It was the first beatification ceremony of a Vietnamese Catholic held in Vietnam. About 70,000 Vietnamese people, including Catholics and people from other faiths, witnessed the beatification ceremonies for Francis Xavier Truong Buu Diep, a Catholic priest martyred for his faith 80 years ago.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, pro-prefect for the Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization, officiated the ceremonies at Tac Say Pilgrimage center under Can Tho diocese in southern Vietnam on July 2. The event – the first beatification ceremony held in Vietnam -sparked enthusiasm among Catholics, forcing the authorities to close the national highway running through the pilgrimage center to accommodate the crowds.
In his homily, Tagle described Diep as “a witness to the faith and a martyr” of the Church, and said his life was a gift not only to the Church in Vietnam but also to the wider Church and to humanity. The martyred priest “invites each of us to choose God and to rely on him every day of our lives,” he said. Tagle also challenged Catholics to bear witness to Christ with their lives and said: “The world today badly needs people willing to bear witness to the truth. Let us not live for violence, hatred, division, incitement or falsehood.” Diep was born in 1897 and was ordained a priest in 1924. He served the Tac Say Parish from 1930 until he was killed on March 12, 1946, during a period of turmoil and violence. Despite repeated warnings, he refused to abandon his parishioners. Blessed Diep is now one of Vietnam’s not-yet-canonized Blesseds, following Andrew of Phu Yen, Vietnam’s first martyr, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2000.
