Saint Dominic Nguyễn Văn Xuyên, also known as Doãn, was born in 1786 in the village of Hưng Lập, Nam Định (now the family line of Tân Mỹ, Nguyệt Lãng, Thái Bình). As a child, he was entrusted by his parents to Bishop Delgado – Y, sent to the seminary, and ordained a priest in 1819.
That same year, Father Xuyên received the Dominican habit. He successively served the parishes of Phạm Pháo – Bùi Chu, Kẻ Mèn – Thái Bình (where he established the new congregation of Thanh Minh, now the parish of Thanh Minh), and then Đông Xuyên. In 1836, he was appointed assistant at the Ninh Cường Seminary. The following year, he went to assist Bishop Delgado – Y as administrator of the Diocese of Đông Đàng Ngoài (Eastern Tonkin).
When the bishop had to flee and was later captured, Father Xuyên both sought hiding places and assisted the parish of Hạ Linh. On August 18, 1838, at the mission station of Phú Đường (Hạ Linh parish), a teacher who had once taught in Bùi Chu recognized Father Xuyên and went to report him to the mandarins in hopes of a reward. Father Xuyên had just finished celebrating Mass when he heard the soldiers’ voices. He quickly consumed all the Blessed Sacrament, then took off his robe to try to escape, but he was not fast enough and was arrested.
When the prefect demanded, “Give me some silver, and I will let you go,” the priest replied, “I have no money on me. If you release me, I thank you; if you arrest me, I accept it.” Later, the faithful of Hạ Linh collected money to ransom him, but the prefect no longer dared to release him because the provincial authorities had already learned of the case. Hearing this, Father Xuyên consoled them: “Use that money for the parish; don’t waste it ransoming me to no avail. God’s will has been made known; no one can change it. Go home in peace, and remember to pray for me so that I may endure this hardship well.”
Knowing that Father Xuyên was the administrator of the bishop’s house, Trịnh Quang Khanh also wanted to exploit the diocese’s assets. He was present during the torture to urge them on: “Beat him more, harder, until he agrees to reveal everything and abjure the faith.” The soldier of faith could only cry out, “Jesus, Mary, save me!” until he lost consciousness and had to be carried back to prison.
In later sessions, he clenched his teeth and endured without making a sound. The mandarin increased the tortures, but the priest still courageously managed to say to the mandarin: “Whether I live or die, I will not abandon the faith. I choose death to live forever, rather than listen to you and live a little longer only to be destroyed for all eternity.”
Several times, overcome by pain, the priest fainted. The Governor-General ordered soldiers to take him back to prison and invited a physician to treat him, waiting for him to recover before bringing him out for further interrogation. On October 25, the Governor-General drew up a beheading verdict and sent it to the capital. The following month, the death sentences for Father Xuyên and Father Dụ were returned to Nam Định.
In his final days, the two priests were imprisoned together in one cell. They greeted each other joyfully, confessed to one another, and comforted and encouraged each other to remain steadfast to the end.
While in prison, Father Dominic Xuyên composed folk-style verses that both expressed his feelings and exhorted the faithful:
O people, hold fast to the bag of wisdom,
Overflowing with trust and filled with love in your heart.
Though swords and spears threaten in abundance,
Though demons tempt and menace day and night,
Whoever overcomes in this life
Will enjoy blessedness in the high and glorious courts of heaven.
On November 26, 1839, Father Nguyễn Văn Xuyên was led to execution at the Bảy Mẫu execution ground together with Father Đinh Đức Dụ. The mandarin asked one last time whether they would abjure the faith to be spared. The two replied, “No,” then extended their arms for the soldiers to tie them to the stakes, and thereafter the two servants of God received the martyr’s crown. Father Xuyên’s body was buried right there. In early 1841, the faithful exhumed and reinterred it at Lục Thủy.
Priest Dominic Nguyễn Văn Xuyên, priest of the Order of Preachers, was beatified on May 27, 1900, and canonized on June 19, 1988.
The content about the saint in this post is summarized and paraphrased from the book “Hạnh Các Thánh Tử Đạo Việt Nam” - Lives of the Vietnamese Martyrs (Vietnamese Bishops’ Conference, edited by Bishop Peter Nguyễn Văn Khảm, Tôn Giáo Publishing House, 2018). This post is not a verbatim copy but a re‑presentation based on the original source.