LOVERS OF THE HOLY CROSS (LHC)

(Amantes de la Croix, Dòng Mấn Thánh Gia, abbreviated "L.H.C.," Official Catholic Directory, #2390) the first Vietnamese indigenous religious congregation, founded 1670 by Bishop Pierre lambert de la motte. This congregation is significant in the history of the Catholic Church in Vietnam for being the mother congregation that gave birth to, or inspired the formation of, all subsequent Vietnamese indigenous women religious congregations, including dominican sisters, Vietnamese Dominican Sisters, and the congregation of mary, queen. The accompanying table lists all the L.H.C. congregations in existence at the beginning of the 21st century.

L.H.C. communities are found in Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Taiwan, Japan, France, Germany, Norway, Italy, and the United States of America.

THE LOVERS OF THE HOLY CROSS IN VIETNAM

Early History. In his travels in northern Vietnam, Bishop Lambert had come across a group of celibate Vietnamese Catholic women who, on their own initiative, organized themselves into a community and practiced virtuous deeds. Impressed by their faith and perseverence, he decided to reorganize them into a religious congregation. Lambert drafted the original Rule for the fledging congregation, and witnessed the vows of the first two sisters on Feb. 2, 1670. The first community was officially formed at Kiên Lao (Nam Ðịnh, Bùi Chu Diocese in northern Vietnam), followed by Bái Vàng (Hà Nam, Hà Nội Diocese) and An Chỉ, Quảng Ngãi. On Aug. 28, 1678, the congregation received the official recognitio from the Congregation for the propagation of the faith.

Persecutions. The early decades of the young congregation were unsettling times, marked by the Vietnamese rulers' persecutions of Christians (see vietnam, the catholic church in). Despite these persecutions, the congregation attracted many new members and convents were established in all dioceses in Vietnam. From its inception, the sisters were engaged in a diverse range of ministries: praying for the success of the missionary enterprise in Vietnam and China in the midst of persecution; teaching catechism; educating Christian and non-Christian girls; caring for widows, the sick, homeless, refugees and the destitute; and baptizing infants and children in danger of death. Often, the sisters were the only Catholic presence in the area, working as catechists and ministering to the religious needs of the local Catholic community when foreign missionaries were either expelled or executed on orders of the Vietnamese emperor. At the height of the persecutions during the mid-19th century, over 30 convents were destroyed, about 2,000 sisters were dispersed and some 200 were martyred. In Huế alone, 56 sisters were burnt alive in the local parish church and two other sisters were buried alive.

Revival, Growth and Reorganization. When persecutions ended, the congregation experienced a renaissance, with many new vocations coming in and new convents established. In the early years of the period of reconstruction, the sisters wore lay clothes and worked in the rice-fields. In 1867, the sisters returned to their apostolic ministries, and began wearing religious habits and working as village catechists. With the promulgation of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, steps were taken to regularize the congregation's various diocesan foundations. In 1925, the Congregation of Phát Diệm became the first to validate its Rule and regularize its vows according to the 1917 Code. Since then, other congregations sought to regularize their status.

First Great Exodus of 1954. The partition of Vietnam into the communist North and the non-communist South pursuant to the 1954 Geneva Agreement resulted in a massive displacement of the various congregations in the North. Many of these congregations were decimated when most of the sisters joined the exodus of Catholics fleeing the incoming communist government. These sisters were welcomed and helped by the congregations in the South to re-establish themselves, often from scratch. In the South, many congregations collaborated closely with the Catholic Relief Services and Caritas International.

The Fall of Saigon and the Second Great Exodus. The wave of religious persecution that followed in the wake of the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975 also engulfed the L.H.C. Practically all the properties belonging to the various congregations, especially the schools and centers for social outreach were consficated by the communist authorities. Many sisters fled Vietnam, joining the second exodus of refugees fleeing on rickety fishing boats. Those who remained behind faced great hardships. Deprived of all means of support, the sisters returned to the land, working in rice-fields and raising cattle, as was the case in the 1860s. Under such tumultuous conditions, many sisters died from hunger, malnutrition and sicknesses. Those who had survived struggled to minister to the needs of the faithful. The sisters' solidarity with the common folk earned them much admiration, inspiring many Catholics to hold onto their faith despite the intense persecution.

When persecutions eased in the mid-1980s, many congregations were able to regroup and reorganize themselves with financial assistance from the Vietnamese diaspora. Despite continuing restrictive practices such as registration and reporting requirements, the Sisters were able to re-establish their social outreach ministries gradually, setting up childcare centers, kindergartens and orphanages as a result of new vocations and growth.

Reorganization and New Directions. Under the sponsorship of the late Archbishop Paul Nguyễn Văn Bình of H[symbol omitted] Chí Minh City (Saigon) and under the guidance of Fr. Phi Khanh Vương Ðính Khởi, a Franciscan priest, a Studies Committee on Lambertian Spirituality was formed in 1985 from the seven L.H.C. congregations in the Archdiocese of H[symbol omitted] Chí Minh city. The principal objective of this committee was the carrying out of research and studies for the purposes of facilitating a return to the roots and a better understanding of the Lambertian

charism of the Cross. At the beginning of the 21st century, three important documents were published: The Biography of Pierre Lambert de la Motte, the Manual on Lambertian Spirituality and the Constitution of the Lovers of the Holy Cross. The Constitution was approved by the Vietnamese Bishops and was accepted by most L.H.C. congregations in Vietnam and the United States. At the end of the year 2000, in Vietnam there were about 2,940 perpetual professed, 1,074 temporary professed, 474 novices, and 447 pre-novices. Future plans in Vietnam include the formation of a federation of all diocesan L.H.C. congregations and the pooling of resources for collaborative programs for the training and formation of pre-novices and novices.

THE LOVERS OF THE HOLY CROSS IN THE UNITED STATES

Sisters of the L.H.C. arrived in the United States under terrible, chaotic conditions, their journeys by fishing boats totally unplanned and uncoordinated. The sisters were divided and split into different refugee camps, and were resettled in the United States under the sponsorship of various religious orders. Eventually, the sisters were able to regroup and establish new communities. In compliance with canonical provisions, each community was attached to a Vietnamese L.H.C. congregation.

Despite much hardship coping in a strange land and mastering an unfamiliar language, the sisters were able to settle down and establish new social ministries, healthcare and outreach programs for Vietnamese refugees, as well as religious education programs for Vietnamese children and youth.

The L.H.C. in the United States came of age in 1992, when the motherhouse of the L.H.C. Phát Diệm Congregation in Northern Vietnam, with the approval of the Holy See, granted administrative autonomy to the Los Angeles community, the largest community of L.H.C. in the United States. A new congregation, the L.H.C. Los Angeles Congregation came into existence as an autonomous Institute of Consecrated Life of Diocesan Right under the 1983 Code of Canon Law, with the motherhouse in Gardena, California. The L.H.C. Los Angeles Congregation has continued to maintain close ties with the other Vietnamese congregations, holding steadfastly to the Lambertian charism and spirituality, as well as assisting the Vietnamese congregations by rallying support and raising funds among the faithful in the Vietnamese diaspora for various relief projects.

Bibliography: Published sources on the L.H.C. include the three major works in the Vietnamese language produced by the Studies Committee on Lambertian Spirituality — the Biography of Pierre Lambert de la Motte, the Manual on Lambertian Spirituality, and the Constitution of the Lovers of the Holy Cross. These works were published for the first time in the United States in Thời Điểm Công Giáo, since 1995.

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