During their annual meeting, bishops in Vietnam have expressed their concerns that the legal status of the Church is not recognized and respected, especially in remote areas.
Bishops in Vietnam have just concluded their annual meeting today Friday April 29 with the Bishop Ordination ceremony to welcome new Bishop Joseph Nguyen Tan Tuoc who was elected to Coadjutor Bishop of Phu Cuong diocese on March 14.
In the opening prayer session on Monday Evening April 25 in the archdiocese of Saigon, bishops from 26 dioceses joyfully greeted Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli - the non-resident pontifical representative to Vietnam. The Papal representative explained to bishops on the next day of their meeting that he was "not a diplomatic representative of the Holy See to Vietnam as the country has not diplomatic relation to the Holy See yet” heeds the minutes of the conference.
He is said to serve as the liaison between the Holy See and the Roman Catholic diocesan episcopate in the nation, more like a “non-resident Apostolic Delegation", adds the report.
Among other things, Vietnamese bishops spent a great deal of time in their annual conference to listen to reports of dioceses.
The Bishops concluded that while more people are converting to the Catholic faith, Church life in remote areas is still facing so many challenges. In large areas of the Central Highlands and Northern provinces near the borders with China and Laos, faithful are still not allowed to gather for worshipping, while priests are still banned from celebrating Eucharist and carrying out their pastoral duties, even bishops are not exceptions.
This can be illustrated by experiences shared by Bishop Michael Hoang Duc Oanh who was banned from celebrating Christ Mass for his flock at Son Lang, in the province of Gia Lai. A few days ago, he was allowed to celebrate Easter Mass at the village among burst of laughter and mockeries from a rowdy crowd of plainclothes police who mingled with faithful as their job was to cause more disturbance and anxiety among the congregation than to observe the solemn mass.
In some other areas, where priests and faithful have to petition for having Eucharist celebrations, their religious freedom is subjected to the irrational "mood swings" of local authorities.
These prove that “the legal status of the Church is still not recognized,” the minutes of the conference stated. The bishops particularly complained about the hostility of local authorities against Catholics which from time to time leads to outright persecutions of the faithful and clerics who are carrying out their pastoral duties in rural areas.
In a report released on March 31, Human Rights Watch said more than 350 hill tribal members, known collectively as the Montagnards, have been sentenced to long jail terms since 2001 after being accused of violating vague national security laws for protesting or worshipping in unauthorized churches.
The 46-page report, based on Vietnamese media reports and interviews with Montagnards who have fled the country’s Central Highlands, said at least 250 Montagnards remain in prison or are awaiting trial.
“By making peaceful dissent and unsanctioned religious activities criminal acts, the Vietnamese government disregards fundamental rights and Vietnam’s own commitments under international human rights treaties it has signed,” the report said.
The group also accused the government of conducting police sweeps to locate Montagnards who are hiding, breaking up religious gatherings, and forcing followers to publicly renounce their religion. It said both Catholics and Protestants have been persecuted.
“Officials have employed coercion to pressure Montagnards to renounce their religion and pledge their loyalty to the government and the Communist Party of Vietnam,” it said.
The hostility against religions can be seen in education with textbooks promoting Kart Marx's comment “religion is the opiate of the Masses”. This remains the main theme that students at all levels are educated about religions. That can help to explain the hostility of local authorities.
Ever since the news on the fiery Jasmine revolution taking off and quickly spread to Vietnam, the rate of harassments and arrests of dissidents and religious leaders have intensified as if they are the real threats to the regime.
Recent moves by the authorities suggest that they seem to be firmly hold on to their strategy of “eradicating all impact of religions” by hindering the growth of Catholic population and forbidding the Church to participate in many aspects of the social life.
 |
In the opening prayer session on Monday Evening April 25 in the archdiocese of Saigon, bishops from 26 dioceses joyfully greeted Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli - the non-resident pontifical representative to Vietnam. The Papal representative explained to bishops on the next day of their meeting that he was "not a diplomatic representative of the Holy See to Vietnam as the country has not diplomatic relation to the Holy See yet” heeds the minutes of the conference.
He is said to serve as the liaison between the Holy See and the Roman Catholic diocesan episcopate in the nation, more like a “non-resident Apostolic Delegation", adds the report.
Among other things, Vietnamese bishops spent a great deal of time in their annual conference to listen to reports of dioceses.
The Bishops concluded that while more people are converting to the Catholic faith, Church life in remote areas is still facing so many challenges. In large areas of the Central Highlands and Northern provinces near the borders with China and Laos, faithful are still not allowed to gather for worshipping, while priests are still banned from celebrating Eucharist and carrying out their pastoral duties, even bishops are not exceptions.
This can be illustrated by experiences shared by Bishop Michael Hoang Duc Oanh who was banned from celebrating Christ Mass for his flock at Son Lang, in the province of Gia Lai. A few days ago, he was allowed to celebrate Easter Mass at the village among burst of laughter and mockeries from a rowdy crowd of plainclothes police who mingled with faithful as their job was to cause more disturbance and anxiety among the congregation than to observe the solemn mass.
In some other areas, where priests and faithful have to petition for having Eucharist celebrations, their religious freedom is subjected to the irrational "mood swings" of local authorities.
These prove that “the legal status of the Church is still not recognized,” the minutes of the conference stated. The bishops particularly complained about the hostility of local authorities against Catholics which from time to time leads to outright persecutions of the faithful and clerics who are carrying out their pastoral duties in rural areas.
In a report released on March 31, Human Rights Watch said more than 350 hill tribal members, known collectively as the Montagnards, have been sentenced to long jail terms since 2001 after being accused of violating vague national security laws for protesting or worshipping in unauthorized churches.
The 46-page report, based on Vietnamese media reports and interviews with Montagnards who have fled the country’s Central Highlands, said at least 250 Montagnards remain in prison or are awaiting trial.
“By making peaceful dissent and unsanctioned religious activities criminal acts, the Vietnamese government disregards fundamental rights and Vietnam’s own commitments under international human rights treaties it has signed,” the report said.
The group also accused the government of conducting police sweeps to locate Montagnards who are hiding, breaking up religious gatherings, and forcing followers to publicly renounce their religion. It said both Catholics and Protestants have been persecuted.
“Officials have employed coercion to pressure Montagnards to renounce their religion and pledge their loyalty to the government and the Communist Party of Vietnam,” it said.
The hostility against religions can be seen in education with textbooks promoting Kart Marx's comment “religion is the opiate of the Masses”. This remains the main theme that students at all levels are educated about religions. That can help to explain the hostility of local authorities.
Ever since the news on the fiery Jasmine revolution taking off and quickly spread to Vietnam, the rate of harassments and arrests of dissidents and religious leaders have intensified as if they are the real threats to the regime.
Recent moves by the authorities suggest that they seem to be firmly hold on to their strategy of “eradicating all impact of religions” by hindering the growth of Catholic population and forbidding the Church to participate in many aspects of the social life.