About 50 priests participated in the ceremony attended by thousands of people, including religious sisters and members of the Association of Lovers of the Holy Cross and lay people in traditional costumes.
Newsroom (09/18/2022 09:08, Gaudium Press) On September 14, Bishop Matthew Nguyen Van Khoi of Qui Nhon and Bishop Joseph Do Manh Hung of Phan Thiet transferred the relics of the late French Bishop Pierre Lambert de la Motte from the motherhouse of the Lovers of the Holy Cross Qui Nhon congregation to the Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary in Qui Nhon, capital of Binh Dinh province, located in Vietnam
About 50 priests participated in the ceremony attended by thousands of people, including religious sisters and members of the Association of Lovers of the Holy Cross and lay people in traditional costumes.
The urn with the relic was placed in front of a large picture of the late bishop, decorated with flowers.
Bishop Khoi said the relics are publicly displayed in the cathedral so that many faithful can easily visit, honor, pray and appeal to the first bishop of the Apostolic Vicariate of Dang Trong (Cochinchine), which is now the diocese of Qui Nhon.
“The more people appeal to his intercession and if their prayers are answered, the greater Bishop Lambert’s reputation for holiness will be, facilitating the process of his beatification and canonization,” the 71-year-old prelate noted.
He explained that the display of the relics is a response to the regulation of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, which last year asked local bishops to verify that the candidate enjoys a genuine and widespread reputation for holiness among a large part of the people of God. The reputation must be spontaneous and not artificially produced.
Bishop Khoi called on people to pray to Bishop de la Motte and witness his reputation for holiness. Those who suffer from incurable diseases and recover thanks to his intercessory power should report their cases to the local Church.
He stressed that the local population owes Bishop de la Motte a deep debt of gratitude for laying solid foundations for the local clergy, religious, and catechists. He promoted harmony and unity among the local population and earned the respect of government authorities and followers of other religions.
The French bishop, who served the vicariate from 1659-79, ordained Fr. Joseph Trang, the first native priest of Quang Ngai province, now under the diocese of Qui Nhon, in 1668 in Ayutthaya, Thailand. Three years later, he founded the Lovers of the Holy Cross congregation in the province, and Fr. Trang’s sister was named the congregation’s first superior.
Despite religious persecution in Vietnam, Bishop de la Motte made many pastoral visits, administering the sacrament of Confirmation to 10,000 natives and baptizing many more. There were about 100 martyrs in this region.
With ucanews information.
Compiled by Dominic Joseph
