Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Huê (Agenzia Fides) - On June 28 at least a thousand people gathered in Phu Cam parish to watch a documentary film on the life of Bishop Allys Ly, who was their parish priest for 23 years before being appointed Bishop of Huê. The film was followed with the celebration of Mass in honour of Saints Peter and Paul, the patron saints of the parish.
A member of the Paris Foreign Mission Society MEP, Bishop Eugene Marie-Joseph Allys Ly was the fifth Bishop of Huê, 1908 to 1931. He is remembered as a great benefactor of the parish contributing to the formation of hundreds of Christians after the terrible persecution, the building of the Cathedral and opening Phu Cam parish today the largest and most active parish in the Archdiocese of Huê. He also founded a number of local diocesan religious congregations.
Born on 12 February 1852 in Paimpol, in the diocese Rennes (France), Allys Ly was ordained a priest at the age of 23 and sent on mission. He dedicated the whole of his life to preaching the Gospel in the region of Huê without once returning home. He lost his sight at the end of his life, retired from pastoral activity and died in 1936. He is buried in Hue Cathedral cemetery.
The film based on texts and iconographic documents of the time preserved in the archives of the Paris Foreign Mission Society and produced by the Congregation of the Sacred Heart, illustrates the life and work of the great missionary bishop.
“This film helped us to know more about a bishop who dedicated his life to the birth and growth of our parish” Fr. Stanislas Nguyên Duc Vê, parish priest at Phu Cam told those present. Many in the audience were deeply impressed by the film. To mark the 70th anniversary of the death of the bishop Phu Cam parish erected a monument in the church grounds in memory of their beloved Bishop Allys Ly. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 14/7/2006; righe 27, parole 359)
