Church workers in Ho Chi Minh City have completed a Catholic training course on justice and peace, the first such course to be offered by the Church in the country.

Some 57 priests, Religious and laypeople from 10 dioceses participated in the course, held December 13-14 by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Vietnam’s Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace.

Ignatius Dang Phuc Minh, a member of the commission from Long Xuyen diocese, said the training does not teach Catholics to work for political purposes.

“Social teachings of the Catholic Church teach me how to protect poor people’s interests, respect human rights and expose social injustice in the light of love and forgiveness,” he said.

He said the training equips people with the tools to protect public interests, since many people in rural areas do not know the civic laws.

Father Anthony Nguyen Ngoc son, secretary general of the commission, said the course aimed to provide basic elements of Catholic social teachings for Church workers so that they can make action plans in the future.

He added that the course would be held for workers in other dioceses next year.

Diocesan committees for justice and peace have been founded in 18 out of 26 dioceses across the country since the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace was launched last May.

A worker who attended the course but declined to be named said that Catholics should promote respect for basic human rights and social justice, adding that they should also help forge more constructive relationships between people of differing faiths and with government authorities.