EMMAUS' JOURNEY

February 2002

Happy "Goat Year" everyone  Chúc mừng năm mới!

For Vietnamese people, Tết is one of the biggest and happiest celebration of the year. Tết has a rich and profound meaning in our culture. On this day, we observe many traditions passed down to us from our ancestors. The traditions carry significant meanings and symbolisms. You probably know many of these traditions already. But did you know that there are many similarity between the Tết’s traditions and the Catholic faith? As I was reading stories about Tết, I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between the two. Moreover, those beautiful ancient beliefs about Tết, when seen through eyes of faith, can truly enrich our spirit in a most pleasant way. I would like to share some of my observations with you:

Tết - ancient traditions:

Catholic beliefs & traditions:

Farewell ceremony to Ông Táo, the "Kitchen Genie" who will report to God about your good & bad deeds from the previous year.

Examine of Conscience - review & examine past experiences, mistakes; repent and prepare to confess our sins & be reconciled with God.

A new beginning; clean the house, buy new shoes; pay off debts & resolve conflicts with each other.

Sacrament of Reconciliation - cleanse our heart, renewed our spirit; make peace with God & others.

Letting go of past hurt, failure or misfortune; Looking forward to the future, aiming toward new hopes & goals.

(Phil. 4: 13) - "Forgetting what is behind Me, I race forward and run towards the Goal, my eyes on the prize...from above, in Christ Jesus."

Remembering our ancestors; pray to them, implore their blessings & guidance; offer each other good wishes, lì xì ...

Praying for the deceased / All Souls’ Day Communion of the Saints - pray for each other and asking the Saints to intercede for us.

"Cây Nêu" - a bamboo pole set up in front of the house to ward off evil spirits from entering.

The Cross of Christ - our protection against the devil. Through Jesus’ death on the cross, we were saved. If God dwell in us, no evil spirit shall enter this temple.

"Bánh chưng, bánh dày" (sweet rice bread) - it’s a symbol of heaven and earth; symbolizing gratitude to the Creator for the crop & harvest of the land; the joining of earth and sky.

The Bread of Life - the Eucharist, offered in the Holy Mass as the Ultimate Meal, an intimate union between God in Heaven and Man on earth.

"Múa Lân" (Dragon Dance) & Ông Ðịa - a combat dance between fierce beast and man in the midst of loud fire crackers; the battle of good and evil where man always triumph over beast.

Jesus offered His own Life on the cross in the battle against sins. Through Him, death no longer has a hold on us. Jesus’ Resurrection is the Ultimate Triumph of Life over Death.

I hope you enjoy reading this. Have a blessed Year of the Goat and remember to fix you eyes on Jesus. God loves you!

Your friend,

Tess Nguyen

 

Feast Days in February

Tết Interview

Dear friends, what do you look forward to the most at every New Year?

In honor of the Year of the Goat, I asked some young adult Vietnamese Catholics (via e-mail) this question and here are some of their answers:

Question: "What are the three things about Tết that are most important / special to you?"

Answers:

A. C. Ngo: Getting together with family - Having fun with cousins - A good stash of $$$ to use for my own wantings for the year to come!

Tanya N.: Family gatherings - Mừng tuổi, chúc Tết, lì xì - Tradition

Joe Ph. Money, gamble & parties to go to.

Bryan Ng.: Money, family get together & gambling

M.L. Pham D.: Family get together to chúc Tết & lì xì - Forgive each other’s mistakes, and be happy with each other again - Visit temples, hái lộc đầu năm, đi Lễ nhà thờ, etc., đi chợ Tết mua sắm bánh mứt, hoa quả cúng tổ tiên, ông bà đã khuất.

Hg. Do: When I was young: Ðược lì xì, new clothes, pháo, bánh chưng, mứt hạt dưa - Now: Family gathering; passing on the tradition & meaning to the next generation

Vincent D. N.: Tết is a time for family to celebrate traditions and remembrance of our heritage.

Uyên N.: For New Year's...the three things I find important are: Being with loved ones; being thankful for everything I've learned the past year; and deciding what to improve and working to make the coming year even better.

Huyền N.:

- It is a new beginning, so that I can pause and evaluate what happened during the past year, and make a resolution to improve or do what I haven't had time to do last year.

- Commit myself to God so that I will always gear toward his will, follow his guidance, and be able to feel his love in everyday of my life.

- To realize that time is so valuable and I should not waste any minutes of my life, but utilize every single moment that I have to live and love and serve God and others.

K. A. Nguyen: Family reunion; tradition; and remembering one's ancestors/roots

Th. - Vincent H.: Family gathering/eating - Reminiscing the past and living and deceased family members - Visiting relatives, especially the elderly ones.

P. H. Nguyen: Being with family & friends - Having some traditional Tết foods - Reminiscing the old Tết time when we were children

J.H. Vu: Being together with my family; remember our ancestors & không khí linh thiêng của ngày Tết.

Th. Nguyen: Family get together that's meaningful & fun - Continue the Tradition so children can pass on to their generation - Show respect for elders by chúc Tết

Judy N.: I get to see all my cousins, my aunts and uncles and my big family - I get to play cards and Bầu Cua Cá Cọp with them - I get to eat the yummy bánh and the yummy salty pickle (bánh chưng, dưa món).

 

 

 O’hana

by NG*silverphoenix*O - 14 yrs. old

"O'hana means family.family means no one gets left behind- or forgotten." Disney's "Lilo and Stitch

Here is a little briefing if you have not seen the movie yet. There is a little girl named Lilo who lives with her sister and they are both struggling to get by after an accident that killed both of their parents. Stitch is an alien-robot experiment gone wrong and gone loose. Somehow, these two shunned members of their own respective societies, cross paths and with each other's help, they slowly learn a lot about belonging, family and love. I like this movie a lot. I highly recommend it. 

Anyway, the subject of my sharing is: Family. For the past several months, I have been seeing a lot of family members and relatives. There was Christmas Eve’s Mass, Christmas Day Celebration, New Year’s Eve get together, Vietnamese New Year/ Tết. I even went out with my cousins during school break to see "Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers" and "Two Weeks Notice". At times, I even got tired of seeing too much of my relatives, and no doubt, some of them might also got just a wee bit sick of seeing me as well. Nevertheless, when I read about the current events that are going on in the world lately, I think that maybe we do need lots of times to see our family. I hear about the U.S. tension with North Korea due to their regenerating the nuclear facilities; I also hear about the talks of impending war between the U.S. and Iraq for their possession of weapons of massive destruction. There are also much anxieties in the fact that there just might be a World War III. Recently, my classmates and I had a discussion with our geography teacher about the effects of a nuclear bombing. The conversation went like this:

"What would happen if someone is actually bombed?"
      "Then it's over. It's all over."
      "Even if it landed far away?"
      "Don't even try to hide. It will be all over."

This dreadful possibility is on everyone's mind, always on the news, in the paper, even on the jokes of "Saturday Night Live". Maybe this is a sign, a warning; maybe it is a good time to rethink our priorities and what (or whom) we place first in our lives.


The year is still fresh and it's a good time to sweep out the old and bring in the new. Along with new clothes, furniture, and resolutions comes the re-inventory of what you want to hold highest in your life. I am choosing family. No matter how much they can ‘irk’ you, or when they just don't get it, or even just because they are 'family,' and that alone makes them hard to deal with, I know, deep, deep down, that they are the ones who will stick with me to the end, and I, with them.

"O'hana means family. Family means no one gets left behind-or forgotten."  It's a pretty powerful statement.for a powerful thing called. family.

"Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one."
--Jane Howard (1935-1996) US journalist, writer

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