Pope Leo XIV remembers Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân, Archbishop emeritus of Thàn-Phô Hô Chí Minh, Viet Nam, who handed away at age 92 on Sunday, saying his ministry to the Church in Viet Nam was marked by a ‘profound dedication to pastoral care and social duty, the steadfast promotion of dialogue and ecclesial unity, and the witness of a life lived in evangelical simplicity and humility.’
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
Pope Leo XIV mourned Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân, Archbishop emeritus of Thàn-Phô Hô Chí Minh, Viet Nam, who handed away at age 92 on 22 March, in a telegram of condolences he despatched on Thursday to the present Archbishop of Ho Chi Minh City, Archbishop Joseph Nguyên Nãng.
In his message, the Pope expressed his disappointment for the late Cardinal’s passing, providing his “heartfelt condolences” to all of the members of the native Church.
The Pope stated he joined them in commending his soul to the infinite mercies of God, noting he remembers “with immense gratitude the late Cardinal’s many years of dedicated priestly and episcopal ministry to the local Churches of My Tho and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as his contributions to the wider Church in Viet Nam and to the Apostolic See.”
The Holy Father additionally remembered that his ministry was marked “by a profound commitment to pastoral care and social responsibility, the steadfast promotion of dialogue and ecclesial unity, and the witness of a life lived in evangelical simplicity and humility.”
Finally, Pope Leo imparted his Apostolic Blessing upon all these mourning his dying “as a pledge of the consolation and peace in the Lord.”
Pillar of the Church in Viet Nam
Cardinal Jean-Baptiste Pham Minh Mân was born on 5 March 1934 in Ca Mau, Diocese of Cân Tho, Viet Nam, and can be ordained a priest on 25 May 1965.
According to his official Vatican biography, following ordination, he was a instructor on the Minor Seminary of Beato Quy in Cai Rang.
In 1975, because of the radical change of political system in South Viet Nam, the Church underwent persecution and the seminaries have been closed or confiscated by the State.
During that interval, he was made liable for the formation of clergymen. In 1988, when six main seminaries in Viet Nam have been once more opened, he was appointed as rector of the Seminary of Santo Quy in Cai Rang, and needed to face quite a few difficulties, together with a scarcity of professors.
On 22 March 1993, he was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of the Diocese of My Tho with the appropriate of succession, and was ordained on 11 August.
In March 1998, he was appointed Archbishop of Thàn-Phô Hô Chí Minh and led the Archdiocese till 2014.
Pope Saint John Paul II had created him Cardinal within the Consistory of 21 October 2003.
