Voices 8/28: more Vietnam Ordination stories from Fr. Steve Grozio, CM

A

message

from

Father

Steve

Grozio,

CM

Dear friends,

Our nation experienced unfathomable horror in Minneapolis yesterday, and we unite in prayer for the deceased and for the countless lives traumatized by this violence. May our Lord grant eternal life to those who have died, and through the intercession of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal may those who have suffered be comforted. Together let us work for peace to make our world a better place.

Travels in Vietnam

On Tuesday morning, August 19, Fr. Mike Nguyen, CM; Fr. Elmer Bauer, CM; Fr. John Maher, CM; and I flew to the City of Da Lat, Vietnam. Confreres met us at the airport and drove us to the seminary. It is an impressive, four-story structure built in a “U” shape about 10 years ago for its students in Philosophy and Theology. We were astounded to see that a large tent covered the entire courtyard, and inside the tent were thousands of chairs and a large, raised sanctuary with an altar, a temporary pulpit, and chairs for the 250 concelebrants who would participate in the Mass the following day. Click here to see pictures of the tent and preparations in Da Lat.

A heightened sense of anticipation filled the air as the preparations neared their culmination. The ordinands were going through final rehearsals; visitors and guests were welcomed; the seminary choir was practicing; and everyone was busy with final tasks.

As we arrived, Fr. John the Baptist Doai Dang Kim, CM, the seminary rector, warmly welcomed us. Fr. John studied at both St. John’s and Niagara, then continued to work at Niagara for several years before returning to Vietnam to become a provincial consultor and the seminary rector. He helped us to get settled in our rooms and then gave us a tour of the seminary, but I will not share insights from that tour until next week. Click here to see pictures of Fr. Doai and other Vietnamese confreres who have studied at St. John’s and Niagara.   

Because so many final preparations were going on, Fr. Mike had arranged for us to visit a nearby house of the Daughters of Charity where their novitiate is held. I should mention here that several Vietnamese confreres were most gracious and generous in showing us around and driving us from place to place. 

The Daughters of Charity site is built on donated land on a small mountain. A Vincentian parish was also built there. It serves as a shrine to Mary, which attracts many pilgrims. In conversation with our confrere who is the pastor, I grew to understand that many churches there are not named after saints but rather go by the name of the place where they were built. He had done some language studies in Spain, so we conversed in Spanish. When I asked him the name of the church, he said something like this, “Well, it is a shrine to Mary, and it is on this mountain, so it is Our Lady of the Mountain.” Click here to see pictures of the beautiful church.  

Although we did not meet any of the seminary sisters, we were guided to an area where the Daughters of Charity have taken in some disabled girls in their early teens. Their families are so poor that they could not care for them, and because they were handicapped, the teens had often suffered from mistreatment. The Daughters provide them with a place to live, a community of girls to be with, and the opportunity to learn the skill of embroidery. When we visited them, they were intently focused on their tasks. The artwork they do is amazing and beautiful. Here are some pictures of their artwork, carefully created stitch by stitch. They also embroider vestments.

The Ordination

The high point of the week for us, and the whole purpose of the trip, was the Priesthood Ordination of Fr. Paul Pham, CM. In addition to ourselves, Superior General of the Congregation of the Mission, Fr. Tomaž Mavrič, CM, came from Rome, and Fr. John Cheng-Chien Wang, CM, the Visitor of the Province of Taiwan (China), was also present. It is estimated that there were about 3,000 people in attendance, which included parishioners from Laos; from Greensboro, North Carolina; and from all over Vietnam. 

The Bishop of the Diocese of Da Lat ordained the confreres. Two other bishops concelebrated: one from Fr. Paul’s diocese, which has been a great source of priestly vocations throughout the years, and the other from Laos, where one of the ordinands had done his apostolic year. 

The ceremony was joyful, prayerful, and majestic, yet appropriately simple. The music was uplifting and beautiful, and everything was done with reverence and respect. For the four of us from the Eastern Province, the joy of being present at Fr. Paul’s Ordination was only amplified by the magnitude and splendor of the event. 

In his homily, the bishop encouraged those to be ordained to follow the example of Jesus, to live a pure life, to carry out their duty of teaching and living the Gospel, and to offer the spiritual sacrifice of the faithful, joining the sacrifice of Christ, which their hands offer on the altar. 

