Vietnam hosts its first beatification ceremony as 70,000 Catholics gather in Ca Mau to honour martyr priest Francis Xavier Truong Buu Diep.
Newsroom (02/07/2026 Gaudium Press ) Tens of thousands of Catholics gathered in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta on Thursday for a landmark moment in the country’s religious history as Father Francis Xavier Truong Buu Diep was formally beatified during the first beatification ceremony ever held on Vietnamese soil.
The ceremony took place in Ca Mau province and drew an estimated 70,000 faithful from across Vietnam, transforming the normally quiet southern parish into a major pilgrimage destination. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, serving as the papal envoy of Pope Leo XIV, and one of the two pro-prefects of the Dicastery for Evangelization, presided over the special Mass.
With the declaration, Father Diep became “Blessed,” the second of three stages on the path toward sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church.
Pilgrims Travel Across Vietnam
Many worshippers began arriving days before the event, with large crowds gathering around giant screens installed outside the church to accommodate those unable to enter the venue.
Among them was Tran Le Tap, a 65-year-old saleswoman from the southern province of An Giang, who spent the night sleeping outside the church grounds to ensure she could participate in the ceremony.
“It was a great honour for us to be here on this special occasion. We cannot miss it,” she said. “It was honour for our Catholic followers and also for the Vietnamese. I feel so blessed.”
The significance of the occasion was evident in the distances many attendees traveled. Le Mai, 33, journeyed from Hanoi with her mother, undertaking a day-long trip involving both air and road travel.
“It was a long way to go, all the way from the north here, but it’s a privilege for me and my mother to be able to attend this ceremony,” she said.
A Historic Day for the Vietnamese Church
Cardinal Tagle described the event as a “moment of great joy for Vietnamese Catholics” and a “truly historic day in the life of the Church.”
The beatification carries particular significance because, while Vietnam has previously seen 117 of its faithful beatified and later canonised as saints, all previous beatification ceremonies had been conducted at the Vatican. Thursday’s celebration marked the first time such a ceremony was held within the country itself.
The event highlighted the growing prominence of Vietnam’s Catholic community, which numbers more than 7.5 million believers and represents approximately 7.4 percent of the national population.
Remembering Father Truong Buu Diep
Born in 1897, Father Francis Xavier Truong Buu Diep served as priest of Tac Say Parish beginning in 1930. According to the Diocese of Can Tho, he was widely respected for his dedication to the poor, the sick, and those suffering amid the hardships of war.
His reputation for courage and pastoral devotion was cemented during the turbulent years following World War II. Diep was killed in 1946 while protecting parishioners, earning recognition as a martyr of the faith.
A diocesan investigation completed in 2017 concluded that he was murdered by two Japanese defectors. Church authorities have long pointed to his sacrifice and commitment to his community as central reasons for advancing his cause for sainthood.
Symbol of Improving Vatican-Vietnam Relations
The presence of Cardinal Tagle also underscored the gradual warming of relations between the Vatican and Communist Vietnam.
The two sides have lacked formal diplomatic relations since the end of the civil war in 1975. However, significant progress has been made in recent years. A major breakthrough came in 2023 when Hanoi and the Holy See agreed to the appointment of a Resident Papal Representative in Vietnam.
The successful staging of a beatification ceremony inside the country is widely viewed as another sign of expanding cooperation between the Vietnamese government and the Catholic Church.
Religious Freedom Remains Under Scrutiny
Despite constitutional guarantees of religious freedom, Vietnam continues to maintain tight oversight of religious organizations. Religious groups are subject to government regulation, and international rights organizations have frequently criticized requirements involving registration and monitoring of religious activities.
Nevertheless, the scale of Thursday’s gathering demonstrated the vitality of Vietnam’s Catholic community and the deep devotion many believers hold for Father Truong Buu Diep.
For the tens of thousands who traveled from across the country, the historic ceremony represented not only a celebration of a beloved priest’s sacrifice but also a defining moment in the history of the Catholic Church in Vietnam.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from AFP
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