The waves of migration brought many Vietnamese people to settle in Orlando, in the warm sunshine of the state of Florida. Along with the desire to build a stable life, caring for their spiritual life became an important concern for many newcomers. There were churches and priests, but because of language barriers, many Vietnamese Catholics faced limitations in hearing and understanding the Word of God. They longed for a familiar taste of home.
In the early years, from 1975 to 1983, the first Vietnamese Catholics in Orlando gathered together as a small community of about 40 families. Father Ignatius Nguyễn Ngọc Tước, who was serving in Tampa at the time, came to celebrate Mass for them once a month at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, located at 5900 Oleander Drive, Orlando, Florida 32807. Later, Father Joseph Trần Anh Dũng, who was ordained to the priesthood at the end of May 1983, continued Father Tước’s work.
Around the end of 1983, Father Dũng brought his flock to St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, located at 861 Maitland Avenue, Altamonte Springs, Florida 32701, where he was serving as parochial vicar. Mass continued to be celebrated once a month. In 1987, Father Bartholomew Phạm Ân Sử, commonly known as Father Trọng Ân, a priest of the Congregation of the Mother Coredemptrix, came to serve the community. At that time, the Vietnamese Catholic community had about 100 families and continued to gather for Mass once a month. During this period, the community was known as the Vietnamese Martyrs Catholic Community.
In April 1987, the wandering flock followed Father Ân to St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church, located at 4001 Edgewater Drive, Orlando, Florida 32804. At the end of March 1989, Father Ân was called back to his religious congregation. From time to time, Father Tước returned to celebrate Mass for his former flock. On June 3, Deacon Joseph Nguyễn Thanh Châu was ordained and assigned to St. Charles for pastoral training. Vietnamese Mass was celebrated once a month by Father Edward Pawlack, with Deacon Châu preaching in Vietnamese. On December 2, 1989, “Deacon Châu” was ordained to the priesthood and appointed parochial vicar of St. Charles Borromeo, while also caring for the Vietnamese Catholic community under the American parish.
Beginning in early 1991, Mass for the Vietnamese community was celebrated weekly. In June 1996, Father Joseph Bùi Văn Dũng, a priest of the Diocese of Orlando, was transferred to St. Charles as parochial vicar, replacing Father Châu, and became the pastoral administrator of the Vietnamese community. In August 2003, Father Châu was assigned once again to replace Father Dũng and continued serving the community.
Since 1975, the St. Joseph Vietnamese Catholic Community in Polk County had also been established. This community celebrated Mass once a month at Santa Fe High School and later moved to St. Joseph Catholic Church in Winter Haven. Today, the community continues to gather regularly for faith-enrichment activities, Eucharistic Adoration on the first week of the month, and Marian devotions hosted by families. Currently, the community has about 50 families.
In 2003, after Father Joseph Bùi Văn Dũng was transferred to Indialantic as parochial vicar of Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, he also helped establish a new Vietnamese Catholic community under the patronage of St. Andrew Dũng Lạc. Today, this community has about 50 families and continues to gather regularly for monthly Masses and major feast days at Ascension Catholic Church in Melbourne, Florida.
On November 25, 2004, during the Thanksgiving Day Mass, which also coincided with the feast of the Vietnamese Martyrs, Bishop Thomas G. Wenski, the newly appointed Bishop of the Diocese of Orlando who had assumed office just over ten days earlier, issued a decree establishing a new parish under the name St. Philip Phan Văn Minh Catholic Church. He appointed Father Joseph Nguyễn Thanh Châu as the founding pastor of the parish.
On Sunday, September 23, 2007, the Vietnamese parish celebrated its final Mass at St. Charles Borromeo, bringing to an end 20 years of relying on the hospitality of another parish during its years away from home. With deep gratitude, the Vietnamese community bid farewell to the priests and parishioners of St. Charles Borromeo.
On Saturday, September 29, 2007, the Vietnamese parish celebrated its first Mass in its very own church, the first Vietnamese Catholic church in Orlando, located at 15 W. Par Street.
On Saturday, November 3, 2007, with the participation of more than 1,000 faithful, deacons, religious brothers and sisters, representatives of other faith communities, and 28 priests from neighboring parishes, Bishop Thomas G. Wenski, Bishop of the Diocese of Orlando, solemnly celebrated the Mass of Dedication for the church.
From that day forward, a new address was added to the history of the Vietnamese Catholic community: a church of their own, a sacred place where the faithful could gather, pray, worship, and hear the prayers of the Church spoken in the beloved voice of their homeland.
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