Who is Ka Luring? New Filipina being pushed for sainthood
MANILA, Philippines — The Vatican recently authorized an inquiry into the sainthood cause of Filipina catechist Laurena "Ka Luring" Franco by the Dioceses of Pasig.
Earlier this year, the diocese confirmed the publication of a Banns for the Causa Sanctita Process for Ka Luring, to which earlier this week the Holy See's Dicastery for the Causes of Saints issued a "nihil obstat" document to officially begin looking into the possibility of making Ka Luring a saint.
Ka Luring was born on July 4, 1935 and at a young age joined the Legion of Mary, a group devoted to the mother of Jesus.
She worked as a telephone switchboard operator and clerk at the Philippine Airforce but left to teach catechism without pay while helping those in need.
According to a 1995 report by the Union of Catholic Asian News, Ka Luring was one of only two women in the entire Archdiocese of Manila authorized to distribute Holy Communion.
Then-pope John Paul II, now a saint, bestowed on Ka Luring in 1990 the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice for her service as a volunteer catechist following the recommendation of the late Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin.
In 2002, Ka Luring received the Mother Teresa of Calcutta Award, given to those known to promote peace, equality, and social justice.
Related: Vatican permits inquiry into Filipina catechist's sainthood
She passed away in 2011 at the age of 76 after a battle with ovarian cancer.
The Dioceses of Pasig's postulator Erickson Javier previously shared miracles believed to have occurred because Catholics prayed at Ka Luring's grave, however, these reports remain unverified.
These include a person waking up from an induced coma resulting from a car accident after 10 days because the individual's relatives were colleagues of Ka Luring and they prayed at her tomb.
Under the Roman Catholic faith, saints are regarded as someone with a unique holiness and closeness with the Lord.
The process could take years before a possible decision from Rome with regards to a potential beatification and finally, canonization as saint.
As it stands, Ka Luring is recognized as a Servant of God, as are Filipino individuals like Pedro Pelaez, Rhoel Gallardo, Darwin Ramos, and Niña Ruiz-Abad.
As of writing, there are only two Filipino saints, Lorenzo Ruiz and Pedro Calungsod, though it can be recalled there is also push for Abad — who died aged 13 — to become one of the youngest-ever saints. — with reports from James Relativo and Ian Patrick Laqui
