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The very nature of the Church is missionary (AG 1:2) (see note#1)

Therefore, participating in the mission of evangelization

is the duty of every Christian.

 

If you ever have the opportunity to attend a Mass that includes the Sacrament of Baptism for adults, you will hear a brief dialogue between the presider of the Rite and the catechumen:

Presider: What do you ask of the Church?

Catechumen: Faith.

Presider: What does faith offer you?

Catechumen: Eternal life.

That is what the catechumen desires when requesting to enter the Faith; it is also the desire of parents when they bring their infants—such as you and me once were—to the Church to receive the Sacrament of Baptism. Through Baptism, we are joined to the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. We are connected with God and are invited to partake in eternal life, even while still in this earthly existence.

In short, we know God, we have faith, and we have the opportunity for eternal life thanks to our parents. But through whom did our parents receive their faith? Through our grandparents. And they received it from our great-grandparents. And so on. If we trace the line back far enough, how did the first Vietnamese people come to know God?

The answer: through missionaries from Spain, Portugal, France, Italy… If it weren't for those evangelists (also called missionaries —those who receive the command and are sent), the Vietnamese might never have known God; and you and I might still be strangers to the name of Jesus.

So then, who evangelized those missionaries? Other missionaries… And who helped them come to know Christ? More missionaries? Who were the very first missionaries? Were they the Apostles? The first missionary was Jesus Christ Himself: "As the Father has sent Me, so I send you (the Apostles)." (John 20:21)

Indeed, God's intention in creating humankind was for us to share in eternal life with Him. He established a plan of salvation to bring humanity to that ultimate goal. That plan began quietly within the people of Israel and is summed up as follows:  "In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets; in these last days, He spoken to us through His Son." (Hebrews 1:1). That Son is Jesus Christ. After His suffering, death, and resurrection, He poured out the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. Through the power and wisdom of the Spirit, they went forth to the ends of the earth proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God—the Good News of eternal life for those who believe in Jesus Christ.

Today, you and I are among the fortunate ones who have come to know this Good News. We have believed and received it, and every day we strive to shape our lives according to the teachings of Jesus, in the hope of receiving the eternal happiness that God has promised and prepared for all who believe in His Son, Jesus.

The Apostles did not keep for themselves the joy of encountering the Risen Christ. On the contrary, they fervently went out to share the joy of the Resurrection with the people of their time. As a result, fifteen centuries later, in the year 1533, that Good News was proclaimed for the first time in Vietnam—and eventually reached us.

As for us, the joy of knowing the Risen Lord compels us to share it. Continuing the Church’s missionary mission, the Franciscan friars in Vietnam have been reaching out to our brothers and sisters among the ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands, as well as in remote and distant areas such as Lào Cai, Lạng Sơn, Khánh Hòa, Sóc Trăng, Cambodia, Laos….

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