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March 19, 2019 | The Valley Catholic
VIETNAMESE NEWS
Vietnamese Archbishop Remembered As ‘Man of Smiles’
ucanews.com reporter
Vietnam
Thousands of Catholics in southern
Vietnam have remembered their late
archbishop as a source of joy on the
first anniversary of his death.
Bishop Joseph Do Manh Hung,
apostolate administrator of Ho Chi
Minh City Archdiocese, presided at an
event commemorating the late Arch-
bishop Paul Bui Van Doc at the arch-
diocese’s pastoral center on March 7.
Two cardinals, 11 bishops and
hundreds of priests joined the special
ceremony attended by 4,000 people in-
cluding the late archbishop’s relatives.
Bishop Hung told the congrega-
tion that the face, voice and smile of
Archbishop Doc remain vivid and
affectionate among local Catholics.
The prelate died of a stroke in Rome
in 2018 while he and other Vietnamese
bishops were visiting the Vatican.
Archbishop Joseph Nguyen Chi
Linh of Hue, president of the Catholic
Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam, said
the late archbishop, whose episcopal
motto was “God is my joy,” chose joy
Massgoers in purple Vietnamese dresses stand near a picture of the late Archbishop Paul
Bui Van Doc at a special ceremony in Hanoi on March 7 to mark the first anniversary of his
death. (Photo by Mary Vu).
for his life and put trust in God as the
secret of his happiness.
Archbishop Linh said Archbishop
Doc was appointed as bishop of My
Tho in 1999 when people still lived
in constant fear of a divided society
and were haunted by suffering and
consternation caused by wars.
“Choosing God as his joy in such a
society showed that he wanted to warn
the nation of lacking joy,” he said.
He said the late archbishop re-
kindled the light of life in a world of
death and disappointment. He sought
and shared the true joy of a good shep-
herd, of the Catholic Church, which is
for all people regardless of their back-
grounds, and of eternal life in heaven.
Archbishop Linh, who was one of
Archbishop Doc’s students, said he
was deeply impressed by his teacher,
who always had a happy smile on his
face and shared difficulties and chal-
lenges with seminarians.
“His life is a worthy testament to
the local church and those who admire
him. We are committed to following
his examples of giving mercy missions
to other people,” he said.
Mary Nguyen Thi Han from Mac
Ty Nho parish said she admired
Archbishop Doc as “a warm and
friendly man.”
“I wish the local church will have
many good shepherds like Archbishop
Doc to strengthen our faith and bring
joys to us,” the 81-year-old said.
Bishop Peter Nguyen Van Kham
of My Tho said the local church had
marked the anniversary by publishing
a book on theology compiled by a Do-
minican priest and Archbishop Doc.
After the ceremony, Massgoers and
local government officials offered in-
cense in front of the late archbishop’s
picture.
Vietnamese Bishops Fear Demise of Bible Studies
ucanews.com reporter,
Nha Trang Vietnam
Participants at a Bible conference in
Vietnam have urged church leaders to
develop Bible programs for Catholics
to bear witness to God’s Word in their
daily lives.
Over 150 bishops, priests, nuns and
laity nationwide attended the National
Conference on the Bible at Nha Trang
Diocese’s Pastoral Center in Nha Trang
City from February 19-21.
The Episcopal Commission for the
Bible of the Catholic Bishops’ Confer-
ence of Vietnam organized the three-
day meeting, which ran under the
banner, “The Word of the Lord Endures
Forever.”
Archbishop Joseph Vu Van Thien of
Hanoi told attendees that the nation›s
27 dioceses should run Bible-based
ministry activities to teach parishioners
useful ways to study, pray with and
preach God’s word in a practical sense
and on a daily basis.
“In reality, we invest heavily in
building facilities but pay scant at-
tention to publishing materials to aid
Bible studies or offer Bible courses for
lay Catholics,” Archbishop Thien said.
He said many children who receive
Groups of people discuss how to provide Bible courses for Catholics at a pastoral center in
Vietnam’s Nha Trang City on February 19. (Photo courtesy of Nha Trang Diocese).
copies of the New Testament never end
up reading them. They must be taught
to love God’s wisdom, he added.
The church leader said lay Catholics
from northern dioceses have suffered
from a lack of priests for years, and
have formed the habit of merely recit-
ing prayers instead of contemplating
God’s Word.
He said priests must carefully ex-
plain passages from the Bible to parish-
ioners at liturgical services.
Archbishop Thien suggested Cath-
olics should be given readings to help
them celebrate the Eucharist, to pray
alone at home, at funerals, and at
commemorations of those who have
passed away.
He encouraged Vietnamese Catho-
lics to use the internet and social media
to preach the word of God to others,
especially young people who surf the
Web daily.
“Living a moral life, creating a sense
of solidarity and engaging in charitable
activities are also effective ways of intro-
duce the Good News to others,” he said.
Jesuit Father Anthony Nguyen Cao
Sieu, a professor of Bible studies, said
local churches must train priests, reli-
gious people and laity to organize Bible
courses for lay Catholics.
Seminaries and institutes should
also give students more time to reflect
on biblical passages, he added.
Salesian Father Joseph Tran Hoa
Hung said a clearer understanding of
the Bible teaches Catholics how to bet-
ter engage in dialogue with followers
of other religions.
Father Hung urged attendees to
focus their evangelization efforts on
those living in rural or socially periph-
eral areas, ethnic groups, and margin-
alized people.
The Bible is a lodestar for those
committed to seeking justice and peace
in societies filled with injustice and
hatred caused by human sins, he said.
He suggested a national network
of Bible ministry be established, and
asked that more copies of the Bible be
published and disseminated across the
country.
Bishop Joseph Vo Duc Minh, head
of the commission, said the Vietnam-
ese Church has already translated the
Bible from Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic
and Latin into Vietnamese to serve lo-
cal Catholics.
It has published 300,000 copies of
the Old and New Testament as a single
edition, and over two million copies
of the New Testament as a standalone
text, he said.