NHCP to lead 154th martyrdom anniversary of Gomburza priests

The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) will lead the commemoration of the 154th anniversary of the martyrdom of the priests Mariano Gomes, Jose Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora on Monday, February 16.

In a statement, the NHCP said a wreath-laying ceremony will be held at 7 a.m. at the Gomburza execution site at the Rizal Park in Manila.

NHCP commissioner Dr. Ma. Eloisa De Castro will lead the rites. She will be joined by the National Parks Development Committee (NPDC), the city government of Manila, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

After this, the NHCP and NPDC, along with the San Vicente de Paul Parish Church, will bless the final resting place of the martyr priests in Paco Park.

At 8:00 a.m., the NHCP, the National Museum of the Philippines, and the Intramuros Administration (IA) will also offer flowers at the Gomburza National Monument in front of the National Museum of Fine Arts along Padre Burgos Drive in Manila.

The NHCP and the Metropolitan Theater will also host a screening of the documentary “Gomburza” at 11 a.m.

The local government units of Manila, Bacoor City in Cavite, and Vigan City in Ilocos Sur will also conduct similar commemorative activities for the 154th anniversary of the martyrdom of the three priests.

Gomes, Burgos, and Zamora were secular priests who were arrested and tried by the Spanish colonial government for allegedly supporting the Cavite Mutiny of 1872.

Despite the lack of substantial evidence, they were executed by garrote on February 17, 1872.

The three priests were prominent figures in the early Filipinization of the Catholic Church in the country and pushed for secular and racial equality in their ministry, access to education, and other social and political rights.

Historians have recognized their martyrdom as the first sparks towards the formation of a Filipino national consciousness that would later lead to the 1896 Philippine Revolution against Spanish rule. — JMA, GMA Integrated News