Binh Duong now has more than 93,000 Catholic followers living, working and studying in 50 parishes and 1 subparish. Over the past years, especially in the 2007 and 2013 tenure, provincial Committee for Catholic Solidarity actively mobilized Catholic dignitaries and followers to live with the motto of “good life, good religion”; effectively participate in movements and campaigns launched by Fatherland Front Committees and authorities at all levels. Here are typical achievements made by Catholic community in some localities of the province in the emulation movement on national construction and defence.

Catholic followers in Phu Giao district: Paying attention to study promotion

In the national cause of industrialization and modernization, education is the top concern of the society. Realizing this, Catholic dignitaries in Phu Giao district have made more attention to the local cause of education.

Over the past years, district-based parishes spent around VND418mln a year on donating scholarships and year-end rewards to the local pupils. They also organized extra-classes for pupils with weak learning capacity. Over the past five years, they spent nearly ND2.1bln on the local study promotion. Kinh Nhuong, Le Trang, Tan Hiep, Vinh Hoa…were one of the local typical parishes for the above task.

District-based parishes also actively mobilized the local pupils with difficulties to go to school while offering help to their learning. This contributed to promoting the local learning and teaching with the ratio of moderately good and good pupils on rise and there were no more situation of dropping out of school…

Catholic followers in Tan Uyen district: State’s laws and policies have been brought into life

Tan Uyen district is now home to 9,058 Catholic followers living in 13 parishes. One of important things dignified by the local Catholic followers is to bring the State’s laws and policies into life. They have also tried to raise their awareness of living and working in accordance with the Constitution and the law.

From the above awareness, district-based parishes have actively taken part in emulation movements, especially the emulation movement of “building up cultural families” launched by Father Front Committees at all levels. The local Catholic followers over the past five years constantly encouraged each other to well fulfill duties of good citizens. They sufficiently participated in elections of People’s Committees at all levels, well realized tax payment obligation and grassroots democratic regulations…, contributing to bringing peace, happiness, civilization, prosperity to the society.

The district’s Committee for Catholic Solidarity and Catholic dignitaries in the district over time also sped up dissemination of information about the Party’s policies and guidelines and the State’s laws, including the Civil Law, the Law on Marriage and Family, the Law on Military Service, the Law on Corruption Prevention, the Ordinance on Religion and Belief…among Catholic followers.

The local Catholic followers were also enthusiastic in responding the campaign of “Studying and following late President Ho Chi Minh’s exemplary morals”; actively studied the Law on Road Traffic; thoroughly grasped the Government’s Directive 135/CP against crimes and social evils…, contributing to maintaining the local social order and security.

Catholic followers in Di An town: Actively taking part in maintaining social order and security

Di An town now has 4 Catholic parishes, namely Di An, Dong Hoa, Nghia Son and An Binh with 3 priests and 12,542 followers. Most Catholic followers herein earn their living by small-scale industries.

The town is home to many industrial parks, luring a large number of immigrant laborers. There is also a large number of lodging facilities for them and this is also one of reasons leading to social evils, affecting the local social order and security. Hence, the local Catholic followers actively got involved in the emulation movement of maintaining social order and security over the past five years. They also always reminded each other to say no to social evils.

In addition, many Catholic followers herein actively teamed up with the local functional forces to make patrols to maintain the local social order and security. Town-based parishes also coordinated with the local relevant agencies to educate mistaken people and offer help them so that they had the chance to make a new star in life.

Whilst, the Catholic community over the past five years got involved in activities to support Agent Orange victims, war veterans, disable people…with total expense of more than VND1.6bln; contributed more than 1.69bln to building 198 houses of compassion for needy people and maintained 300 charity meals of more than VND361mln for 300 poor people on Sunday afternoons at Chanh Toa Phu Cuong Church. Chanh Toa Phu Cuong parish also donated rice of VND239mln to 250 households with difficulties.

Such these apart, the group of “Charity soup pot” under the local Catholic Red Cross branch was maintained to serve more than 500,000 patients at provincial General Hospital and Rehabilitation Hospital. The group also made efforts in mobilizing donors to offer help to the poor, the disabled…with more than VND113mln. Along with Chanh Toa parish, many other parishes of Vinh Son, Ba Lua…actively got involved in the local social charity activities.

Together with the campaign of “The entire people unite to build cultural life in residential quarters”, social charity activities were promoted among the Catholic community in Binh Duong over the past time.

Reported by Lam Sang-Thao Hien-Translated by K.T