Servant of God

Niña Ruiz Abad
Photograph of Niña Ruiz Abad, circa 1982
Born(1979-10-31)31 October 1979
Paligsahan, Quezon City, Philippines
Died16 August 1993(1993-08-16) (aged 13)
School of the Holy Spirit, Quezon City, Philippines
Cause of deathHeart attack

Niña Ruiz Abad (October 31, 1979 – August 16, 1993) was a young Filipino Servant of God. She was widely known as "the girl who always wore a rosary".[1][2][3]

Biography

Abad was born October 31, 1979, at Capitol Medical Center in Quezon City to a lawyer couple from Sarrat, but her father died when she was three years old. She was baptized at Santo Domingo Church on March 15, 1980.[2][4]

She attended nursery at the University of the Philippines Child Study Center in Diliman, Quezon City, and kindergarten to grade two at the Holy Angels Montessori School in the same city.[2][5] In April 1988, her family transferred to Sarrat, Ilocos Norte, where her mother became the chief hearing officer of the Commission on the Settlement of Land Problems of the Department of Justice.[4][5]

Spiritual life

Ruiz Abad during her first communion.

Abad was described as having "a strong devotion to the Eucharist and devoted her life to distributing rosaries, Bibles, prayer books, holy images, and other religious items".[4][2] Because of her strong Catholic faith, which she earned from her pious mother, she became an inspiration to numerous people in Ilocos Norte and Quezon City.[5] Bishop Mayugba emphasized Abad's popularity for her faith, saying

"If one asks, 'Do you know Niña Ruiz Abad?' The answer would be, 'That's the girl who always wore a rosary. The girl who loved to pray. The girl who loves God so much'."[4]

At the age of 10, Abad was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.[2] On August 16, 1993, she had a heart attack at school. She was rushed immediately to the hospital where she eventually died.[4][3]

Sainthood Cause

Three decades after her death and with the approval of Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Bishop Renato Mayugba of Laoag initiated the sainthood cause for Abad noting that she could serve as a "good model of piety and fortitude" for modern Filipino youth.[1] Bishop Mayugba obtained the approval of Bishop Roberto Gaa for the transfer of the competent forum to the Laoag diocese, which was also approved by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.[4][3][5][2]

References

  1. 1 2 Charie Abarca (20 July 2023). "Ilocos Norte girl Niña Ruiz Abad on path to sainthood 30 years after death". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Paterno R. Esmaquel III (20 July 2023). "Church starts process to make 13-year-old Ilocano girl a saint". Rappler. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Claire Bernadette Mondares (21 July 2023). "Sainthood eyed for 13-year-old Filipina". Manila Times. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Roy Lagarde (19 July 2023). "Filipino girl eyed for sainthood". CBCP News. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Ron Lim (21 July 2023). "CBCP eyes 13-year-old Niña Ruiz-Abad for sainthood". GMA News. Retrieved 25 July 2023.
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