Saint Peter Nguyễn Văn Lựu was born in 1812 in Gò Vấp, Gia Định province. He devoted himself to God, was trained at the Penang Seminary (Malaysia), and was later ordained a priest.

After returning to Vietnam, he was assigned to care for the parishes of Mặc Bắc, Sa Đéc, and Mỹ Tho. He zealously taught catechism, regularly visited each family, and was greatly loved and admired by the parishioners.

Living in the riverine region of the Mekong Delta, Father Lựu occasionally drank alcohol to socialize. Once, when inviting Father Thuyết to drink and being cautioned about the harmful effects of alcohol, Father Lựu immediately threw the bottle into the river and kept his promise to abstain from alcohol completely from then until the end of his life.

In 1853, he was transferred to care for the Ba Giồng parish (near Mỹ Tho). By the winter of 1860, he often disguised himself to enter prisons and visit captured believers in the Xoài Mút and Ba Giồng areas. He brought them the Holy Eucharist, providing comfort and encouragement.

Father Lựu was discovered and courageously declared himself the pastor. In prison, he endured torture alongside other faithful. Before the court, he professed his steadfast faith: "The Holy Faith has already penetrated my very bones and marrow; how could I abandon it? Moreover, an ordinary believer, even a catechist, has no right to renounce the Faith, much less I, who am a pastor."

He was sentenced to execution by decapitation and was martyred on April 7, 1861, at the execution grounds outside Mỹ Tho citadel. His body, along with his stocks and the earthen jar stained with his blood, was buried by the faithful at Ba Giồng parish. The Diocese of Mỹ Tho honors him as its Patron Saint.

Priest Peter Nguyễn Văn Lựu was beatified on May 2, 1909, and canonized a Saint on June 19, 1988.