Saint François Jaccard Phan (1799 - 1838) - Vietnamese Martyr Saint

St. François Jaccard was born on September 6, 1799, in the village of Onion, Savoy, France, in a devout Catholic family. Despite living during the French Revolution, his parents ensured that their children received a good Catholic education. Although intellectually challenged and lacking in memory, with the encouragement of his friends, he joined the Paris Foreign Missions Society in 1823 and was ordained a priest.

On July 10, 1823, he set out for India as a missionary. After more than a year, he continued to Macau and then entered Northern Vietnam through Lach Day. On January 5, 1826, he arrived at the diocesan house of Dang Trong, learned Vietnamese, took the Vietnamese name Phan, and was appointed to pastoral work in Nhu Ly, Phu Cam, while also serving at the An Ninh Seminary.

Although King Minh Mang had issued decrees prohibiting Christianity, he still summoned many foreign priests to Hue to assist the court with translation work. In 1832-1833, Father Jaccard had several audiences with the king and was falsely accused of illegally preaching the faith, leading to his imprisonment in Huong Tra, Thua Thien. Initially sentenced to death, his punishment was later commuted to life exile in Lao Bao.

In 1835, the king summoned him to Cam Lo to work as a translator and teach French. In early 1838, when the An Ninh Seminary was destroyed, the king suspected Father Jaccard's involvement and had him taken to Quang Tri for interrogation. After enduring many days of whipping and torture, on September 21, 1838, he was executed by beheading at Nhan Bieu along with the seminarian Tran Van Thien.

On May 27, 1900, he was beatified, and on June 19, 1988, he was canonized a saint.