Resil Mojares passes on: Cebu lost a literary gem

National

CEBU has lost one of its most treasured literary and historical voices.

National Artist for Literature and historian Dr. Resil B. Mojares died early Saturday, Sept. 5, just a day after celebrating his 83rd birthday, his daughter Anna Leigh Go Mojares announced.

“We are heartbroken to share the passing of our beloved father, Resil Buagas Mojares… He had just celebrated his 83rd birthday yesterday, and we are grateful to have spent his final day honoring and celebrating his life,” Leigh said in a statement.

She said the family was grateful to have spent his final day celebrating his life.

Mojares is survived by his children Kim Carmel, Mark Soren, Ressa Gail and Anna Leigh, as well as their spouses and his five grandchildren.

Details of the wake and memorial service will be announced later, the family said.

For Cebu’s literary and historical community, Mojares’ death marked the loss of one of its most influential scholars and chroniclers.

Historian Jose Eleazar “Jobers” Bersales described Mojares’ passing as the loss of a mentor, friend, neighbor and fellow traveler in the study of history.

“All these and our Sunday breakfast tete-a-tetes are memories I will always cherish,” Bersales said. “With your sudden passing, Cebu has lost its most precious literary gem.”

The Cultural and Historical Affairs Commission of Cebu City said Mojares made “invaluable contributions” to the understanding of Cebu’s history, culture and people.

The National Museum Cebu likewise remembered him as a prolific writer whose works enriched knowledge of Cebuano history and cultural heritage.

In October 2024, the museum hosted Mojares for a lecture and book signing for his work Enigmatic Objects: Notes Towards a History of the Museum in the Philippines.

“Daghan kaayong salamat sa pagpaambit sa imong takus nga kaalam ngadto sa mga Sugbuanon,” the National Museum Cebu said.

Mojares’ scholarship had a lasting impact far beyond Cebu.

He was a pioneer in Philippine local studies and founded the University of San Carlos Cebuano Studies Center in 1975, one of the country’s first regional studies centers.

His extensive body of work covered Philippine history, literature and cultural history, with six of his books receiving the National Book Award.

Among his notable works were The War Against the Americans: Resistance and Collaboration in Cebu Province, House of Memory: Essays and Vicente Sotto: The Maverick Senator.

He also contributed to the Cebu Town History Project, writing the history of Cebu province and helping deepen public understanding of the region’s past.

In 2018, Mojares was conferred the Order of National Artists of the Philippines for Literature in recognition of his contributions to Philippine literary and scholarly development.

From 2018 to 2021, he chaired the panel of experts convened by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines to examine competing claims over the site of the First Easter Sunday Mass in the Philippines.

The panel, which became known as the “Mojares Panel,” reaffirmed Limasawa in Southern Leyte as the site of the 1521 Easter Sunday Mass.

The NHCP described Mojares as a “true titan of local history” and said his passing was mourned by the nation.

“We extend our deepest condolences to his family, loved ones, colleagues, and the whole Filipino people in his passing. A true titan of local history has left us,” NHCP stated.(RBE)