Although Fr. John, Fr. Elmer, Fr. Mike, and I rejoiced as each confrere was ordained, we were particularly attentive and joyful when Fr. Paul came forward for each rite, and we were especially moved as we imposed hands on him. 

In the remarks at the Ordination Mass, the bishop said, “Among the 30 new ordinands today, half of them volunteered, and will receive ad gentes missions, to many distant places in the world such as Korea, Japan, Laos, Pakistan, and even Haiti and the Amazon region.” Click here for a printout of the introduction, homily, and concluding remarks. 

If you haven’t seen the video of the celebration, I encourage you to click on this YouTube link. Because it is four hours long, you can skim through it to get a feel of the ceremony. 

The celebration after the Mass was in another huge tent covering the soccer field. A sit-down meal was served, and again everything was perfectly organized. Click here for pictures taken after the Ordination.

Thursday morning First Masses

The Provincial House for the Vietnamese Province is on the grounds of one of the Vincentian parishes in Da Lat. There, we gathered at 5 a.m. on Thursday morning for a Mass with the newly ordained priests and deacons. It gave the Visitor and all the confreres the opportunity to participate in everyone’s First Mass before they went off to their home parishes. Click here for a picture taken after Thursday morning’s First Mass. 

Fr. Paul’s First Mass

Fr. Paul comes from a diocese in a very Catholic area. Though there are only about 7 million Catholics in Vietnam, 1 million of them live in that diocese. That reality was reinforced as we drove a few miles down the main road to the parish where Fr. Paul would celebrate his First Mass. We must have passed six beautiful churches, all similar in size and construction to Fr. Paul’s parish. Apparently, his parish has produced about 90 vocations with Fr. Paul being the most recent.

When we arrived at the parish where the First Mass would be celebrated, we saw a banner proudly displaying Fr. Paul’s picture above the church entrance, so we knew we were in the right place. The pastor warmly welcomed us, after which we walked a block or two to the home of Fr. Paul’s family and visited with them for a few minutes. Click here for pictures.

A band led the procession to the church with their music adding a festive feel to the occasion. You can see from the pictures that the interior of the church was beautiful and was even more beautiful as it filled up for the Liturgy. After the Mass, everyone proceeded to the lower level of the church for a festive celebration highlighted by delicious food, good company, and karaoke singers. Click here for pictures from that day. 

A Post of the Nuntia Express

[The Nuntia provides updates on Vincentians from around the globe.]

Click here to read a recent post from the Nuntia Express. 

The Vincentian Solidarity Office’s August 2025 Bulletin

[The Vincentian Solidarity Office (VSO) is a program of service of the General Curia of the Congregation of the Mission in Rome, Italy. Its mission is to mobilize and manage resources while also building capacity and accountability for its work of evangelization and service of the poor.]

The VSO is happy to share some stories from the field. Click on this link to read the Bulletin: August 2025 Bulletin

Vincentian Marian Youth International Bulletin

[The Vincentian Marian Youth is an international youth association committed to other young men and women, the world, the Church, and the poor.]

The Vincentian Marian Youth have shared their July 2025 International Bulletin with us. To read it, click here.

May God bless you in the week ahead, and may Our Lady wrap you in her love and grace, drawing you closer to her Son.

Yours in St. Vincent,

Fr. Steve Grozio, CM

Provincial, Congregation of the Mission, Eastern Province

Vinsights

Vincentian Insights from the Province

Fr. Pat Griffin, CM

“I have written about the characters in the Parable of the Good Samaritan whom we might call ‘the passersby.’ I am drawn to them by several elements. For a moment, let us concentrate on the fact that there are ‘two’ of them.”

read reflection >

Trivia time!

1. Whose papacy began on August 26?

2. Who painted Self-portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird?

3. The San Antonio Public Library recently received an overdue book. How long overdue was it?

last week’s results

1. Where is the United States spending $8 million to replace phone towers built and operated by Chinese tech company Huawei?

2. Where in Maryland is the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton?

3. The San Antonio Public Library recently received an overdue book. How long overdue was it?

Prayer requests

Please pray for the repose of the souls of:

All the Vincentian Priests and Brothers who have gone before us

Please remember in your prayers:

Our sick brothers and priests

Our confreres in St. Catherine’s Infirmary

All those affected by war

All those affected by natural disasters

All victims of violence and their families

We want to hear from you!

How can our newsletter better serve you? Send a message and share your thoughts and suggestions for engaging stories or Vincentian topics you would like to read or learn more about.