Vietnamese Catholics celebrate new year, renew faith at Tet Mass

Published: 2004-01-30

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (CNS) -- It is always an event that gets marked on a busy bishop's calendar. On Jan. 24, Kansas City's Vietnamese Catholic community once again held back nothing as members celebrated Tet, the lunar new year. This year it marked the beginning of the Year of the Monkey. "I look forward to this Mass every year," Bishop Raymond J. Boland of Kansas City-St. Joseph told the congregation that filled every pew, the side aisles, the choir loft, and even spilled out the front door of the Church of the Holy Martyrs. "I see in you every year the bond of love and affection, and I love every one of you," he said. "Your presence here is a great honor for our people," the parish's pastor, Father Joseph Phan Trong Hanh, said as the Mass began.

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