24th Anniversary of Cardinal François-Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận’s passing

On the 24th anniversary of the birth into eternal life of the Venerable Cardinal François-Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận, the memory of his human and spiritual journey is inspiring prayer initiatives, pilgrimages, conferences, and Eucharistic celebrations in Vietnam and across the globe. The universal Church and the devotees of Cardinal Văn Thuận are gathering to express their gratitude to God for the gift of this indomitable "witness of hope" and to highlight the enduring relevance of his universal message.

To mark the occasion, the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development commemorated the Vietnamese cardinal during a community Mass. In his homily, Msgr. Christian Barone observed: "If there is one thing we can grasp from the existential parable of this man’s life, it is that, even when all avenues for exercising his ministry were blocked, he managed to find the sublime path of love—living those years not merely in anticipation of something, but as a state in which Christ came to visit him."

Monsignor Barone drew upon the readings for the day—specifically the Gospel of Luke (Lk 7:31–35) and the First Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor 12:31–13:13)—which prompt us to ask: “Where do we recognise God’s presence? What are the signs through which we expect to perceive his action in our lives?” Monsignor Barone highlighted a “striking paradox: one can recognise God in the extraordinary nature of a charism and yet fail to recognise what his presence demands in the concrete reality of a relationship. One can celebrate the Body of Christ and, at the same time, wound that body through divisions within the community.”

“A gift of the Spirit is truly authentic,” Monsignor Barone observed, “when it builds up the Body of Christ, when it fosters communion.” Indeed, charisms are instruments: “They are valuable to the extent that they lead towards building up the community and thus become instruments of love.”

It is precisely in this light—Monsignor Barone explained—that we can understand the human and spiritual journey of Cardinal François-Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận.

Eucharist wine containers in prison

Văn Thuận had only recently been appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Saigon when, in 1975, he was arrested and forced to spend thirteen years in prison, nine of which were spent in solitary confinement: “He had a diocese before him, a people entrusted to him, pastoral projects, aspirations, responsibilities. Suddenly, all this became impossible. [...] He could not govern his Church, preach to his people, visit the communities, or carry out what he had planned. Everything he believed constituted the concrete way of serving God was taken from him.” 

It was in the pain of being unable to exercise his ministry and his gifts that Văn Thuận realised that “the ‘most sublime path’ remained open: the possibility of living through that time in charity.” This charity found nourishment in the Eucharist, celebrated in the palm of his hand, with three drops of wine and one drop of water, and a few hosts hidden in a torch. 

“The image,” Monsignor Barone observed, “is one of striking simplicity. He was no longer at his cathedral, he had no altar, he had no congregation before him—the people entrusted to his care. He had only the palm of one hand. And yet, right there, he recognised the presence of Christ.”

That charism of his bore the fruit of unity: “Over time, other prisoners will gather round that Eucharist. The consecrated bread will be passed from one prisoner to another; during the night it would be kept safe and adored. Within a situation designed to isolate people from one another, a communion slowly took shape. [...] Around that Eucharist, the ordinary path of charity began to rebuild a communion and make the Body of Christ visible”.

Văn Thuận had realised “that even that place—a place he had not chosen—could become a space in which to encounter Christ and to love the people entrusted to him.” 

“The path of hope of which he would speak so often,” Monsignor Barone concluded, “also stems from this discovery: Christian hope does not consist solely in waiting for a different future; it arises from the possibility of living the present moment with Christ.”

To commemorate the figure of Cardinal François-Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận on the 24th anniversary of his death, a Eucharistic celebration was held at the Church of Santa Maria della Scala in Rome’s Trastevere district, where the Cardinal’s remains rest.

The Holy Mass was presided over by Msgr. Francesco Pesce, Director of the Office for Social Pastoral Care, Labor, and Care for Creation for the Diocese of Rome. Devotees from various countries and members of Rome’s Vietnamese Catholic community were in attendance.

In his homily, Msgr. Pesce recalled that "when celebrating his funeral, Saint John Paul II said that Văn Thuận had lived his entire life under the sign of hope." He "had very little, yet he had Jesus, and that was enough for him to keep hoping." And that little bit, in God's hands, "became a testimony to the whole world."

"This is one of Văn Thuận’s most beautiful spiritual insights," Msgr. Pesce observed: "do not wait for life to change in order to live; do not wait for tomorrow to encounter God."

His human and spiritual journey—he concluded—"teaches us that one can be free even in prison, poor yet rich, wounded yet capable of loving, persecuted yet capable of forgiving."