalagang MarmolAng Singsing nang Dalagang Marmol , contemporarily rendered as Ang Singsing ng Dalagang Marmol in the Tagalog language, is a historical novel written by Filipino novelist, scholar, and labor leader Isabelo Florentino de los Reyes before 1905...
(circa 1905), a novel
He also translated into Iloko the Gospels of the New Testament and the Acts of the Apostles.
Stricken with paralysis after a stroke in 1929, Don Belong was bedridden until his death in 1938. He was survived by 15 of his 27 children.
External links
- Province of Ilocos Sur, Official Website
- "Isabelo de los Reyes", Senators Profile