austraLasia
1398
Bishop De's
consecration: second religious Bishop for Vietnam in 50
years
(and the other one is his
boss!)
BUI CHU (N. Vietnam): 19th January 2006 --
Calm, composed, surrounded by 18 of 30 Vietnamese bishops, 300 of its priests
and 5,000 of the faithful, Bishop Peter Van De SDB was consecrated yesterday in
Bui Chu. The consecration took place in the square in front of Our Lady of
the Rosary Cathedral, under a huge canopy. Bishop De becomes assistant to
Bishop Tiem, also a Salesian. Bui Chu is the second largest Diocese in
North Vietnam after Hanoi, with over a million inhabitants, nearly 400,000 of
whom are Catholic, and it is a recognised fact that 99% of Vietnamese Catholics
are practicing. Between the two of them, they have 129 parishes, 500
churches, 81 priests, 500 sisters, 32 seminarians - and endless pastoral
work. Bishop Tiem has already earned himself a moniker, that of 'Bishop of the poor'. It is a nice
title for a Salesian bishop. Bishop De now enters the scene with 'Da Mihi
Animas' as his motto, Faith, Hope and Charity symbolised on his Coat of Arms and
an establishd reputation for his social concern and more, his social work
amongst the poor and underprivileged, especially in 'protected' workshops for
the handicapped.
Why two bishops in Bui Chu when there are
four vacant bishoprics around the country? It is much easier to transfer
than to create a bishop in a country where such appointments are closely vetted
by the Government. God alone knows how long the nomination process took
for this one. One or other of the two bishops will be transferred to a
'needier' diocese when the time is 'appropriate'.
Bui
Chu's evangelisation dates back to 1533 and the Spanish Dominicans. The
Vietnamese martyrs were martyred nearby. Bishop Tiem was apppointed here
only in 2001. Debonair, very active, extremely
practical, Bishop Tiem has vastly redeveloped the episcopal 'compound' into a
mini-Vatican. There are rooms and facilities for 600 people, abundant
statuary to help the locals visualise the faith and its beliefs. Statues
of Our Lady are predominant, marble slabs with Hail Mary carved on them in 150
languages, giant rosary beads, but even more impressive are the formation
activities that are the true reason for all this: priests, sisters, novices,
catechists come in for courses. Next in the pipeline is a major seminary
and, of course, a Youth Centre!
It is probably possible
now to speak of a Salesian 'community' in a complex, 'where two .. are
gathered' There is in fact, in a nearby parish, a discreet Salesian
presence with the consent of local authorities, represented by a lone Salesian
starting up a youth work.
But back to Bishop De. His
co-consecrators were the Archbishops of Hanoi, of which Bui Chu is suffragan,
and Hue from which Bishop De hails. Both spoke and both underlined the
spirit of Don Bosco which is flourishing in episcopal form in Bui Chu. The
ceremony was dignified, devout, impeccably organised, and the rain kept
off.
The Church in Vietnam, for many complex reasons,
often has been confined mainly to worship. The Church in Bui Chu was no
exception but it seems now to want to really contribute to society - and there
are expectations of their new Bishop. Those who know him also know those
expectations will not be disappointed.
VOCABULARY
moniker: nickname
debonair:
has class!
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