Recently, Stephen was at the home of an Agutaynen friend, Ilajo. During the course of their visit, Stephen realized that Ilajo was getting ready to go to seek "medical treatment" for a recent dog bite. Stephen asked if he could go along to observe, and he agreed. They ended up at the local "albolario" (spirit doctor).
Since that time, Stephen has been able to speak with Ilajo about albolarios, and learn more about them. Ilajo said that she, and other albolarios, received their knowledge of medicine through dreams given to them by the "good spirits of the forest". This has opened up opportunities to speak with many other people about both good and bad spirits. Our Agutaynens live their lives trying to appease all the spirits in the hopes that they will have the food that they need, and be healthy.
Disclaimer: We do not encourage our Agutaynen friends to seek medical help from albolarios. Stephen went along on this one occasion simply to observe and gain more knowledge of the Agutaynen culture and belief system. Hopefully this will help us more clearly present the truth when our team can teach the Bible.
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