Vicente Gullas on character formation

Two days ago we wrote about some insights on the personality of Don Vicente Gullas, founder of the University of the Visayas. Now we shall explore his views on character formation. As an educator, Gullas' focus was on character formation. In his talks to students in the classrooms or in larger gatherings, he would harp on the importance of a well-constituted personality as a means of self-improvement. Values education became a curricular concern in the 1990s, but long before this, UV's founder was already on track toward this end.

Although he was convinced that a strong character is a deciding factor for success, he believed that one's motivation for goodness should transcend personal gain. Service to fellowmen as well as to God and country figured prominently in Gullas' thinking. Service to him is "the best test of manhood".

A man could be an achiever financially, but it does not follow that he lives a successful life. Success cannot be measured by the weight of one's gold, but by the quality of service he has extended to others. Here's a quote from The Art of Living Well, one of Gullas' inspiration books:

To some people the acquisition of wealth is already a success, but the truth is that the mere possession of money does not mean a successful life. Misers who have acquired vast wealth have become life's failures.

Those who have money, who live only to be served and not to serve, or those who have amassed wealth at the misfortune, sorrows and shattered hopes of their fellowmen, belong to the class of lost souls: Neurotic, lonely, despondent.

In today's social order where 10 percent of the population controls 90 percent of the wealth, these words of Gullas carry deep significance. For he was not talking only of avarice but also of greed and callousness; greed for those who got their fortune at the expense of others' misfortune, and callousness for those who fail to share what they have with those who have nothing.

But how can the social conscience be awakened? Love, to Gullas, is the key. If service is the best test of manhood, love is the greatest law of life. The home is the place where love is first learned. "Home is a world of love". It is the foundation of government, a place where love and intimate affection are first awakened, where faith in God is acquired, and where the soul gets its nourishment in sensitivity and compassion.

The school functions as a "sort of a bigger home". It complements the values learned in the family. While the school teaches the art of acquiring knowledge, it also infuses discipline in the mind and heart of the child. This, coupled with a seasoning in spiritual matters, makes the individual a good person and a desirable member of society.

Every teacher is therefore tasked to do her job as a formator of character. "The teacher", writes Gullas, "should be the developer of personality. When the students come to school, there is already in them the germs of manhood and womanhood ready for nourishment" To teach character successfully, the best strategy is through the use of exemplars. The teacher herself is best exemplar. Her behavior in words and deeds inside or outside the classroom teaches the child how to behave. Whether desirable or despicable such behavior depends upon the teacher. Hence, it is critical that she who stands in front of the children is somebody whose personality is wholesome and whose ideas reflect whatever is good, true and beautiful in life.

Together with the home and the school, the Church too participates in the formation of character. Love, the focal point of Gullas' formation strategy, is a function of faith. God is love, he says, and Christ is "the greatest teacher of all times because he lived and exemplified Himself as love, charity and the brotherhood of men".

Have faith in God, Gullas advises, because faith saves us from worries, lightens our sufferings, and strengthens our self-respect.