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Modern · Bishop
Card. Francis Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận
Archbishop of Saigon (Coadjutor)
ConfessorModern Witness
1928 – 2002
1953
Ordained
1967
Consecrated Bishop
Saigon (Coadjutor)
Diocese
Vietnam
Country
The Life
Francis Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận was a Vietnamese bishop, made Bishop of Nha Trang in 1967 and named Coadjutor Archbishop of Saigon in 1975 — only to be arrested by the victorious Communists days later. He spent thirteen years in their prisons, nine of them in solitary confinement.
From captivity he smuggled out, on scraps of paper, the spiritual classic 'The Road of Hope.' Released in 1988 and later barred from his see, he was called to Rome, made President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, preached the Pope's millennium retreat, and was created a cardinal in 2001. He died in 2002; his cause is open.
Notable Actions
- Imprisoned thirteen years by the Vietnamese Communist regime, nine in solitary confinement
- Wrote 'The Road of Hope' on scraps of paper smuggled out of prison
- Secretly offered Mass in captivity with a few drops of wine in the palm of his hand
- Preached the Lenten retreat to Pope John Paul II and the Roman Curia in the Jubilee year 2000
- Made a cardinal in 2001; declared Venerable by Pope Francis in 2017
I will live the present moment, filling it to the brim with love.
The Road of Hope