Saint Joseph Dang Dinh Vien (1758 - 1838) - Vietnamese Martyr Saint

Saint Joseph Dang Dinh Vien, whose martyr name was Luong, was born in 1785 in Tien Chu village, Tien Lu district, Hung Yen province. When he was young, he lived and studied in his maternal village, the Van family village, in An Thi district. After his parents passed away, he assisted priests and was recommended to enter the seminary.

In 1821, Father Vien was ordained a priest and took care of the faithful in Luc Thuy village, Nam Dinh province. Two years later, in 1823, he was sent to assist the parishes of Dong Bai, Thiet Nham, Nhu Thiet, and An My. Father Vien was well-known as a virtuous and diligent priest who served the faithful, so he was loved by everyone.

On April 17, 1838, catechist Vu Van Lan, who was sent by Father Vien to receive the Holy Oils for Holy Week, was arrested along with six letters from Father Vien to two bishops and missionaries. Unfortunately, those letters sparked the bloody persecution by Governor Trinh Quang Khanh in Nam Dinh and Hung Yen, causing two bishops, many priests, and faithful to be martyred.

In Hung Yen, to arrest Father Vien, the soldiers bribed two Catholics who were his relatives. On August 1, 1838, Father Vien was surrounded and arrested by soldiers at the Cau Chay family residence in Nhu Thiet village. Although he had hidden in a dense sugarcane field, he came out when he heard the desperate cries of the homeowner's child being tortured, saying: "I am the catechist Vien you are looking for. Please do not torture this child anymore."

When advised to renounce his faith to be spared, Father Vien firmly replied: "Even if I die, I will not step over the cross. I am a catechist; if I step over the cross, who will follow the religion?"

On August 21, the execution order for Father Vien arrived in the province. The officials tried to persuade him one last time, but to no avail, so they read the verdict and carried out the execution that same day.

On the way to the execution ground, Father Vien forgave the two people who had revealed his hiding place. After eating a little rice, Father Vien knelt on a cotton mat that had been laid out and looked up to heaven in prayer. The executioner then led the martyr to the glorious scaffold. His remains were reverently escorted by about 300 faithful and buried at Tien Chu church.

Priest Joseph Dang Dinh Vien was beatified on May 27, 1900 and canonized on June 19, 1988.