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Vietnamese-Canadian priest named bishop in Canada

A former boat person, Father Joseph Phuong Nguyen worked as a painter to earn money to study English
Vietnamese-Canadian priest named bishop in Canada
Published: June 03, 2016 09:35 AM GMT
Updated: June 03, 2016 09:38 AM GMT

Pope Francis on June 1 appointed Father Joseph Phuong Nguyen, a Vietnamese Canadian priest, as bishop of Kamloops Diocese in Canada, according to a report by Vancouver Archdiocese.

Prior to his appointment, Father Nguyen, whose full Vietnamese name is Joseph Nguyen The Phuong, served as vicar general of the Vancouver Archdiocese since 2013.

Born in 1957 in Vietnam, the bishop-designate entered Le Bao Tinh Minor Seminary of Ban Me Thuot Diocese, central highlands, in 1969.

During communist rule in 1975, he was arrested twice for holding catechism classes, according to the Vietnam bishops' site.

He escaped communist rule and fled to the Philippines by boat, then arrived in Canada in 1987 unable to speak English. He worked as a painter, to earn money to study English before entering the seminary. He was ordained a priest for Vancouver in 1992.

Father Nguyen is the eldest of 10 siblings, with one brother a priest in Hamilton Diocese and two sisters being members of religious congregations.

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