“What good are the friars doing here if the people can revolt?” (36) is a rhetorical question posed by Simoun, who is Juan Crisóstomo Ibarra in disguise, to the group above deck on the steamship in Chapter 1. It was a longstanding belief in both the Philippines and Spain that the friars were the primary reason the people did not revolt, because of religious devotion to the Catholic faith. However, as José Rizal’s first novel illustrates, and his second novel El Filibusterismo reinforces, the friars keep the population in check largely through intimidation, abusing the people and taking advantage of them.

In the colonial Philippines, several clerical denominations within the Catholic faith ruled much of the area along feudal lines. They had power over the people from birth to death, and this power led to many abuses. Antonio de Morga, a governor of the Philippines between 1595-1603, complained about priest behavior, and other Spanish figures critical of the clergy wrote similar reports. Abusive friars and priests were removed from their areas and sent elsewhere, which merely transferred problems. There are three types of clerical abuse addressed in the novel—financial, sexual, and educational.

The clergy’s financial abuse is best illustrated by Cabesang Tales’s story.