What gives twelve young men the courage to offer their lives completely to God in the Society of Jesus? The answer is found in a profound spiritual experience—one that they now seek to express through the words of Scripture: “Remain in My love” (Jn 15:9). They have remained. They have tasted that love. And now, they freely make a decisive response through their vows.
On 31 July 2025, the Jesuit Province of St Francis Xavier, Vietnam, joyfully celebrated the First Vows of twelve novices during a solemn Eucharistic celebration at Hien Linh Parish in Ho Chi Minh City. The ceremony coincided with the Feast of St Ignatius of Loyola, Founder of the Society of Jesus. Fr. Joseph Pham Tuan Nghia, S.J., Provincial Superior of the Vietnam Province, presided over the liturgy. He was joined by numerous Jesuit priests and many other concelebrants from diocesan clergy and religious congregations, who came together in prayerful support and joyful communion
Fr. Francis Xavier Nguyen Thanh Hung, S.J., Delegate for Formation, delivered the homily at the First Vows Mass.
In his homily, Fr. Francis Xavier Nguyen Thanh Hung, S.J., Delegate for Formation, reminded the twelve as well as participants that the Society of Jesus makes no promises of worldly success—neither academic titles nor prestige nor comfort—but offers only the Cross of Christ. “Yet it is this very Cross that they have freely chosen to carry, in union with the crucified Jesus,” he said.
In professing the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, these twelve men officially entered the Society of Jesus and promised to remain in it for life, placing their whole selves in the hands of God for the apostolic mission entrusted to the Jesuits.
The newly professed Jesuits have spent the past two years in the novitiate—a time of silent listening, interior struggle, and faithful discernment shaped by the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius and deepened through various apostolic and communal experiences. Their vows are the fruit of this persevering journey in seeking and finding God’s will.
The Vietnam Province gives thanks to God for the gift of these vocations and expresses heartfelt gratitude to the families, benefactors, and friends who have walked with them along the way. The Province invites the wider Jesuit family and Church to pray for these young men as they enter the next stage of Jesuit formation with renewed zeal and trust in God’s love.
Công Trình, S.J.
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