This is my Call
Province celebrates ordination of Fr. Joseph Nguyen, S.J.
By Charles Barnes, S.J.
Jesuit’s ordination to priesthood is the culmination of a life-long journey of faith.
Fr. Joseph Nguyen, S.J. was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop William Skylstad at St. Aloysius Church in Spokane, Wash. on the campus of Gonzaga University June 16.
“I want to serve God’s people; God is a mystery I am invited to follow where God continues to invite, reveal and allow me to experience his love,” said the newly ordained Joseph Nguyen. His call and desire to serve God’s people as a Jesuit priest began early in his life while growing up in Viet Nam.
“I knew I wanted to be a religious when I was 15 or 16 years old,” said Nguyen. “I was taught by Dominican sisters, and I also had the opportunity to study scripture and take private religious lessons.” His home town of Bien Hoa was a very religiously centered community made up of Catholics who migrated south when the French divided Viet Nam in 1954.
After graduating from high school, he still dreamt of going to Seminary and being ordained a priest but the political situation in Communist Viet Nam made that all but impossible. When his family emigrated to the United States in 1990, Nguyen saw God opening a door for him to realize his call.
“I started to talk to people, and one person suggested I contact Dominic Nguyen, who, at the time, was a deacon studying at Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley,” said Nguyen. “It turned out we were from the same city!”
After his family settled in Nashville, Tennessee, Nguyen went to college and worked in a grocery store while continuing to talk with Dominic. “In 1994, Dominic introduced me to the Oregon province, and in 1995 I was accepted.” He entered the Novitiate in Portland, Oregon that summer. After taking vows in 1997, Joseph first completed his undergraduate studies at Creighton University in Omaha, and then studied Philosophy at St. Louis University where he earned a Master’s degree. He then taught logic and the Philosophy of Human Nature at Gonzaga University before going on to theology studies at Weston Jesuit School of Theology.
Nguyen loves teaching and hopes to continue in education and work in campus ministry. In the meantime, he returns to Weston in the fall to complete a Licentiate in Sacred Theology which will allow him to teach in seminaries. Having realized one dream, he now looks forward to embarking on a new one made possible by his ordination: “I want to be God’s mediator.”
Original article at:
http://www.nwjesuits.org/newsPub/2007Summer_NWJ.pdf
By Charles Barnes, S.J.
Jesuit’s ordination to priesthood is the culmination of a life-long journey of faith.
Fr. Joseph Nguyen, S.J. was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop William Skylstad at St. Aloysius Church in Spokane, Wash. on the campus of Gonzaga University June 16.“I want to serve God’s people; God is a mystery I am invited to follow where God continues to invite, reveal and allow me to experience his love,” said the newly ordained Joseph Nguyen. His call and desire to serve God’s people as a Jesuit priest began early in his life while growing up in Viet Nam.
“I knew I wanted to be a religious when I was 15 or 16 years old,” said Nguyen. “I was taught by Dominican sisters, and I also had the opportunity to study scripture and take private religious lessons.” His home town of Bien Hoa was a very religiously centered community made up of Catholics who migrated south when the French divided Viet Nam in 1954.
After graduating from high school, he still dreamt of going to Seminary and being ordained a priest but the political situation in Communist Viet Nam made that all but impossible. When his family emigrated to the United States in 1990, Nguyen saw God opening a door for him to realize his call.
“I started to talk to people, and one person suggested I contact Dominic Nguyen, who, at the time, was a deacon studying at Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley,” said Nguyen. “It turned out we were from the same city!”
After his family settled in Nashville, Tennessee, Nguyen went to college and worked in a grocery store while continuing to talk with Dominic. “In 1994, Dominic introduced me to the Oregon province, and in 1995 I was accepted.” He entered the Novitiate in Portland, Oregon that summer. After taking vows in 1997, Joseph first completed his undergraduate studies at Creighton University in Omaha, and then studied Philosophy at St. Louis University where he earned a Master’s degree. He then taught logic and the Philosophy of Human Nature at Gonzaga University before going on to theology studies at Weston Jesuit School of Theology.
Nguyen loves teaching and hopes to continue in education and work in campus ministry. In the meantime, he returns to Weston in the fall to complete a Licentiate in Sacred Theology which will allow him to teach in seminaries. Having realized one dream, he now looks forward to embarking on a new one made possible by his ordination: “I want to be God’s mediator.”
Original article at:
http://www.nwjesuits.org/newsPub/2007Summer_NWJ.pdf
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