Mr. Mendie Nguyen

Seminarian , Third Year Theology

     I was born and raised in Vietnam during the late 1960’s in a family of five children. Life was difficult and hard after the Vietnam War ended. Seeking liberty and freedom from political oppression, many Vietnamese people, including myself, tried to escape our native homeland from 1975 to 1995. They left by sea, and in ships of all sizes. Others walked through deadly battlefields of Cambodia and Laos. Thousands of Vietnamese escapees perished on the high seas or in the jungles. Three out of ten people fleeing Vietnam made it to free neighboring coastal regions such as the Philippines, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Thailand or Singapore. Twice, I was caught and sent back to my home while trying to escape from Vietnam.

     Events in my life have helped me realize that God is my protector, guide, comforter, and loving Father. God has always been with me. He was there when my family had to start all over again in the United States in 1991 through the Humanitarian Operation Program. We know that miracles still happen and the miracle in my life happened when God called me to be a priest. A vocation is such a mysterious thing; no one can really understand it. I am an ordinary man responding to an extraordinary call. If someone asked me why I want to be a priest, I would say that I want to save my soul and others. I want to be a servant of Christ.