Father Thanh Nguyen, LC

Fr. Thanh Nguyen, LC has already had an extraordinary life. Neither communism, nor an ordeal at sea, nor pirates could smother God’s call to follow Him. For whom God calls, He also paves the way. Fr. Thanh Nguyen’s journey began on the shores of Vietnam as a baby. In 1977, his family and their close-knit group of friends escaped a communist country’s tyranny and launched their small boat out to sea toward Thailand. Fr. Thanh was two weeks old. The little group was ten days at sea; boat fuel was almost gone, food and water had run out, and the passengers, despairing, wondered whether they would survive the voyage. Thankfully, they found land and the island’s inhabitants eagerly welcomed, housed, and fed them. After a couple of days, Fr. Thanh’s family and friends were given directions by boat to the refugee camp in Songkhla, Thailand. Compass and rotors fixed, boat re-fuelled, travelers nourished, and reinvigorated, the group set off on the final leg of their trip. In the last part of the journey, pirates overtook the boat. His family and friends watched in horror as the men approached them and boarded their vessel. The pirates pillaged what little they possessed and left without killing anyone. God had protected them. Soon after, the boat and weary band of passengers arrived safely to their destination. This relief was quickly crushed when Fr. Thanh and his family were denied entry. Fr. Thanh, his family, and their friends spent the next two weeks living on the boat tied to the dock. Again, God intervened. Days later, Thai soldiers loaded the refugees into trucks and ushered them to a location near their military camp. Here, in this open forest camp, Fr. Thanh was baptized. For the next four months, the family and friends awaited sponsorship from overseas and were gratefully sent to America. After arriving in the United States, just a few years later, in 1981, Fr. Thanh’s father passed away from liver cancer. Fr. Thanh’s mother raised her family of eight children by herself – seven boys and a girl. She worked arduously to satisfy their material needs. Faith was a priority. As he reflects, she stood as a solitary pillar of faith immersed in a culture and mingled with a people whose language remained foreign to her. At his mother’s knees, he learned and memorized prayers. Daily Mass was a joyful obligation. She led by example. Not infrequently, she attended Mass twice a day. Devotion to Mary had a special place in her heart; the family often prayed the rosary together. This spiritual formation equipped Fr. Thanh to answer the call to the priesthood. The words that often ring in his ears, once heard by the prophet Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.” God calls whom he wishes to the priesthood. Through the loving formation imparted by his mother, his family, faithful friends along the way, and fellow Legionaries of Christ, Fr. Thanh Nguyen, LC followed God’s will for his life.

Fr. Thanh Nguyen, LC has worked and studied in Texas, Missouri, New Hampshire, Italy, Venezuela, and now Michigan. He is currently taking courses for a Masters of Science Degree in Psychology from Divine Mercy University. Fr. Thanh’s course work and thesis will be completed by 2021. His principal work in Michigan is with the Hispanic community. He has been on 10 medical missions with Helping Hands Medical Missions in Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica. He has been on several construction and evangelization missions to Costa Rica, Mexico, and Venezuela. Fr. Thanh Nguyen’s areas of expertise are in spiritual guidance, accompaniment, and spiritual direction. He is fluent in multiple languages. We are grateful for his story, faithful mother, family, courage of his parents, vocation, kindness, and apostolic fervor.