Memorial of Saint Andrew Dung-Lac, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs
What do we know about Vietnam? Are we not acting as if Europe or America were the navel of the world? The martyrs of Vietnam remind us that we have no patent for sanctity. In American movies about the Vietnam War, the natives only play the role of decorations. They appear and disappear in the jungle, smile or shoot to the American Rambo that the president sent to war. We learn nothing about the fate of the Vietnamese.
On June 18, 1988, during a solemn Mass celebrated in front of St. Peter Basilica in Rome, John Paul II canonized 117 Vietnamese martyrs. They died in their homeland in the years 1773-1862 for publicly professing their faith in Jesus Christ. In addition to missionaries from Europe and local priests, also catechists and lay people, including Agnes Le Thi Than, mother of six children. They preferred to die rather than renounce the holy Catholic faith. This number included eight bishops and fifty priests.
Christian missionaries came to Vietnam as early as the 16th century. The history of this Church is closely linked to the path of martyrdom. The bloodiest persecution took place in the years 1820-1840. From 100,000 to 300,000 Christians sacrificed their lives for their faith in Jesus. They mainly inhabited East Tonkin.
Saint Andrew Dung-Lac represents all Vietnamese martyrs in the world. He was born in 1795 to a poor pagan family in the north of Vietnam. When he was 12, his parents moved to Hanoi but did not find a job. During this most difficult period, Andrew met a catechist who gave him shelter and food. He lived in the Vinh-Tri mission, where he was baptized after three years. He was also educated, and after eight years Dung became a catechist. After ten years of teaching catechism and preparing children to consciously receive the sacraments. Andrew began his theological studies and, upon graduation, was ordained a priest on March 15, 1823. He was a parish priest in many places. One day his house was demolished and he was arrested. He was released from prison thanks to the money collected and given to a state official.
Father Andrew was not afraid of persecution, he moved to an even more dangerous place, around Hanoi. Then he confessed: "Those who die for the faith go to heaven; and we are still hiding, we are paying money to be released from prison. It would be more beneficial if we were detained and put to death." Four years later, his desire was fulfilled when he was arrested a second time by a certain official on November 10, 1839. He was then at the house of Peter Thi. To defend him, the faithful collected a large sum of money. Unfortunately, when he was arrested again by the police chief after six days in detention, he did not regain his freedom.
Before his martyrdom, he was tortured, urged to renounce his faith and to trample our Lord's cross. He chose to die, faithful to Jesus Christ to the end. He was beheaded on December 21, 1839. Together with him was imprisoned and sentenced to death, Fr. Peter Thi.
Let us pray to God that the martyrdom of 117 Vietnamese martyrs, whom we remember on November 24, also bear fruit today in the courage of faith of the contemporary believers of Christ in Vietnam, who are deprived of full freedom to profess their faith by the communist government of that country.
The communists currently ruling Vietnam are striving to systematically eliminate all religious organizations. Yet the Church lives and grows. Of the 86 million inhabitants, 8 million are Catholic. There are 3,000.00 priests, 1,500 religious, thousands of nuns, 1,500 seminarians and 66,000 catechists in 27 dioceses (including three archdioceses) with 2,228 parishes. There are 100,000 baptisms each year. Our sisters and our brothers live in distant Vietnam. We are not the navel of the world and we do not have patent for holiness.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george