The southern province of Dong Nai is one of the first localities in thecountry to establish the provincial Committee for Solidarity ofCatholics right after the Vietnam Committee for Catholic Solidarity(VCCS) was founded in 1983.
Priest Tran Xuan Thao, Chairman ofthe provincial Committee, made the remark at a ceremony in Dong Nai onNovember 6 to mark its 30th founding anniversary.
Over thepast 30 years, the committee has assisted Catholic followers inpatriotic emulation campaigns launched by the Vietnam Fatherland Frontand authorities.
Local Catholics have actively joined indrives to build cultural lifestyles in residential areas, lent a helpinghand to the poor, studied and followed President Ho Chi Minh’s moralexamples while building new-style rural areas.
Other campaigns to encourage studies and talents, and improve rural transport have also received their warm responses.
On top of this, local Catholic priests and followers have contributedhundreds of millions of dong to social welfare activities.
Addressing the ceremony, VCCS Vice President cum General Secretary PhanKhac Tu stressed that Dong Nai is the only province that has reviewedthe patriotic emulation campaign among its Catholic community.
They have fully grasped teachings in the letter “Living out the Gospelin the midst of the Nation to serve the happiness of our compatriots”,issued by the Vietnam Episcopal Council in 1980, he noted.
Catholic followers form the second largest religious community inVietnam. Based on the number of followers, Buddhism is the largestreligion with Mahayana and Hinayana branches having a total of about 6.8million followers.
Priest Tran Xuan Thao, Chairman ofthe provincial Committee, made the remark at a ceremony in Dong Nai onNovember 6 to mark its 30th founding anniversary.
Over thepast 30 years, the committee has assisted Catholic followers inpatriotic emulation campaigns launched by the Vietnam Fatherland Frontand authorities.
Local Catholics have actively joined indrives to build cultural lifestyles in residential areas, lent a helpinghand to the poor, studied and followed President Ho Chi Minh’s moralexamples while building new-style rural areas.
Other campaigns to encourage studies and talents, and improve rural transport have also received their warm responses.
On top of this, local Catholic priests and followers have contributedhundreds of millions of dong to social welfare activities.
Addressing the ceremony, VCCS Vice President cum General Secretary PhanKhac Tu stressed that Dong Nai is the only province that has reviewedthe patriotic emulation campaign among its Catholic community.
They have fully grasped teachings in the letter “Living out the Gospelin the midst of the Nation to serve the happiness of our compatriots”,issued by the Vietnam Episcopal Council in 1980, he noted.
Catholic followers form the second largest religious community inVietnam. Based on the number of followers, Buddhism is the largestreligion with Mahayana and Hinayana branches having a total of about 6.8million followers.
Catholicism has 5.7 million, followed byHoa Hao sect (1.4 million), Cao Dai sect (808,000), Protestantism(734,000), Islam (73,000), and Brahmanism (56,000).-VNA
