After the fall of the South Vietnamese government in 1975 and the end of the United States’ engagement in the Vietnam War, thousands of refugees began arriving in the US. On Sept. 2, 1975, Archbishop Thomas A. Donnellan sent a memo to priests encouraging them to invite their parishioners to sponsor a refugee family for resettlement. 

A young girl enjoys a Tet celebration co-sponsored by the Vietnamese Apostolate, Catholic Social Services, and the Vietnamese-American Association held at First Presbyterian Church in Atlanta on Feb. 19, 1977. Photo by John Purdy

Working through the Resettlement Office of Catholic Social Services, about 50 families settled in Atlanta within a year. These resettlement efforts proved somewhat challenging as refugees struggled with a new language, a new climate and the general culture shock of their sudden move to the other side of the world. Their sponsors likewise struggled to adequately meet their needs. 

In response to these growing pains, Archbishop Donnellan formally established the Vietnamese Apostolate in September 1976, appointing Father Francis Pham Van Phuong as its director. The new apostolate would offer orientation and counseling services to refugees of all religions to help them acclimate to their new home. For Catholics, Masses in Vietnamese were held each week at St. John the Evangelist Church in Hapeville. 

On Sept. 18, a special Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Donnellan and Father Pham at St. John, followed by a reception featuring Vietnamese food and performances. In a speech at the reception, parishioner Bat Nguyen Van expressed the spectrum of gratitude and heartache his compatriots were experiencing:  

“In order to preserve our freedom, our faith, and our human dignity, we had to depart from our country with empty hands. In accepting these sacrifices, we knew that we could put our entire confidence in the providence of God and in the total and effective support of the Americans…  

“All of us have been sponsored and resettled, but it does not mean our hardship has ended, because the impact of the exodus continues to affect our hearts and our minds. For even though our body is here, our heart is often lifted up to the motherland.” 

Since those eloquent words were spoken 50 years ago, the Vietnamese Catholic community has grown and expanded throughout the archdiocese. Our Lady of Vietnam was established first as a mission in Forest Park in 1989 before being elevated to a parish in Riverdale 1998. The mission of Holy Vietnamese Martyrs was established in Norcross in 2003 and elevated to a parish in 2013. And just last year, the quasi-parish of Our Lady of La Vang was established.