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TE: Can you talk about where you grew up?

DP: I was born in Vietnam and grew up in a poor area in central Vietnam where farming is the primary way of life. The village I grew up in was a countryside area and most people were Catholic. We knew each other well. We practiced the Catholic faith together as a family.

TE: so your family was religious?

DP: I am truly blessed and deeply proud to have been born and raised in a beautiful and devout Catholic family. Our faith, like a warm hearth, radiated love and guidance. My parents were my first teachers of the faith and pillars of strength and love. Like a comforting embrace, their unwavering support and advice have been instrumental in shaping my path toward the priesthood.

TE: When were you first drawn to the priesthood?

DP: My first thought of becoming a priest came to me when I went to Korea at the age of 23. I knew little about the country and its people and I did not have friends or relatives there. I did not know where the Catholic churches were. That is why I could not go to church for a while. I will never forget the moment that I came back to the church after seven months (in Korea). I was crying during the Mass as someone who had met his loved one again. I was so happy because I could have Mass again. I knew exactly what I was missing for seven months. I cannot express how glad I was when I could receive Communion again. After returning from Mass, I kept thinking about the many people, migrants like me, who were trying to seek support and solace in the church amidst the challenges of living in foreign countries. I felt a deep empathy for them, a shared struggle and a strong desire to help. I told myself I would become a priest to assist those with problems like mine. If they could not go to the church, I could help them go to the church or I could bring Jesus to them. That was the first time I thought of the priesthood, a path that would give my life a profound sense of purpose and fulfillment.

For a few years, I thought about that. However, I could not decide because I was unsure that God wanted me to become a priest. After working for almost five years in Korea (as a lathe mechanic in a mechanical factory) while I was discerning precisely what God wanted me to be, my younger brother, a Jesuit, gave me a book: “The Confessions of St. Augustine.” After reading it many times, the saint’s confessions significantly impacted my life. That was the first time I deeply experienced God’s love and His mercy. Although I was a broken, sinful and weak man, God always loved me more than I could imagine. The most important thing to me has been discerning my vocation. Through prayers and the guidance of the sisters and priests living in Korea, and especially my parents, I firmly felt in the depths of my heart the call from God to become a priest, a call from love.

TE: Was there someone who noticed the calling in you or encouraged you?

DP: Some priests and a Salesian Sister of Don Bosco serving in Korea played a crucial role in my journey. They were not just mentors and guides but also friends who walked with me through the discernment process, providing the support and guidance I needed to navigate the challenges and uncertainties of my path.

TE: Can you talk about any memorable moments on your journey to the priesthood or during formation?

DP: There are three memorable moments during my journey to the priesthood. The first is the day I came to the United States. It was on Sept. 8, on the birthday of Mother Mary. I left home in Vietnam and went to a place I did not know much about. I thought it was a special moment because I trusted that the Blessed Virgin Mary had brought me here. It is interesting to recall that Mary led my journey. Everywhere I go, she is there. My first school was under Mother Mary’s name, Maria College. My home parish is Mater Christi. My first summer assignment was at St. Mary’s in downtown Albany. My major seminary is St. Mary’s in Baltimore, Md. What a joy to be led by Mary!

The second transformative moment in my journey was when I first arrived at a major seminary. At the initial meeting with my mentor, Father Gladstone Stevens, PSS, I asked what I must do to become a good priest. His response was profound and life-changing. He said, “If you want to be a priest of Jesus Christ, you have no choice but to be another Christ.” This was a pivotal moment that marked the beginning of a significant transformation in my life.

The third moment was the diaconate ordination. It was the best day of my life so far. I felt it was the happiest moment since I was born — the joy of lying down on the floor to offer myself to God. I was happy to have the bishop lay his hands on me and to know that I was ordained for God and his people. That was the most significant moment in my life so far.

TE: What are you looking forward to when you are ordained?

DP: One of the things I always enjoy is being available so that God’s grace can be given to people. I have received a lot and now I want people to receive God’s graces more plentifully. I am looking to be more available for God and his people. I am eager to be available as an instrument of God’s forgiveness, mercy, love and spiritual nourishment. Finally, I eagerly anticipate celebrating the sacraments with God’s people, especially the Eucharist, the source and summit of our Christian life. I aspire to be a priest who brings comfort, guidance and the love of God to those in need, and I am filled with hope and optimism for the journey ahead.

TE: What is the best way, in your mind, to grow ­vocations?

DP: There are many ways to grow vocations, such as prayers for the Lord to send his laborers, making it attractive to young people, and preaching about vocations. I firmly believe it is the Lord always who calls men to become priests. Vocations are initiated by God. What we need to do more is to reach out and accompany those who may be called. Encourage them not to be afraid to discern and discern with them. In short, I believe the best way to promote vocations is to do the same thing as the Apostle Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, who followed Jesus and brought his brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah.” I think that every vocations director is the one who says to discerners, “We have found the Messiah” (Jn. 1:40-42) and then brings them to Jesus, who may say, “Follow me.” In order to grow more vocations, we all need to do more in reaching out and accompanying those in the discernment process, especially priests who are vocations directors of their own parishes or communities. Our collective responsibility is to nurture and encourage these potential vocations, for they are the future of our faith.

TE: What is your favorite bible passage that you lean on?

DP: “By the grace of God, I am what I am” (1 Cor 15:10). After 11 years of formation and reflecting again on what I have been through, I firmly believe it is only by the grace of God that I made it to this day. For me, becoming a priest is a miracle; God’s miracle of calling and accepting a sinner like me to be a priest. The miracle of transforming a weak, broken and limited man like me to be the best of myself and what God wants me to be; the miracle of making a man with nothing to offer the instrument of God’s grace. Indeed, God’s grace is the reason for who I am.

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