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. Pirate raids, unskilled navigators, and cramped conditions were the norm for the Vietnamese boat people. Father Peter had almost no chance of making it to the United States safely, but a very real chance of being plundered by Communists or pirates; yet, he was willing to leave his beloved homeland and risk torture and death in order to answer the call to the priesthood. Following in the footsteps of the martyrs before him, Father Peter risked everything to serve the Lord—his faith was not reactive but proactive.
The creative fidelity found in the martyrs and in those who, like Father Peter, fled Vietnam to pursue their vocation, permeated Archbishop Thuan’s actions during his imprisonment. He used his limited resources creatively in order to fulfill his duties as shepherd to the faithful when he was in prison. When he could not physically be present to his people, he solicited the help of a young boy to bring him old calendars. He wrote simple, sincere messages of hope on the calendars and had the young boy copy and distribute them among the faithful. His profound letters to the Catholic community strengthened them in their faith and helped them to persevere. The words, which resonated in the people’s hearts, reminded them that their beloved archbishop, though not physically present, was present with them through prayer.
Archbishop Thuan, manifesting innovative fidelity, also used his scanty means to celebrate Mass in prison. He knew that celebrating Mass was his most important duty, but he had no church, no altar, and no tabernacle. How, then, could he fulfill his duty as bishop? He turned the concentration camp into a cathedral and the palm of his hand into an altar. He turned his shirt pocket into a tabernacle and turned the darkness of the sleeping quarters into a dwelling place for Light Himself. Because of his ingenuity, many prisoners regained the fervor of their faith. The prisoners were reminded to embrace suffering and to use their current circumstances to grow in faith. His example not only embodies the proactive faith of past and present Vietnamese Catholics but also teaches all Christians that faith entails an active surrender to the Lord. It means seeking the best way to proclaim Christ’s love in every moment, every circumstance, and every action.
Vietnamese Catholics are a people of hope. They endure profound suffering and poverty because their hope is in heaven. In 1860, Emperor Tu Duc attempted to demolish Catholicism by splitting up Catholic families (Miracle of Hope, 10). This failed because Christians persevered during that period with courage and resilience. Though it seemed that they lost everything, Catholics recognized they had nothing to lose because their hope was in the risen Christ. About 150 years later, Vietnamese Catholics are still perpetuating the enduring hope that characterizes their past. After entering the convent, I met two sisters from Vietnam. There, they are kept under tight surveillance by the government and cannot openly teach the faith. From an earthly standpoint, it may seem that their mission is futile and useless. They, however, view all things from the supernatural perspective. These sisters, continuing the heritage of hope, recognize that if they place their hope in the Lord, nothing is lost and everything is gained.
Cardinal Thuan is a model of Christian hope. Isolation, darkness, and brutality saturated his prison life. In one afternoon, he went from being an archbishop to a mere prisoner. Instead of viewing his life as useless, he chose to see his imprisonment as Christ’s gift to him. He wrote the following during his imprisonment:
I accept my cross and I plant it, with my own two hands, in my heart. If you were to permit me to choose, I would change nothing, because you are with me! I am no longer afraid, I have understood. I am following you in your passion and in your resurrection. (Five Loaves and Two Fish, 48)
Archbishop Thuan, while in prison, literally had nothing to give to his faithful. He could not give his time, energy, or advice. He became like the widow from the gospels who only gave two copper coins (Luke 21:1-4). However, like the widow, he also gave all he had; he offered his emptiness and suffering as a prayer to God the Father. During his imprisonment, Archbishop Thuan learned to no longer place his hope in his works but to place his hope in accepting God’s plan for him.
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