Saint Thomas Đinh Viết Dụ

Saint Thomas Đinh Viết Dụ (born c. 1783 in Phú Nhai, Nam Định Province, Vietnam; died November 26, 1839, in Bảy Mẫu, Vietnam) was a Dominican friar, martyr, and saint of the Catholic Church. Thomas Đinh Viết Dụ was born in Phú Nhai, Nam Định Province. He was already a priest when he joined the Dominican Order at the age of 31. He served in many parishes. During a period of persecution, he was imprisoned in the town of Liễu Đề shortly after celebrating Mass in 1839. He was subsequently taken to the capital and subjected to repeated torture. In prison, he met another Dominican, Dominic Nguyễn Văn Xuyên. He was beheaded on November 26, 1839, in Bảy Mẫu, and Dominic Nguyễn Văn Xuyên was executed alongside him. They were buried at the site of the execution. In January 1841, their relics were moved to Lục Thuỷ. His feast day is November 24, as part of the group of 117 Vietnamese Martyrs. He was beatified on May 27, 1900, by Pope Leo XIII and canonized by Pope John Paul II on June 19, 1988, as one of the 117 Vietnamese Martyrs.