Shrine weathers more than one storm
At Asia News, Cần Giờ Parish reported uplifting news from Vietnam: around 80,000 people went to the celebrations of the Assumption at the shrine of Our Lady of La Vang. The shrine, in the central province of Quảng Trị, has a remarkable history which reflects the struggles, and the faith, of Vietnamese Catholics.
The site, originally in a jungle, first became a gathering point for Catholics during the emperor’s persecution of the Church in 1798. Mary reportedly appeared to comfort Catholics, and told them about a remedy for the illness which had begun to spread in the jungle. A chapel was built in 1820 – but the site has been repeatedly ravaged by persecution and civil war.
