The Diocesan Office of the Catholic Archdiocese of Hanoi states on the demolishment of the Holy Cross on the mount “Nui Tho” of Dong Chiem Parish (An Phu, My Duc, Hanoi) by the government’s armed forces on the 6th of January 2010 as follows:
THE DIOCESAN OFFICE
CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF HANOI
40 Nha Chung Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
January 7, 2010
To: Priests, the Religious men and women, Seminarians,
and all the faithful in the Archdiocese of Hanoi.
The Diocesan Office of the Catholic Archdiocese of Hanoi states on the demolishment of the Holy Cross on the mount “Nui Tho” of Dong Chiem Parish (An Phu, My Duc, Hanoi) by the government’s armed forces on the 6th of January 2010 as follows:
Mount “Nui Tho” (also called as Nui Che) next to Dong Chiem Church has always been in the ownership of Dong Chiem Parish since its establishment more than 100 years ago. It has served as a parish cemetery for children and homeless people during 1945-1946. Up till now, the parish has even been renting parts of the mount to farmers for cultivation.
At around two o’clock in the morning of January 6, a great mass of estimated 600 to 1000 police, security forces, and militiamen equipped with weapons, batons, tear gas, and police dogs besieged parishes of Nghĩa Ải, Tụy Hiền, Đồng Chiêm and blocked all the ways to mount “Nui Tho.” They then started destroying and demolishing the Holy Cross. Facing such an extreme act of sacrilege, parishioners of Dong Chiem begged the police to stop destroying their Cross. But, regrettably they were shot at close range with tear gas canisters by the armed forces. Among a dozen brutally beaten, two of them were seriously injured and are still hospitalized.
We are very grieved and shocked because such a desecration to the Cross was a grave offense against Christ, Our Lord. It was really sacrilege! To desecrate the Holy Cross is to insult the most sacred symbol of the Christian faith and of the Church. To brutally assault the unarmed, innocent civilians is a savage and inhumane act, offending gravely against human dignity. This gross conduct should be condemned!
Immediately in the afternoon of Jan 6, after their retreat, vicars forane and all priests throughout the Archdiocese had rushed to Dong Chiem to offer their sympathy, consolation to the pastor, parishioners, and the victims and concelebrate a Mass for the parish.
In the commUNI0N of the Church, we ask for fervent prayers from all priests, religious, seminarians, and all faithful for Dong Chiem parish to be steadfast in sharing the Cross of Christ. Let us pray for our country to become a nation of justice, democracy, and civilization, as well as for sacred values to be respected and human rights to be protected.
Respectfully,
Rev. John Le Trong Cung
Diocesan Office of the Archdiocese of Hanoi
THE DIOCESAN OFFICE
CATHOLIC ARCHDIOCESE OF HANOI
40 Nha Chung Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
January 7, 2010
To: Priests, the Religious men and women, Seminarians,
and all the faithful in the Archdiocese of Hanoi.
The Diocesan Office of the Catholic Archdiocese of Hanoi states on the demolishment of the Holy Cross on the mount “Nui Tho” of Dong Chiem Parish (An Phu, My Duc, Hanoi) by the government’s armed forces on the 6th of January 2010 as follows:
Mount “Nui Tho” (also called as Nui Che) next to Dong Chiem Church has always been in the ownership of Dong Chiem Parish since its establishment more than 100 years ago. It has served as a parish cemetery for children and homeless people during 1945-1946. Up till now, the parish has even been renting parts of the mount to farmers for cultivation.
At around two o’clock in the morning of January 6, a great mass of estimated 600 to 1000 police, security forces, and militiamen equipped with weapons, batons, tear gas, and police dogs besieged parishes of Nghĩa Ải, Tụy Hiền, Đồng Chiêm and blocked all the ways to mount “Nui Tho.” They then started destroying and demolishing the Holy Cross. Facing such an extreme act of sacrilege, parishioners of Dong Chiem begged the police to stop destroying their Cross. But, regrettably they were shot at close range with tear gas canisters by the armed forces. Among a dozen brutally beaten, two of them were seriously injured and are still hospitalized.
We are very grieved and shocked because such a desecration to the Cross was a grave offense against Christ, Our Lord. It was really sacrilege! To desecrate the Holy Cross is to insult the most sacred symbol of the Christian faith and of the Church. To brutally assault the unarmed, innocent civilians is a savage and inhumane act, offending gravely against human dignity. This gross conduct should be condemned!
Immediately in the afternoon of Jan 6, after their retreat, vicars forane and all priests throughout the Archdiocese had rushed to Dong Chiem to offer their sympathy, consolation to the pastor, parishioners, and the victims and concelebrate a Mass for the parish.
In the commUNI0N of the Church, we ask for fervent prayers from all priests, religious, seminarians, and all faithful for Dong Chiem parish to be steadfast in sharing the Cross of Christ. Let us pray for our country to become a nation of justice, democracy, and civilization, as well as for sacred values to be respected and human rights to be protected.
Respectfully,
Rev. John Le Trong Cung
Diocesan Office of the Archdiocese of Hanoi