NASHVILLE — When Saigon fell to the Communists in 1975, many Catholic Vietnamese sought freedom in the United States. They brought with them their strong Catholic faith which is now enriching many Catholic churches. For example, at St. Martin in Nashville, church worker Denise Cobb said of the Vietnamese members there, “We couldn’t do without them. Whatever needs to be done, I can count on them to do it.”
One of the members Cobb counts on is Nghia Nguyen from Saigon. Nguyen said that the Church has always been the most important thing in his life. After arriving at Fort Chaffee, he decided he wanted to rear his children in a small town. When his sponsor asked him if he’d like to live in Nashville he asked one question: “Is there a Catholic church there?” Nguyen explained, “The most important thing to me was to find a town with a Catholic church.” When he learned of St. Martin, he unhesitatingly moved his wife and five children to Nashville, and all of his children — now adults — were nurtured in the faith at St. Martin.
Nguyen comes from a devout Catholic family in Vietnam. An aunt is the mother superior of a convent; many other relatives are clergymen.
Another faithful Vietnamese church member, Nam Tran, has a slightly different story. His wife was Catholic but he was not. They lived near the church and Tran would visit it from time to time. After arriving at Fort Chaffee, Tran was baptized. He and his wife have a 10-year-old daughter, and all three are active in the church.
Father Kevin Atunzu, pastor, said of them, “They are very faithful.”
Since St. Martin is a mission church, members have to take responsibility for a lot of church work, and the two Vietnamese men and their families have done that willingly. Cobb, unofficial administrator, bookkeeper, song leader and more, said of them, “I really appreciate the fact that they come to church faithfully, support the parish in its endeavors and seem to care for all fellow parishioners.”
Cobb noted, “I really appreciate the fact that they do not take their faith for granted. I drive by the church going home every day. Almost every day I see one of them at the church praying. I think they go there every day to pray the rosary.”
Father Do Duy Nho of St. Patrick Church in North Little Rock comes to Nashville from time to time to celebrate Mass in Vietnamese, in private homes.
Cobb said that Tran comes early to St. Martin to open the church. On Sundays he exposes the Blessed Sacrament for adoration an hour before Mass starts. He reads the second Scripture reading in Vietnamese. He also makes sure the church is not low on supplies; when supplies get low he notifies Cobb to order more. She added, “Nghia does the same. When he sees something that needs to be done he does it. He and Nam do everything from minor repairs to serving as altar servers when needed. They are also Eucharistic ministers and ushers. Nam’s wife has planted flower beds at the church. She and all the women bring fresh flowers from their yards to decorate the church.”
Church member Louie Graves said that currently there are about 10 Vietnamese who attend church regularly, and often there are visitors.
“They are absolutely wonderful people,” he added. “At one time we probably had as many as a dozen Vietnamese families, but most of them gradually drifted away to cities where there were sizeable Vietnamese communities.”
St. Martin has always been a mission of either St. Barbara in De Queen or Our Lady of Good Hope in Hope. It was consecrated in 1962 by Bishop Albert L. Fletcher, although Mass had been celebrated in homes and other places in Nashville going back to the early 1950s.
