On the Feast of St Joseph, Patron of the Jesuit Scholasticate of the Vietnamese Province, four Jesuits and an Augustinian Assumptionist were ordained to the diaconate by Most Reverend Joseph Đỗ Quang Khang, Bishop of Bac Ninh Diocese.
The newly ordained deacons are Joseph Bùi Huy Đạt SJ, Matthew Huỳnh Minh Thiện SJ, Joseph Vũ Thành Trung SJ, Thomas Thiện Nguyễn Đăng Trung, SJ, and Joseph Nguyễn Văn Phúc, AA. They all embraced their new ministry with a profound sense of gratitude.
In his homily, Bishop Đỗ explained the “strange” fatherhood of St Joseph. He was married but led a chaste life; he did not produce Jesus by flesh but was called to be his father; he fulfilled his mission of fatherhood by living as a son to God. St Joseph was indeed a model for the ordinands in their imminent priestly fatherhood: to live in chastity and to exercise fatherhood to the people of God by being filial to God the Father. St Joseph’s unwavering commitment to his role as a father of love, guidance, protection, and care reminded them to be faithful to both their vocation and their new role as deacons of the Church.
Several esteemed Jesuits and guests attended the Mass, including Vietnamese Provincial Fr Joseph Pham Tuan Nghia SJ, Jesuit professors, representatives of the Assumptionists, and students of St Joseph Jesuit Scholasticate in Saigon. At the end of the celebration, Fr Pham said a few words of gratitude to Bishop Đỗ and those who supported and prayed for the newly ordained deacons.
With 283 members (123 priests, 117 scholastics, 16 brothers, and 27 novices), the Society of Jesus in Vietnam continues its humble mission to serve in faith, hope, and charity. The ordination of these four deacons was a significant milestone in their personal lives and a further step forward in the Jesuit service to the Church and the people of God. [Anthony Nguyễn Hữu Khanh SJ]