Six priests, five years: Father Linh Nguyen
Father Linh Nguyen near the altar at St. George Parish in Fort Worth. (NTC/Juan Guajardo)
On May 22, 2021, six men were ordained priests for the Diocese of Fort Worth. Five years later, Father Linh Nguyen shares his memories and experiences.
IN THE FIRST FIVE YEARS: I was assigned to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Keller in 2021, and I now serve as pastor of St. George Parish in Fort Worth.
NEXT STEP: This summer, I will begin a three-year program to study liturgy at the Pontifical University in Rome. The first year is just to study Italian and then I also have to study Greek and Hebrew.
ORDINATION MEMORIES: Our transitional diaconate ordination was at the beginning of COVID. The cathedral was nearly empty. But to have the diocese and everyone come together for our priestly ordination is a moment that has stuck with me.
FORMATION HELP: From the very first day of being in seminary, from Bishop and Father Wallis to the people that I've met throughout the years, everyone has helped me form who I am and continue to form and shape my identity and my ministry as a priest.
SOURCE OF STRENGTH: When things get difficult, that means I need to spend more time in prayer. I know and understand that prayer life is the energy source I have to continue in order to serve the people. If I don't fuel myself with Christ and Christ's love, I can't give something that I don't have.
THE REAL PRESENCE: I feel close to God when I get to celebrate the Mass, the Eucharist. It's a moment of meditation and wonder that this all knowing, all present, all powerful God is making himself known and present at the altar.
Through the Eucharist He makes Himself part of our daily life.
HOLY HABITS: I use all the tools, and I stick with the Liturgy of the Hours as my foundation to all of it. My prayer life changes and ebbs and flows with my spiritual life. Eucharistic Adoration is always a crucial thing. Some days it's Scripture meditation; other days it's lives of the saints or a saint’s writings. Maybe a theology book.
WALKING TOGETHER: In talking to parishioners and walking with the faithful, they share their outlooks, their struggles, their reflections and meditations on their own faith life and faith journey. They bring a lot of different outlooks, especially the kids. They'll just say what they think. And sometimes what they give you is something even more powerful and more profound to reflect on because, you don't see it that way because of our mindset as an adult.
FUTURE GOALS Just to continue to remain faithful. It's a blessing to celebrate five years, but one of the biggest struggles and biggest challenges in any priest’s life and in their vocation and call is not just to remain faithful, but to remain faithful to the end and to their last breath in service to the Church.
I hope, with prayer and genuine friendship, to continue on this faith journey and this call that the Lord has called us to.
It's beautiful that we've hit five years, but five years is going to be nothing in the grand scheme of God's plan.
PRAYER AND GRATITUDE: I want to thank the people of God for their patience and their love of us as priests. There’s not an exact training manual to say how to be a pastor and how to care for people or how to be a priest, but their patience and their love of their priests really helps us to grow and mature and develop. For all those that have been praying for us, continue to keep us in prayer. It's through your love, your prayer, and your support that we can continue to do what we do.