On the Feast of St Joseph, Patron of the Society of Jesus and St Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate in Thu Duc City, nine Jesuits were ordained to the diaconate by Most Rev Peter Nguyen Van Kham, Bishop of My Tho.
The newly ordained deacons are Joseph Bui The Dung SJ, Joseph Nguyen Van Duc SJ, Dominic Ha Quoc Huy SJ, Anthony Nguyen Van Huy SJ, Joseph Do Van Lieu SJ, John the Baptist Tran Ngoc Anh Linh SJ, Paul Nguyen Huu Phong SJ, Joseph Ngo Van Son SJ, and Dominic Nguyen Van The SJ.
During his homily, Bishop Kham reminded the men that the role of deacons is to engage in the ministry of the Word of God which must be done not only by words but also by concrete actions. He also mentioned the example of St Joseph and invited the candidates to listen and understand the Word of God as St Joseph did through moments of silence. The bishop encouraged the candidates to “not only listen to the Word of God but also listen to the voice of their own hearts and others in order to carry out the Word of God in the midst of a noisy and polluted world”.
The Mass was attended by Vietnamese Provincial Fr Joseph Pham Tuan Nghia SJ, Jesuits, professors, and students of St Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate. At the end of the celebration, Father Provincial expressed his sincere gratitude to the Bishop, Jesuit formators, priests, religious, professors, collaborators, students, the families, and relatives of the newly ordained for their prayer and support.
The Society of Jesus in Vietnam currently has 278 members, including 101 priests, 133 scholastics, 15 brothers, and 29 novices. The ordination of these nine deacons is a significant moment in the lives of these men and in the history of the Society of Jesus in Vietnam, as they continue to engage in the ministry of the Word of God and serve the Church and the people of God. [Jescom Vietnam]