Hundreds of Vietnamese Catholics visited the campus of Christ Cathedral Saturday, Oct. 21, to participate in a Mass and witness the Most Rev. Kevin Vann, Bishop of Orange, bless the site that will house a shrine for the Lady of La Vang.
A Marian apparition that graced and blessed persecuted Catholics in 1798 in Central Vietnam, the Lady of La Vang is viewed as a symbol of strength and resilience by the local Vietnamese community, said Elysabeth Nguyen, who chairs the committee that oversees this $25 million project.
Orange County is home to about 100,000 Catholics of Vietnamese descent and 15 Vietnamese-speaking parishes.
The shrine will be completed in two phases. The first phase, expected to cost $10 million to be raised by the community, will include the 18-foot statue while the second phase, a $15 million endeavor, will consist of a library, welcome center and activity area and will be a collaborative effort between the community and the diocese.
Construction on the shrine is expected to begin in April 2018. Nguyen hopes the shrine will be open to the public in early 2019 when the Christ Cathedral sanctuary is also expected to be fully renovated.
Full story at OC Register.
My first cousin’s son was killed in Vietnam defending the WEAK Vietnamese. My Secretary’s brother was killed in Vietnam defending the WEAK Vietnamese. The Vietnamese military forces were never to be found. The wealthy Vietnamese of Saigon wee sending their children abroad to school so they could avoid the draft. When things were getting rough the wealthy Vietnamese (read Saigon) were coming the the US with their wealth and settling in Silicon Valley, Orange County, Denver, Houston, etc. while our children were being killed in Vietnam.
I understand, Innominato. It was awful. One of our relatives was in the Marines in Vietnam, my husband was helping make military equipment and one of my relatives was out protesting, “Hell, no we won’t go.” It broke up so many families here, and even caused divorces.
Then the left here smeared President Diem’s name when we were winning the war and talked the Kennedy administration into back a coup in Vietnam. According to Fr. Vincent Miceli’s book, they used Henry Cabot Lodge, a fading Republican, to set up the coup. Fr. Vincent Miceli was in Vietnam at that time. Whether or not President Kennedy knew they were going to kill Diem he did not know.
President Diem’s family had go through a lot of persecution for being Catholic previous to the war. One of his brothers had been buried alive, and I think other family members were killed. That might be why he sent his children abroad — so his whole family was not destroyed. Some of this is in the book “The Lost Mandate of Heaven” by Geoffrey Shaw and “The Antichrist” by Fr. Vincent Micheli.
“Have trust, be willing to suffer hardship and sorrow. I have already granted your prayers. Henceforth all those who come to pray to me in this spot will see their wishes fulfilled”.
-Our Lady of La Vang
$25 million? Sheer craziness! Our Blessed Mother would rather have the money used to help people!
These words by Georgia sounds like an echo of the same words by the traitor Judas Iscariot when a woman lavished upon Our Lord an expensive perfume and ointment. The traitor said, “This could have been spent on the poor.” And Our Lord says to the traitor, “The poor you will always have with you. But you will not always have me.” So Georgia, what is it to you that the people of God want to lavish upon Our Lord’s Mother this great tribute from their own treasure?
The article specifies the Shrine will include a library and other facilities. Perhaps the $25M includes interior furnishings. Given construction costs, that may be reasonable.
In my opinion, the US made a fundamental error when we continued supporting the French after they lost to the Viet Minh at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Some say the North’s primary goal was to oust the colonial masters [sound familiar?]. Perhaps if we negotiated with North then we would have avoided a marble memorial in Washigton with over 50,000 names on it. PS, I’m a member of the Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club.
Jesus, Joseph and Mary were poor in material wealth! Jesus, Our Lord and Savior, did not own a home. He lived on the streets with the poor. It seems implausible that Jesus, Joseph and Mary would want a $25 million home for Mary. Please use the $25 million to build Mary’s home for the sick, homeless and addicted. This would truly make Jesus, Jospeh and Mary happy!