They are called the people of the mountains.
The Binukignon—nearly 195,000 strong—are one of the largest indigenous peoples of Negros Island in the central Philippines. For generations, they have lived in the rugged highlands that divide Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental, shaped by land, memory, and an oral way of life. Long ago, many lived in the lowlands, but waves of migration and encroachment pushed them higher into the mountains, where culture and language became their last stronghold of identity.
For most of their history, the Word of God reached them only from the outside—spoken in languages that were not their own, taught through forms that did not match how they learned, remembered, or believed. Scripture existed, but it never fully settled into the heart.
Yohanes remembers the first time it did.
He closed his eyes and began to chant—not reading from a page, but reciting from memory. The words moved slowly, carried by rhythm, spoken aloud in Binukignon, the language of his people. Around him, the community sat in silence. Some listened with folded hands. Others with tears. Many were hearing God’s Word in the language of home for the first time.
Among the Binukignon, language is more than communication—it is identity. Without it, a people slowly disappear. Today, fewer than half still speak Binukignon fluently, and most of those speakers are adults. The language is often heard only during ceremonies, weddings, or when elders gather. But now, Scripture has given it voice again.
Yohanes is a respected leader in the village of Hermit, Binalbagan, in Negros Occidental. He serves as a lay pastor and a Bible translator, helping bring Scripture to the Binukignon people through Oral Bible Translation (OBT). His prayer is simple: that his children and his community would know God—not as a distant figure—but as One who speaks their language.
But Yohanes’s past tells a different story.
Years earlier, his life was shaped by instability and conflict in the region, a time that left lasting weight on his conscience. Faith existed in his village, but it was inherited rather than understood—passed down through custom, not Scripture. The Bible was present, but distant, locked in unfamiliar languages that never truly reached him.
Everything began to change four years ago.
When Oral Bible Translation started among the Binukignon, Yohanes joined with curiosity, not knowing how deeply it would confront him. Scripture was no longer read silently or explained from the outside. It was spoken aloud, repeated together, discussed in community, memorized, prayed, and sung. For an oral people—many of whom cannot read or write—the Word was finally received in the way it was meant to be heard.
As Yohanes worked through the stories of Scripture, one truth pierced him: Christ shed His blood so that all might be saved.
That truth forced him to look honestly at his own life. The same Word he was translating began translating him. Where his past had been marked by bloodshed, Scripture spoke of forgiveness. Where there had been fear, the Word offered peace. Redemption was no longer an idea—it was personal.
One story stayed with him in particular: the blind man who believed before he could see.
For Yohanes, it became a testimony of faith—trusting God beyond circumstances, beyond guilt, beyond the weight of the past. Like the blind man who cried out, “Son of David, have mercy on me,” Yohanes learned that faith begins not with sight, but with surrender.
Among the Binukignon, Scripture is often sung or chanted. Prayer sounds more like blessing than recitation. Yohanes regularly leads his people in spoken prayers that honor God as Creator, trusting that the One who formed them will also sustain them. Faith, in this community, takes root when it is heard together.
The impact of Oral Bible Translation has not stopped with one man.
Through Scripture in their heart language, Binukignon identity has been affirmed and preserved. Children now hear Bible stories in the language of their grandparents. Families gather to listen. Faith is no longer borrowed from another culture—it is understood, owned, and passed on.
Yohanes speaks often of the future.
“This work is for the next generation,” he says. “It will be generational.”
His testimony bears witness to a quiet but powerful truth: when the Word of God is spoken in the heart language of a people, it does more than inform. It restores dignity. It strengthens faith. And it transforms lives—one voice, one family, one generation at a time.
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