Saint Vinh Sơn Phạm Văn Dương was born in 1821 in xứ Kẻ Mèn, Thái Bình Province. A devout Catholic, he married, raised three children, and diligently instructed them in the Catholic faith. In addition to farming, he served as the village tax collector.
Following Emperor Tự Đức’s “Phân sáp” (Resettlement) decree issued in August 1861, he was arrested in late September of that year, along with many other believers, and forcibly relocated to Mỹ Nhuệ village. Throughout nine months of imprisonment and torture, he steadfastly refused to trample on the Cross. When the mandarin interrogated him:
“As a tax collector for the imperial court, you should set an example by obeying the emperor’s orders and renouncing the Giatô [Catholic] faith—why do you remain obstinate?”
he calmly replied:
“Your Honor, I have always obeyed the lawful orders of the emperor and mandarins. But if I am commanded to abandon the worship of my God, I cannot obey the emperor by denying my Lord.”
On June 6, 1862, he was sentenced to death by burning alive. His remains were buried by fellow believers at the site of his martyrdom and later transferred to the Church of Saint Vinh Sơn (Saint Vincent), in xứ Kẻ Mèn.
On April 29, 1951, Pope Pius XII declared him Blessed. On June 19, 1988, Pope John Paul II canonized him as a Saint.