Vietnamese Catholics to mourn Pope for nine days
Vietnamese Catholics mourn the death of the late Pope John Paul during a memorial service at the St. Joseph's Cathedral in Hanoi April 6, 2005.
Cardinal Pham Minh Man, the archbishop of Ho Chi Minh City, has appealed to the city’s Catholic followers to observe mourning for Pope John Paul II for nine days starting Monday April 4.
During the pope’s funeral in Vatican Friday, all churches in HCMC will hold requiems for the Pope, the cardinal requested in a letter to all church officials, priests and parishioners before he left for the Vatican to attend the funeral of Pope John Paul II.
A prayer night for the late pontiff will also be held at the municipal Catholic Culture Center at 6:30 to 9 p.m. local time the same day.
Especially, the Notre Dame Cathedral, HCMC’s major church, will host regular prayer sessions at 7 to 8 p.m. during the mourning days in commemoration of Pope John Paul II.
Pope John Paul II died Saturday evening at 84 after suffering heart and kidney failure following two hospitalizations in as many months.
Vietnam's top Catholic leaders, including Cardinal Man, newly-appointed Archbishop of Hanoi Ngo Quang Kiet and the president of Vietnam's Episcopal Commission, Nguyen Van Hoa, left for the Vatican on Tuesday along with four others to attend Friday's funeral.
(Reported by NT – Translated by The Vinh)
Story from Thanh Nien News
Published: 06 April, 2005, 22:11:45 (GMT+7)
Copyright Thanh Nien News
