Saints and Holy People

Find out about their lives and how they changed the world

Saint Andrew Dung-Lac (1795–1839)

Saint Andrew Dung-Lac (1795–1839)

Feast day: November 24




Saint Andrew Dung-Lac was one of 117 people martyred in Vietnam for their Catholic faith between 1820 and 1862. Of the 117 martyrs, 96 were Vietnamese, 11 were Spanish, and 10 were French.

Christianity arrived in Vietnam through Portuguese missionaries, who came to minister to Japanese Catholics who had been exiled from Japan. The king of one of the Vietnamese kingdoms forbade all foreign missionaries and tried to make Vietnamese Catholics deny their faith by stomping on a crucifix. Andrew was a parish priest who refused to deny his faith.

The martyrs of these persecutions gave their lives for their Church as well as their country. They taught by example that they wanted the Gospel of Christ to influence their people and their country.

(Image by Nheyob, Wikimedia Commons)