Philippe Nguyễn Kim Điền was a Vietnamese prelate. He was Archbishop of Huế during the country's period of late 20th-Century wars and eventual reunification.

Biography

Philippe Nguyễn Kim Điền was born on March 13, 1921, in Long Đức,

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. After being ordained a priest and serving as a professor and later rector of the seminary, he joined the

Little Brothers of Jesus The Little Brothers of Jesus (; ; abbreviated PFJ) is a male religious congregation within the Catholic Church of pontifical right inspired by Charles de Foucauld. Founded in 1933 in France, the congregation first established itself in French ...

. After joining the order for sometime, Dien worked as a street cleaner and a rag picker in Saigon. He was ordained bishop in 1947, was appointed bishop of Cantho in 1961, archbishop of Pario in 1964, and archbishop of Hue in 1968. He served as a Council Father during the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

on sessions one though four. During his tenure as archbishop, he kept the Roman Catholic community together facing government efforts to control the church after Vietnam's reunification. He kept the local community strong amid seminary closures and the forced “reeducation” of many priests. The Vietnamese government formed the “Committee for the Solidarity of Patriotic Vietnamese Catholics” in 1983, attempting to separate the Vietnamese Roman Catholic church from Rome's papal authority. Điền was opposed to this committee and was placed under house arrest in 1984 until his death in 1988. During his house arrest, he continued to circulate letters among parishioners “and the authorities apparently made no serious attempt to replace him”. Priests and nuns were reported to have been arrested for distributing his statements clandestinely in Vietnam. These were also smuggled abroad. Điền was highly regarded in Vietnam. He was never a fervent anti-communist; he was a "priest of the people" who embraced the social reforms that came as a result of Vatican II. He was however critical of the government's policies and denounced the restrictions on Mass and other religious ceremonies, the anti-Catholic message children received in school and the fact that Catholics were discriminated against when seeking employment. At one point during his tenure, he was placed under surveillance and two priests under his authority were arrested. Being under house arrest prevented him from attending the 1986 Vatican Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples; this prohibition would merit a formal protest from cardinals and bishops from 40 countries. Điền died of an illness in hospital in

Ho Chi Minh City , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

on June 8, 1988. His tomb is located to the left inside the

Phủ Cam Cathedral Phủ Cam Cathedral ( vi, Nhà thờ Phủ Cam; french: Cathédrale de Phu Cam) is a Latin Catholic cathedral in Huế, Vietnam, and seat of the Archdiocese of Huế. It is one of the biggest churches in the city. History The cathedral was bui ...

Huế Huế () is the capital of Thừa Thiên Huế province in central Vietnam and was the capital of Đàng Trong from 1738 to 1775 and of Vietnam during the Nguyễn dynasty from 1802 to 1945. The city served as the old Imperial City and admi ...

. Điền was a priest for 40.8 years and a bishop for 27.3 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diên, Philippe Nguyên-Kim 1921 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Vietnam