What is it that separated us from God’s love?

In the spring of 2008, Bishop Jos. Ngan and a friend visited the family of Mr. Ky in Noc Tong. I am very interested in visiting them also.
A long time ago, at Noc Tong village, Phuc Hoa district, Cao Bang province- North Vietnam near border Vietnam-China, there was one Catholic family. The Nung ethnic people held the Family of Mr. Ky in honor. Before their boy Ky was born, Ky’s parents had no children. Every child had died immediately after birth. The Boy Ky was scraggly and sickly. Ky’s parents were afraid that he would die the same as their children had. His parents gave him to God in the hopes that the missionary priest would feed and nourish him.
With Father’s love, boy Ky was grown, educated and in good health. Boy Ky was baptized Catholic. With his knowledge, he became the secretary of village.
Someone told him: “You should leave the church and return home. Because you are strong, you do not need God or Jesus.” He replied: “I will never refuse my God who made me strong and grown.” When boy Ky became a young man, took a wife, and had children. He kept faith of God although his relatives urged him refuse God.




After 1954, there were no priests or sisters staying in this land. That time was very hard for the Catholics of the North Vietnam.
On 3 Aug. 2003, his daughter died from cancer. Bishop Kiet visited his family and celebrated Mass inside his home.
He asked him: “How did you keep your faith during all the hard times?” He pointed up to a bamboo soil wall: “With the sign of Holy Cross painted by charcoal, and, bottom it I wrote these words: We believed in Trinity, all of us together prayed daily.”
But, soon after that Mass, misfortune happened to his family. His wife died four days later. Because she loved their daughter so much, and death of daughter was painful for her. At the end of that year, he, too, went to rest in God’s hands.
We were wondering, if we have the same situation as Mr. Ky’s family whether we can keep faith and be truthfully in God?


But so far, his descendants continue to keep the faith. Mr. Hieu, the son of Mr. Ky, tells me that we keep praying and reading Bible in front of altar every day.
In Romans 8:35-39, Saint Paul said: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We live in a free world. No one forces us to seek refuge in our God, our Faith... but many catholic have left the church. Why do many Catholics not attend the Mass, and live a life in sin?
What is it that separates us from the love of Christ in this modern society?
For us, it is the lack of prayers in our everyday spiritual life. We do not keep praying daily! This separates us from the love of God.
My God, may You teach us how pray every day of our life, so we will say: ... I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul Thien.