ASIA/VIETNAM - 61 new Vietnamese deacons ordained - A Great Joy in the Early Days of the New Year 2026 for the Vietnamese Church  

by Andrew Doan Thanh Phong

Hue (Agenzia Fides) - “You yourselves will become the connectors of unity, faith, and hope in the ministry of the proclamation of the Word of God, as well as manifest the values of the vocation in the lives of the clergy today”. This was the invitation of Archbishop Joseph Dang Duc Ngan of the Archdiocese of Hue to the 21 candidates during the Ordination Mass of Deacon in the Archdiocese of Hue on the Feast of the Mother of God, January 1, 2026, at Phu Cam Cathedral, Hue city in Central Vietnam.

Archbishop Joseph exhorted the ordinands: “When you are motivated by sincere love for Christ and lead a life of perfect piety in this state, you will be more easily bonded to Christ with an undivided heart; you will be free to serve God and humanity; and you will be more inclined to help people be reborn, be rooted, and be built up in the faith. Do not lose faith in the Gospel, for you are not merely listeners, but ministers of the Gospel, and you have to maintain the mystery of the faith in an upright conscience.”
 
Also on the first day of the new year 2026, Bishop of Vinh Long Diocese Peter Huynh Van Hai ordained deacons for 12 seminarians in the diocese at Vinh Long Cathedral in utmost South of Vietnam. During the Mass, Bishop Peter reminded the community to pray for peace in the current world in which war, suffering, and death are still happening. Specifically, towards the ordinands, the Bishop prayed to God and ask Him to bless and grant many graces so that they may remain faithful and continue on their vocational path following the Lord.
 
And also in the South of Vietnam, the Deacon Ordination Mass for 20 seminarians from St. Joseph's Seminary was celebrated at the Notre Dame Cathedral located in the heart of Hochiminh city at 8:30 AM on Thursday, January 8, 2026. The Auxiliary Bishop of Saigon Archdiocese, Joseph Bui Cong Trac, who presided over the Mass, emphasized: “The diaconate that these seminarians are about to receive is very noble, not only a blessing for themselves and their families, but also a blessing for the Church. The ordination is not a destination or a stopping point, but a continuous journey forward”.

He continued: “To bring salvation to others, do not forget the grace you have received through the laying on of hands by the Bishop; you must diligently study, and teach catechism. You have to set up a good example for the Catholic faithful in your words, your behaviors, as well as your charity, your faith, and your purity.”
 
At the same time, also in this most populous city of Vietnam, at 8:30 AM on Thursday, January 8, 2026, Bishop John Baptist Nguyen Huy Bac – Bishop of the Diocese of Ban Me Thuot – laid hands on and ordained 8 deacons and 9 priests of the Society of the Divine Word at Phu Trung church in the Archdiocese of Saigon.


The theme for the 2026 Pastoral Year of the Vietnamese Church is "Every Christian is a missionary disciple," through which the Vietnamese Bishops' Conference calls on every Christian to live according to their identity and mission, becoming a light of proclaiming the Gospel in their homeland through prayer, studying the Word of God, and bearing witness to the Gospel. Hopefully, the 61 seminarians who received the diaconate in the early days of the new year 2026 will offer a significant contribution to the vast missionary field of over 90 million Vietnamese people who still are not unknown God. (Agenzia Fides, 14/1/2026)

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