MVP’s favorite teacher: Fr. Roque Ferriols exorcised spirits from Basil Valdez’s condo
Here’s a tale you won’t hear every day. Imagine Fr. Roque Ferriols, S.J., the late, brilliant philosopher and legendary Ateneo de Manila professor, exorcising spirits from singer Basil Valdez’s condo! Yes, you heard that right.
My former philosophy professor, Dr. Manuel Dy, shared this story at the July 23 symposium celebrating Fr. Ferriols’ centennial. It seems Basil once called Dr. Dy, desperate for help with some haunting issues. When Fr. Jaime Bulatao, SJ, was unavailable, who else but Fr. Ferriols would step in, coming out of his retreat to shoo those spirits away? Talk about heavenly intervention!
The symposium at Ateneo was a hit, packing the Faura AVR Room. The event, titled The Story of the Wheelwright: The Influence of Chinese Philosophy on the Thought of Fr. Roque Ferriols, SJ, featured an impressive lineup of speakers: Ateneo president Fr. Robert C. Yap, S.J., Dr. Manny Dy, Dr. Christine Abigail L. Tan from the National University of Singapore (NUS), Ateneo Philosophy Dept. chair Dr. Wilhelm S. Strebel, Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Inc. (FFCCCII) executive vice president Victor Lim, and Ateneo School of Humanities dean Dr. Patricia P. Lambino (whose husband is talented Ateneo-educated former Smokey Mountain singer, then Dept. of Finance Assistant Secretary when he spoke at the Pandesal Forum and now Ayala Foundation president Tony Lambino).
Special thanks to FFCCCII’s first-ever Ateneo-educated president, Dr. Cecilio K. Pedro, who sponsored the event but is now abroad and was represented by EVP Victor Lim. Kudos also to Dr. Strebel and Prof. Dr. Jovi Miroy for teaming up with me as FFCCCII Public Information Committee chairman to co-organize this symposium, with backing from FFCCCII VP Jeffrey Ng and FFCCCII Public Information Committee co-chairman Eduardo Cobankiat.
Among various notable attendees were former Supreme Court Justice Adolfo Azcuna, business leader Lance Gokongwei’s father-in-law, industrialist Ricardo Leong (1950s captain ball of the Ateneo basketball team) and wife Dr. Rosita Lim Leong, FFCCCII director Miguel Tan, Rappler news editor Paterno Esmaquel II, et al.
Even the high-powered CEO Manuel “Manny” V. Pangilinan of PLDT, Smart Communications, Meralco, TV5, and Philex Mining Corp. joined the event. He reminisced: “For opening my eyes to the world around me and to the soul within me, Fr. Roque Ferriols is my Ateneo hero.”
MVP fondly recalled his philosophy classes with Ferriols, emphasizing how at his senior year final exam of a thesis defense, a gentle rebuke from the good Father about the need for him “to be more human” has stayed with him throughout his life.
Back in 1969, when Ateneo was still dominated by American Jesuits and all classes were in Arneow English, the Ilocano Fr. Ferriols boldly started teaching philosophy in Tagalog. This “linguistic turn” was a radical move, described by Prof. Dr. Franz Giuseppe F. Cortez as “a political act.” Resistance from the school administration, then? You bet! That was attested to by philosophy professors Dr. Gus Rodriguez and Fr. Nemesio Que, SJ.
It was indeed the progressive Fr. Ferriols’ daring approach that brought highbrow ivory-tower philosophy to the masses and in the native lingua franca, much like great philosophers Descartes and Kierkegaard did in their time, according to my former Ateneo dean Dr. Leo Garcia.
Fr. Ferriols didn’t just stop at Western philosophy of teaching and translating Greek texts into Filipino. He often cited ancient Chinese Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu (also spelled “Zhuangzi”), weaving Eastern and Western thought into a rich chop suey of Filipinized wisdom. This ingenious blend of philosophies offered generations of enthralled students a unique perspective on life’s complexities.
The late Emmanuel “Emman” F. Lacaba, an award-winning poet and revolutionary, wrote in Ateneo’s The Guidon newspaper: “One must not make the mistake of capsulizing Father Ferriols. Like the reality he discusses daily in his classes, Father Ferriols is rich and complicated and can’t be categorized.”
Atty. Tony La Viña, former dean of the Ateneo School of Government, chimed in about his unforgettable teacher, “Padre Roque was the most brilliant and wisest Filipino I have ever met.” He likened Ferriols to Jose Rizal and Fr. Horacio de la Costa for his linguistic mastery and cultural insights.
He quoted Fr. de la Costa describing Ferriols as the only real genius among Filipino Jesuits. La Viña also recalled Fr. Ferriols’ profound teaching on finding and obeying the will of God. The inimitable “Father of Filipino Philosophy” Fr. Ferriols said: “Isa lang ang mahalaga sa buhay: hanapin ang kalooban ng Diyos at tuparin ito (There is only one thing important in life: find the will of God and obey it).”