Walking the walk: A Kalanguya catechist’s journey 

BAGUIO, Philippines – “Sitio Abat in Cabayo, Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya is so remote, people there could neither read nor write and they only spoke and understood Kalanguya,” said Lilia Waclin. “But they were interested in learning the Catholic faith and they willingly listened.” This is just one of the places that Waclin travels to as a volunteer catechist, hiking through muddy trails and rock slides, crossing rivers for anywhere between one to ten hours to evangelize. 

Waclin, 61, is an unassuming Kalanguya who lives in the remote highland village of Lusod, Kabayan located within the Mount Pulag Protected Landscape – at least nine hours’ trek from the town center (poblacion). People hike narrow trails to travel between villages and even other municipalities. The farm-to-market road was constructed only in 2003. 

Seeds of faith

Waclin converted to Catholicism at age 17, when she got married. At 23, she became a catechist.

“I just felt a desire in my heart to do it,“ she said.

Neither Waclin nor her husband, Romeo, have what would be conventionally considered a job. They grow and raise food for family consumption, like kamote and chickens, in their backyard. Her highest educational attainment is sixth grade. He is a high school graduate.

They have five children, all of whom completed college degrees. 

“I don’t know how, but we managed. We had to take out loans for their school expenses. We paid the loans after they had graduated,” Waclin said.

In remote highland villages like Lusod, the presence of a Catholic priest is a rarity. The ratio of priest to Catholics is estimated between 7,000-10,000. Taking to heart the words: “live and share your faith”, Waclin organized Sunday prayer meetings with the only other Catholic family in their village. 

When she started working as a catechist, Waclin hiked steep and leech-infested trails searching for baptized Catholics on a list from the 1970s. During this time Belgian priests went on missions to the Danggo Elementary School in Tinoc, Ifugao, and baptized children there. Most of them were married with children. Some of them were active members of other religions. But those who were not, Waclin encouraged their families to organize into a gimong or basic ecclesial community – the smallest unit under the Catholic church. Every Sunday, they would gather at a home or community hall, pray the holy rosary followed by a prayer meeting, then share lunch before going back home. Some families hiked for two hours from their homes.

They found an abandoned Catholic chapel in Danggo – an hour’s walk from Lusod – and together, rebuilt it. The families in Lusod joined them to form the St. Therese of the Child Jesus gimong in 1993. 

From 1986 to 1996, Waclin would periodically hike from Lusod to Kiangan, Ifugao for catechists’ meetings. 

“I would hike the mountain trail for one day to Tinoc, spend the night there. In the morning, a few catechists would join me to walk to Kiangan. By the time I arrived at the meeting, I was exhausted!”

When Tinoc became a mission station in 1997, her travel time was cut in half: “At least I only had to walk for about six hours,” she recalled.

Waclin has been instrumental in organizing and converting many of her fellow Kalanguyas in the tri-boundary area of Tinoc, Ifugao (under the Apostolic Vicariate of Bontoc-Lagawe); Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya (under the Diocese of Bayombong); and Kabayan, Benguet (under the Diocese of Baguio). 

In Landing, barangay Balete, Kayapa – about an hour’s hike from Danggo – the St. John Bosco gimong was formed in 1997.

In Abat, barangay Cabayo, Kayapa – two hours’ hike from Balete – the Immaculate Conception gimong was established in 1998. 

Families originally from Lusod migrated to find work in farms in Abucot, barangay Eddet in Kabayan. They started the St. Luke the Evangelist gimong in 2018.

In her desire to better catechize, Waclin translated Catholic catechetical modules into Kalanguya. Her daughter Rolyn did the layout. A year’s work yielded 20 printed copies of “Doctrina ni Katoliko” (Catholic Doctrine). Now, only one remains with her, because the rest have been given away to people who asked. 

Waclin visits potential converts in their homes, setting a common date and time, to go through each module. Sometimes, she needs to go back several times to review each module and make sure that someone fully understands the Catholic faith before committing to be baptized. 

Personal battles

Waclin has overcome several health issues over the years, including myoma in 2003 and gallstones in 2008. In 2012, after she was diagnosed with lymphoma, her doctor immediately recommended chemotherapy. She was in and out of the hospital for a year but for Holy Week in 2013, she returned to the St. Therese gimong. “I prayed that the Lord would give me strength so I could lead the observances. I made it all the way until Easter Sunday.”

While completing chemotherapy, surrounded by death and faced with her mortality, Waclin prayed the Divine Mercy devotion, saying: “If you heal me, I will continue working in your vineyard.”

Though she lost vision in her left eye, she has recovered and continues to catechize. 

In 2015, she earned her Alternative Learning System certificate.

Sustained efforts

Waclin started organizing a community in sitio Lab-ong in Namal, Asipulo, Ifugao – two hours’ hike from Lusod – in 2014, but her illness stalled it. In 2021, they reorganized and now, families regularly meet there for Sunday prayer service.

In Lusod, they finally organized the St. Catherine of Siena gimong in 2019; plans for chapel construction were drawn up in 2021. The community members pooled resources to purchase the land and building materials, and construction started in September 2024. Many of the supplies come all the way from Baguio, though the lumber is from their own forests. Neighbors of all ages pitch in with their time, effort, and even provide food for the main construction workers. 

Catholic priests from the different dioceses and apostolic vicariate now visit the said gimongs once a month (but once every two months during the rainy season, when rockslides make the areas inaccessible), to celebrate Mass and other sacraments, including baptism, confession, and marriage. The communities are steadily growing, Waclin said.

In 2010, Waclin was elected to the barangay council and served three consecutive terms. At present, she is the community’s Indigenous People Mandatory Representative to the local legislative council. “I’m challenged! Not only the church but my ka-barangays need me, too.”

Waclin is currently also organizing a gimong in Babalak, barangay Bashoy, Kabayan. She sometimes visits the gimongs she helped organize. 

Waclin looks forward to holding Sunday services and sacraments at their very own church in Lusod soon. She has no intention of slowing down. “The good that I have done is not yet enough. I still have a mission, that’s probably why I’m still here. I will continue as long as I can.“ – Rappler.com

*Quotes have been translated to English for brevity.