04-004
1877.03.19. Rome, [Italy]
Fr. Jacinto Febres
TO: Jose Rizal
[Misc.]
Advice of a former professor: Cultivate the “flower of virtue”.
Rome, 19 March 1877
MR. JOSE RIZAL
My very beloved Jose,
In my room at the Colegio de Manila I received your letter written on the occasion of my departure for Europe for reasons of health. I cannot but give you a thousand thanks for the moving as well as poetic phrases with which you depict the grief which your good heart feels for my departure. I have read and reread that letter with great pleasure and solace. In it you allude to a remembrance I gave you showing the Divine Gardener planting a flower and this flower is planted in your heart; it is the flower of virtue. Watch it well to keep it in your possession, if your conscience is tranquil, because soon it will be withered, and in order to keep it fresh, sprinkle it with the holy water of frequent confession and communion.
Try to be good, to be bomb-proof, so that when you discover evil, when you see it, it may not take hold of your heart. Run to the Father Confessor and at his feet tell him about the temptation and like a good father, like a good gardener, he will know how to cultivate this flower of virtue. In this way it will grow, bear fruit, which you will gather in heaven.
I have not sent this letter directly to your house because I think that you are still staying in the College. The Reverend Father Prefect will inform you where I live, in case you wish to write me. I am in Rome on my way to Florence, France, and Spain. My health is improving everyday, though slowly I hope you will offer communion for me. Today, which is your saint’s day, I remember you in my poor prayers. Greet on my behalf Cucullu, [Glicerio] Anzon, Perez, and other colleagues.
Your most affectionate watcher who loves you,
JACINTO FEBRES, S.J.[1]
[1] Fr. Jacinto Febres, S.J., one of Rizal’s professors at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila.