The memorial of Andrew Dũng-Lạc (1795–1839) celebrates all of the Vietnamese Martyrs in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries (1625–1886).
Gospel Lk 19:45-48
Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, "It is written, My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves." And every day he was teaching in the temple area. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.
REFLECTION
"seeking to put him to death"
Today is the feast of Saint Andrew Dũng-Lạc, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs. They are also known as the Holy Vietnamese Martyrs. Over the span of 261 years, about 130,000 people were killed for their belief in Jesus Christ.
Blessed Andrew of Phú Yên, the Protomartyr* of Vietnam, was baptized at age 16. For the love of the Lord, this Vietnamese youth tirelessly proclaimed the Gospel as a catechist and assisted the priests in their mission. The words he repeated as he advanced on the path of martyrdom express his life’s motivation: “Let us return love for love to our God; let us return life for life.” He was captured, and at the age of 19, he was beheaded as he cried out the holy Name of Jesus. Yet Andrew was in Heaven before his head bounced on the ground. Another holy Vietnamese Martyr was St. Théophane Vénard. He was a French missionary. When he arrived in northern Vietnam, Christians had recently been suffering under the rigorous persecutions under Minh Mạng**. By royal edict, bishops and priests were forced to seek refuge in caves and deep woods. St. Vénard continued his ministry, and he was betrayed and captured. He refused to apostatize and was sentenced to be beheaded. Shortly before his martyrdom, he lived in a cage, joyfully anticipating his crown and chanting hymns. While in the cage, he wrote this in a letter to his father: “We are all flowers planted on this earth, which God plucks in His own good time… Father and son may we meet in Paradise. I, poor little moth, go first. Adieu.” Interestingly, when the Little Flower, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, read St. Vénard’s story, she said that he best lived her way of spiritual childhood.
Through the grace of Jesus Christ, the Holy Vietnamese Martyrs received a glorious crown by suffering everything for His sake. We should, then, imitate the unshakable Faith of the martyrs by courageously living according to the Gospel. *Protomartyr (first martyr for a cause)
** Minh Mạng, Former Emperor of the Nguyen Dynasty
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