Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Story of Saint Michael Dinh-Hy Ho (1808-1857)

Michael Dinh-Hy Ho is a native of Vietnam. He was born in 1808 from a devout Catholic family. Both parents work as a silk merchant. He was the fifth of 12 siblings. At that time, the Kingdom of Vietnam Nguyen Dynasty in power who hate Christians and prohibit the practices of Christian worship in its territory.
As an adult, he found faith and married couples. Michael Dinh-Hy Ho had two sons and three daughters. Like most of the other Vietnamese Catholics that time, she prayed silently. When he was 21 years old, Michael was chosen to be chief superintendent of King Vietnamese silk trade. He was one of the ruling officials supervise and regulate the silk trade between Vietnam with other countries around the Asian region.
Duties and authority of this makes can stroll freely abroad. Michael frequently visits Singapore, Malaysia and other Asian countries. When events pursuit and slaughter of Christians in the country reached its peak, the eldest son Michael expressed a desire to become a priest. Hearing this, he sent his son explore the Catholic faith and the priesthood studies in Indonesia.
During a government official, Michael was always helping people who can not afford and the help of the French and Portuguese missionaries entered Vietnam in secret. Despite the difficulties often faced, he never gave up.
Never one when the ship he was traveling with Father Leaders Society of Foreign Missions of Paris, missionary priests pirates attacked members of the group and all the inhabitants of the ship were taken hostage.
For the missionaries remain safely and quickly through in Vietnam, he gave all the finest silk fabric that is on the ship to the pirates as they are not held hostage ransom for too long. When the missionaries managed to deliver safely, he replaced the silk fabric that has been submitted it with his own money.
During his life, Michael became patron of Christian communities in Vietnam and dedicated himself as a layman totally to the Church. Gradually, its activities began to smell other royal officials. Michael was arrested, imprisoned, and tortured. While undergoing this difficult time, he tried to make a statement related to his involvement with the French government is trying to urge Vietnam to stop the actions to pursue and punish Christians.
This statement is intended, Letter to the King of Vietnam. However, Father Head of Society of foregin Missions of Paris, secretly asked him to retract his statement because it will cause an act of persecution and torture are even greater.
Royal court gave sentence to him in pieces.
During the punishment awaiting in pieces, he is constantly tortured and humiliated in public. At the end of his life is in sight, according to several eyewitnesses, he was refused his last lunch menu, and choose to die near his birthplace. He chose to wear clothing robes as his last official royal when he was beheaded.
Secretly, before he died, he could receive the Sacrament of Holy Oil from a priest was accompanied by his wife and daughter who have been married. He was beheaded on May 22, 1857. Part of his body was buried in the Basilica of Phu Cam and partly in his birthplace.
He was nominated as a saint at the request of Father Louis Pallard written from the Society of Foreign Missions of Paris, in 1867. Finally, in 1900, Michael was beatified Pope Leo XIII. Then, in 1988, Pope Paul II appointed him martyred with 116 other Vietnamese. His feast is celebrated every May 22.

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