64 Martyrs of Vietnam

The work of evangelization in Vietnam, begun as early as the 16th century by Jesuit, Dominican, and Franciscan missionaries, had given rise to flourishing and fervent Christian communities. However, starting from the end of the 18th century, the Vietnamese imperial authorities began to perceive Christianity as a threat to ancestral traditions and the social order, often equating it with foreign political influence. Faced with edicts of prohibition and persecution, European missionaries and the local clergy had to lead a clandestine life. They traveled through the countryside at night, hiding in caves, forests, or in the homes of courageous faithful to continue administering the sacraments and supporting the faith of the communities. Vietnamese priests, such as Saint Andrew Dũng-Lạc or Saint Peter Lê Tùy, played an indispensable role in keeping the Church alive in the absence of official structures. Catechists and laypeople (farmers, tailors, soldiers) formed a heroic support network, refusing to denounce their pastors and accepting prison, torture, and death rather than denying their faith by walking on the cross.

The reputation of holiness and martyrdom (fama martyrii) of these 64 witnesses of the faith was established immediately after their deaths among the Vietnamese faithful. Despite the risks of reprisals, local Christians endeavored to collect their bodies, their relics, and the objects used in their torture (such as cangues or chains). In 1857, at the request of the Paris Foreign Missions Society and the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), Pope Pius IX officially introduced the cause for the beatification of Augustin Schoeffler and his companion martyrs of Indochina. The diocesan and historical inquiry was conducted with rigor to collect the testimonies of survivors and eyewitnesses to the executions. On July 6, 1899, Pope Leo XIII signed the decree formally recognizing the martyrdom of this first group of 64 servants of God.

The brief of beatification was signed by Pope Leo XIII on May 7, 1900. The solemnities of the beatification of these 64 martyrs of Tonkin and Cochinchina were celebrated with splendor on May 27, 1900, in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. It was the first time that a sovereign pontiff resorted to group beatifications of such magnitude for martyrs from mission lands. Subsequently, three other waves of beatifications of martyrs of Vietnam took place (in 1906, 1909, and 1951). On June 19, 1988, Pope John Paul II celebrated in Rome the solemn canonization of all 117 Martyrs of Vietnam, thus uniting the 64 blessed from 1900 with the other martyrs recognized subsequently. On December 14, 1990, through the apostolic letter Si quidem cunctis, John Paul II declared them patrons of Vietnam.

The spirituality of the 64 martyrs of Vietnam is deeply marked by a love for the Cross and an absolute fidelity to Christ, lived out in simplicity and humility. Faced with judges who demanded they trample upon the crucifix to save their lives, they constantly affirmed their dual fidelity: fidelity to God, the sovereign master of their lives, and fidelity to their homeland and their emperor, refuting the accusation of treason. Their legacy is immense. The blood of these martyrs was the seed of a particularly vibrant and resilient Vietnamese Church, which today counts several million Catholics. Their relics are venerated in numerous shrines in Vietnam, notably at the pilgrimage center of Sở Kiện, as well as in the Martyrs' Room of the Paris Foreign Missions Seminary on Rue du Bac, which preserves their mementos and instruments of torture as testimonies of their spiritual victory.