Filipino girl eyed for sainthood

By Vito Barcelo

AFILIPINO girl who died 30 years ago is in the process of possible sainthood after receiving approval from a bishop at an episcopal conference in the Diocese of Kalibo, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines said.

Niña Ruiz-Abad, whose family hails from Sarrat, Ilocos Norte, was just 13 years old when she lost her battle against hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, an incurable heart disease she was diagnosed with at the age of 10, in August 1993.

While her life was short, Bishop Renato Mayugba of Laoag said she left a major impact on people whose lives were touched by her deep faith in God and acts of charity. Abad had a strong devotion to the Eucharist and devoted her life to distributing rosaries, Bibles, prayer books, holy images, and other religious items. She was also known for always wearing white dresses with a rosary around her neck.

The bishop said that at a very young age, Abad showed behaviors and acts that were unusual for her age.

“During her time, it is unusual that a young girl had already done acts to evangelize others,” he said.

“Niña’s life was a prayerful life full of reverence, worship, and an intimate relationship with God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and to the Blessed Virgin Mary,” Mayugba said.

At the recent plenary assembly of the episcopal conference in the Diocese of Kalibo, Mayugba presented to the bishops a request to open the sainthood cause of Abad.

The process that leads to sainthood does not usually start until five years after a person’s death.

With the bishops’ approval, it opened the door to the formal investigation of her life and witnessing, which may take years before a possible decision from the Catholic Church leadership in Rome regarding her potential beatification and canonization.

The initial stages include gathering information about the candidate and interviewing witnesses who knew the person.

Abad was a daughter of a lawyer couple from Sarrat, but she was born and grew up in Quezon City, along with her only sibling, Mary Anne, because of their parents’ work. Her father died when she was just three years old.