History of the Catholic Church in Vietnam

The Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, will visit Vietnam from November 28th to December 6th, upon invitation of the Bishops’ Conference of the Country. During his pastoral visit, Cardinal Sepe will visit the three Ecclesiastical Regions of the Country, he will preside over the opening of a new diocese and celebrate the ordination to priesthood of 57 deacons.
On this occasion, Fides Agency is publishing a dossier that offers a general overview of the Country and of the Vietnamese Church.
Up to some years ago, the name “Vietnam” was immediately associated to memories of the war. In more recent years, however, with a greater opening of the government of Vietnam and the development of tourism, the West was given a different image of the Country. The history of Vietnam is not limited to those years, on the contrary, it begins many centuries before. This Asian Country can indeed boast a remarkable civilization and a learned and civilised people, dwelling in an area well known for the beauty of its landscapes: the delta of the Red River in the north, the delta of the Mekong in the south, and the whole coastline disseminated with green rice-fields.

SUMMARY

PART I
- Geographical profile
- A Short Historical Account
- Society, Economy and Culture
- Language
- Arts
- Celebrations and National Events
- The Main Cities
- Country Information Table
- Religions
- The Issue of the “Mountain-People”

PART II
- The Catholic Church
- The Church Today - Its Structure
- The Church Today - Statistics
- The Ad Limina Visits of the Vietnamese Bishops
- Visits of the Delegation of the Holy See to Vietnam
- The Life of the Church in Vietnam
- New Ordinations of Priests
- The Growth of Religious Congregations
- A New Diocese
- Evangelisation Today
- The Church in Vietnam, Founded on the Blood of the Martyrs
- Cardinal Nguyen Van Thuanun, a Witness of Our Times
- The Shrine of Lavang: the Virgin Patron of the Catholics in Vietnam