Saint Paul Phạm Khắc Khoan – Priest and Martyr for His Steadfast Faith - Saints Martyred for the Faith in Vietnam
Saint Paul Phạm Khắc Khoan was born in 1771 in Diên Mậu village, which at that time belonged to Hảo Nho parish, now part of Hiếu Thuận parish, Phát Diệm Diocese. Before being ordained a priest, Brother Khoan was assigned by his superior to manage the Kẻ Vĩnh Central House. After ordination, he served as the pastor of Phúc Nhạc parish, where he often reminded the faithful to live according to justice and the virtue of purity – two essential conditions for the salvation of the soul. Although the parish had three assistant priests, Father Khoan still diligently fulfilled all duties and set a shining example for everyone.

Though already over sixty years old, he still regularly visited the congregations of Phúc Nhạc, Đông Biên, Tôn Đạo, and the Yên Mối Lovers of the Holy Cross convent once a month. On August 24, 1837, while returning from Trại Bò – where he had just administered the last rites to a patient – via Đông Biên, Father Khoan spent the night at the house of Deputy Chief Dụ. The next morning, the village chief of that area captured him along with two catechists, Brother Hiếu and Brother Thanh. All three were taken to the province and imprisoned for nearly two years.

At the time of his arrest, Father Khoan was 68 years old. Despite his frail age and enduring many tortures, he remained steadfast in his faith. When the mandarin asked: "Why don't you reconsider and realize your error, renounce your religion, obey the king, and stop listening to those Westerners?", the father simply replied: "I will never renounce my faith, whether I live or die."

The officials separated Father Khoan from the two catechists, hoping to persuade each individually. The judge falsely claimed that the two brothers had stepped over the cross, causing the father great sorrow. But the next day, a woman entered the prison and reported: "The two catechists remain strong in professing their faith, to the point that the mandarins are afraid." The father immediately rejoiced and gave thanks to God.

Initially, the sentence for the father was beheading and having his head displayed for three days as a deterrent. Upon hearing this, he was joyful, thinking he would soon enjoy happiness in heaven. However, King Minh Mạng ordered a reduced sentence: "This guilty one has deceived people for a long time, and even before the officials refused to step over the cross, so he is truly a depraved person deserving death. But he is over sixty years old and won't live much longer, so punish him like his two servants, with delayed strangulation and imprisonment" – meaning to imprison him long-term until he wastes away and dies.

But the officials, seeing they could not sway the father, petitioned the capital to request execution of the beheading sentence. This time, King Minh Mạng immediately approved with his royal seal. Father Khoan was joyful, but because the Lunar New Year was near, the execution was postponed until the first lunar month. The newly appointed mandarin again tried to persuade the father and the two brothers to renounce their faith. Father Khoan, speaking for the whole group, answered: "We have already considered it, there is no way we can change our minds. Our sentence has been passed, we only wish for Your Excellency to execute us quickly. We will not step over the cross; if we wanted to do such an absurd thing to preserve our lives, we would have done it already."

On January 22, 1839, King Minh Mạng issued an edict forcing the officials to find a way to make Father Khoan renounce his faith. The mandarin summoned the father and said: "The Emperor has great compassion for you, because you are a native of this country. The royal decree intends for you to realize your error and correct it. Now the king orders you to step over the cross and you will be pardoned immediately. I also pity you; obey the king's order so I can release you now." Father Khoan replied: "I report to Your Excellency, I am grateful for your compassion, but I must trouble Your Excellency, for I cannot obey the king's order. I ask Your Excellency to inform me early of the day of my execution, so I can arrange my personal affairs and bid farewell to this world."

The mandarin promised to notify him in advance, then invited the father into his house to chew betel and drink tea. On April 28, 1840, the mandarin ordered the execution. On the way to the execution ground at the foot of Cánh Diều mountain, the three men walked while singing. When Father Khoan raised his voice singing "Allêluia," the executioner carried out the beheading. That night, the faithful brought his body to Yên Mối village, later transferring it to Phúc Nhạc.

Priest Paul Phạm Khắc Khoan was elevated to the rank of Blessed by Pope Leo XIII on May 27, 1900, and canonized as a saint by Pope John Paul II on June 19, 1988.