Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan: An Icon of the Vietnamese Church | Sr. Maria Thuan Nguyen | CWR
Representing the resilience and fidelity of Vietnamese Catholics, Cardinal Thuan’s life reminds Christians everywhere to proclaim the Gospel in all circumstances.
On July 5, 2013, jubilant Vietnamese Catholics celebrated the closing of the diocesan phase of Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan’s beatification process. Although he is not yet canonized, the Vietnamese faithful already consider him a saint and view him as an icon of the Vietnamese Church. As a second-generation Vietnamese American Catholic, I did not realize the beauty of my heritage until I became acquainted with Cardinal Thuan while I was a postulant in my religious community. Cardinal Thuan, being a man of faith, hope, and charity, epitomizes the virtues of past and present Vietnamese Catholics and is a model for Christians around the world.
Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuan was born on April 17, 1928, and from a young age, his character was shaped by the ideals of his heritage. He knew that he was called to communicate the best of Vietnamese culture. In 1941, he joined the Catholic seminary and was ordained a priest in 1953. Shortly after he was made coadjutor archbishop of Saigon in 1975, he was arrested and imprisoned by the Communists because of his Catholic faith. After 13 years of imprisonment, nine of which were spent in solitary confinement, then-Archbishop Thuan was released on the Feast of the Presentation of Our Lady. While in prison, he manifested the virtues cherished by Vietnamese Catholics. These virtues, however, do not only resonate in his life but also resound in the past and present Vietnamese faithful.
One of the prized virtues of the Vietnamese martyrs is fidelity to Christ, even in the midst of profound hardship. Because rulers feared that Christianity would threaten the established order, Vietnamese kings and emperors persecuted Catholics intermittently from 1644 to 1888. Two hundred and forty-four years of interspersed persecutions bore fruit in the martyrdom of 150,000 (see Miracle of Hope by Andre Van Chau Nguyen, 10). When the Communist government began harassing Catholics less than 100 years later, Catholics continued to witness to Christ crucified. Vietnamese Catholics were not only steadfast but often innovative and proactive in their faith.
In his book All Honor to You: The Journey of Faith Toward Life and Love, Father Peter Quang recounts his own heroic story, telling how he escaped from Vietnam on a boat in hopes of studying for the priesthood.
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