Diên Trường parish: building community in a time of need

The Covid-19 pandemic has adversely affected the economic activities and lives of the residents. Many families are in difficulty. The poor lack food. The pastor fosters social and charitable activities to help poor families in this community.

Hanoi (AsiaNews) - The parish of Diên Trường belongs to the diocese of Hà Tĩnh. It was founded in 2006. It currently has 500 families with around 2,384 faithful. This parish is located in the municipality of Quảng Sơn in the city of Ba Đồn in the province of Quảng Bình.

In ecological terms, this territory is very harsh. In the dry season it is "cháy da cháy thịt" (very hot) because of the Laotian wind. The rainy season is very heavy and causes "constant flooding". Every year, this place is a "rốn lũ" (the center of the flood) and forms a "large pond" of the city of Ba Đồn. As a result, people suffer from floods every year and face many difficulties.

Father Peter Nguyen, vicar of the Diên Trường parish, says that “all the people here want to build a new place to teach catechism and human values ​​to children and adolescents. In addition, volunteer teachers give English and IT lessons. We want to help children, especially teenagers, to have knowledge, work skills and preparation for future workplace ".

Ms. Maria Hoàng, a catechist, said that "by coming to the class, I want to help these children grow in the Word of God and to become good people for families and society".

Anna Nguyễn, 12, said that “We study here: the summer is very hot; winter is cold; the rainy season floods. My classmate and I dream of a spacious and good school for the church and society."

Professor Maria Hoàng explains: “We want to help young generations overcome poverty. So let's give the children the opportunity to study here. From basic education to global education, today's younger generations will become useful people for the church and society. We work hard towards this ideal".

Consequently, after a year of construction of the "Nhà Học Giáo Lý" (the House for learning catechism), Bishop Paul Nguyễn Thái Hợp (pictured) celebrated the inauguration of the "Catechism House" active since 9 September 2018. Local authorities have agreed and encouraged for teaching."

In recent months, the Covid-19 pandemic has negatively affected the economic activities and lives of the residents. All pastoral activities were also suspended for 6 weeks. Many families have encountered difficulties. The poor lack food. Therefore, during this period, the parish priest of Diên Trường is fostering social and charitable activities to help poor families in this community.

In the spirit of Catholic love for all, the Vietnamese-American singer Triệu Ngọc Yến together with the Charity Association of Friendly and Loving Smile (Hội Từ Thiện Nụ Cười Thân Ái) from the United States continue to "provide food for the poor" for the parish of Diên Trường as well as to many other places around the world.

On June 8, Father Joseph Trương Văn Thực recieved from the singer Triệu Ngọc Yến and the Charity Association of Friendly and Loveing ​​Smile to donate more than 1.5 tons of rice for the Chay Catholic community of the Diên Trường parish of the diocese of Hà Tĩnh.

A charity volunteer said: “I have witnessed the lives of people here. We have a clear understanding of their lives." A young volunteer also told local media that "after distributing rice to people in the church courtyard, our delegation continued to visit and offer "bags of rice with love" to many elderly people alone. We see that many people still face many difficulties to living here."

After this Covid pandemic - 19, most of the faithful of the parish of Diên Trường are starting to return to the work of the fields. The strength of Quảng Sơn municipality is the development of reforestation and livestock. The Catholic community here is also focusing on developing the family economy and contributing to socioeconomics."