With the fall of Saigon in 1975 came the closure of the only Vietnamese-language pontifical seminary in the world.

Last year, however, the opportunity for Vietnamese Catholics --- lay, clergy and religious --- to take advanced theological and pastoral courses in their own language returned in the form of a unique project begun by a priest of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and --- via modern technology --- available to Vietnamese Catholics worldwide.

The Vietnamese International Institute of Pastoral Studies of the Graduate Theological Foundation in South Bend, Ind., enrolled its first 10 students (from an applicant list of more than 200), and is now nearing completion of its first year. Officially established in March 2005, the Institute offers courses for those wishing to further their education for future collaborative ministry in serving the church, particularly within Vietnamese communities in North America.

"The purpose of the institute is to meet the needs of the growing Vietnamese Catholic community around the world for professionally trained clergy, religious and lay" explained Father Peter Ngo, adjutant judicial vicar of the archdiocesan Tribunal and Institute founder and director.

"To this point," explained Father Ngo, "the opportunities for Vietnamese clergy, religious and lay with limited proficiency in English to pursue advanced academic degrees have been curtailed by language barriers as well as high academic costs. Through the Institute, students can pursue advanced academic credentials --- a master's or doctorate --- in their native tongue at a more reasonable cost, with a faculty and educational process that is both professional and pastorally sensitive."

Father Ngo, a native of Vietnam, was ordained a priest in 1993 for the L.A. Archdiocese, and has worked for most of his priesthood in the Tribunal. His doctoral thesis became a working document toward the establishment of the Vietnamese Institute.

In its first year, 10 students --- four priests, three sisters and three laypeople (a dentist, a radio station director and a university professor), ranging in age from 30 to 60 --- have participated in the Institute, with a seven-member faculty and an advisory board that includes Auxiliary Bishop Oscar Solis and Msgr. Gabriel Gonzales, assistant Vicar for Clergy, as well as Vietnamese priests in Rome and the U.S.

Living in California, Texas, North Carolina and Vietnam, the students have studied Canon Law, Pastoral Studies, Theology and Scripture. They gathered last November for a week of "residency" (classes from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.) in Indiana and will meet again in Los Angeles next month for another week of "residency" at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center, performing their course work in between from their respective locales.

The Institute recently admitted 30 more students of whom the majority are laypeople, some residing in Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana and Maryland. Father Ngo noted that the students include pastoral leaders in their communities, but because of language difficulties cannot take desired theology classes, for example, at Loyola Marymount University.

"So this method is a great benefit for the family; they can do it at home," he said. "This format allows people from different aspects of life to participate and to maintain their regular ministry or profession. They are better able to manage the cost, and most importantly they can learn in the language in which they are most comfortable."

To this point, the Institute has been highly promoted and has become very much in demand within the Vietnamese Catholic community, said Father Ngo. "If we can get more faculty, we can get more students," he said. "Many Vietnamese clergy have waited a long time for the creation of such a school. So we are optimistic that this will take hold."

Advanced Tribunal program
The Graduate Theological Foundation in Indiana, through which the Vietnamese Institute has been established, was founded in 1962, with a student population of about 35 percent Catholic, 35 percent Protestant, and the remainder a combination of other faiths. With more than 1,500 alumni/ae, the Foundation maintains a consistent enrollment in excess of 500 full-time graduate students from all 50 states and 25 foreign countries.

Last December, Father Ngo and Msgr. Charles Chaffman, archdiocesan Judicial Vicar, announced the establishment of another program in collaboration with the GTF designed to address a growing shortage of canonists and qualified Tribunal staff in the U.S. and elsewhere. Father Ngo and Msgr. Chaffman serve as Co-directors of this new Tribunal Institute; both Institutes have been endorsed by Cardinal Roger Mahony.

The International Institute of Tribunal Studies will offer advanced degrees (Master and Doctor) in this discipline, beginning July 1. The six-semester program will extend through April 2009, with courses that include theology and canon law, Latin grammar, consecrated and apostolic life, marriage procedures and new norms, and supreme authority in the church. A Certificate, a Bachelor or a Master of Theology, or a Doctor of Ministry can be obtained from GTF by taking courses in theology and canon law at this Tribunal Institute.

Each semester lasts approximately four months, with components that include two-month "pre-residency" (study at home from instructors' syllabi), a one-week residency in Los Angeles at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center (with opportunity for discussion and dialogue) and two-month "post-residency" (composing a major paper at home).

Requirements include a bachelor's degree in theology or religious studies, or equivalent, from an accredited institution. Like the Vietnamese Institute, says Msgr. Chaffman, this program "is in harmony with the growing system of distance-learning centers flowering throughout the world."

For more information on both programs, contact Sister Thuy Thu Thi Nguyen, communications liaison, at (213) 637-7213; email Nttrinitas33@aol.com; or Metropolitan Tribunal, Archdiocese of Los Angeles (attn: Sister Nguyen), 3424 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90010.