Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “"I whole-heartedly unite myself to the joy and thanksgiving of the Bishops of your country, whom I had the pleasure of meeting last June, along with all of their dioceses," writes Pope Benedict XVI, in a Message sent to Bishop Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon of Dalat, President of the Episcopal Conference of Vietnam. Vietnam is celebrating a Jubilee Year to commemorate 350 years since the foundation of the apostolic vicariates of Tonkin and Cochinchina, and fifty years since the creation of the Catholic hierarchy in the country. The Message is dated November 17, 2009.
Recalling that the opening of the Jubilee celebration coincided with the feast of the 117 Vietnamese martyrs, he expresses the hope that "the recollection of their noble witness may help the People of God in Vietnam to intensify their charity, increase their hope and consolidate their faith, which daily life sometimes tests very harshly.” Among the martyr-saints is Andrew Dung-Lac, who in this Year for Priests, should be an example to all priests, that they may live their priesthood “in greater fidelity to their vocation, in fraternal communion, in the worthy celebration of the Sacraments of the Church, and in a dynamic and intense apostolate.”
The Holy Father then recalled the site of the opening of the Jubilee Year: So-Kien, in the Archdiocese of Hanoi, which was the see of the first Apostolic Vicariate of Vietnam and which still conserves the the martyrs' relics. “In this Jubilee Year, may this place that is so beloved to you become the centee for a profound evangelization which brings Vietnamese society the Gospel values of charity, truth, justice and rectitude.”
The Pontiff also highlighted that “the Jubilee Year is a time of grace in which to reconcile ourselves with God and our fellow man. To this end, we should recognize past and present errors committed against brothers in the faith and against fellow countrymen, and ask for forgiveness. At the same time, it would be appropriate to commit to increasing and enriching ecclesial communion, and to building a more just, united, equal society through authentic dialogue, mutual respect and healthy collaboration. The Jubilee is also a special time given to us to renew the announcement of the Gospel to everyone, and to become, to an ever greater degree, a Church of communion and mission.”
In the concluding part of his Message, the Holy Father offers a special reflection for religious men and women, with the hope that “they may continue to grow in God through the deepening of their spiritual life in fidelity to their vocation and a fruitful apostolate in the following of Christ,” and told the Vietnamese laity that “they are ever present in my thoughts and daily prayers. May they become more deeply committed and active in the life and mission of the Church.” Lastly, Benedict XVI called upong the help of God for Bishops, that they “bear witness with courage and perseverance to the greatness of God and the beauty of life in Christ.” Before imparting his Apostolic Blessing, the Holy Father concludes the Message by invoking Our Lady of La Vang, who is so dear to Vietnamese Christians, that she may accompany them all “with her maternal tenderness over the course of this year.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 27/11/2009)
