The Chinese Province of the Society of Jesus celebrated the ordination of a new priest and two new deacons during a Eucharistic celebration on 5 July at Holy Family Church in Taipei.

Paul Hoang Huy Huu SJ, a missionary from Vietnam, was ordained to the priesthood, while Avi Abraham Krocha SJ and Poujaigai John Pamei SJ, both from India, were ordained as deacons by Archbishop Thomas Chung of the Archdiocese of Taipei. Concelebrating the ordination Mass were Chinese Provincial Fr Stephen Tong SJ, Fr Alberto Nuñez, Superior of the St Robert Bellarmine Community at Fu Jen University, and Fr Paul Coelho SJ, Director of Resource Development for the Kohima Jesuit Region in Northeast India. Also present were more than 50 priests, Deacon Nguyen Dinh Minh Tri—recently ordained in Hong Kong—and Jesuits and clergy who travelled from Vietnam, Hong Kong, India, and Australia to offer their blessings. Even Fr Hoang’s childhood parish priest flew to Taipei to witness this sacred occasion.

The church was filled with guests, many dressed in traditional Vietnamese attire. Fr Hoang’s parents, in particular, stood out. They overcame many challenges to travel abroad for the first time in order to witness their son’s ordination. Deacon Pamei’s aunt arrived from Hong Kong, while Taiwanese friends representing the families of Deacons Krocha and Pamei filled the reserved pews to capacity.

After the Eucharistic celebration, a Vietnamese choir sang a moving hymn in their native language, Why Did God Choose Me. The lyrics reflected on how God first knew, chose, and loved us, and included a prayer to be sent to the margins to serve the most vulnerable.

At the conclusion of the Mass, Fr Hoang gave an emotional speech on behalf of his peers. He thanked his parents three times, recalling how his mother taught him to care for others through her cooking, taught him how to pray—including the Rosary—and brought him to Mass. He also expressed gratitude to his father, who had been a model of optimism and always found solutions to life’s problems.

“Now we are priests and deacons, but we are still your children. We have no house, no car, no money, no gold or treasures to give you, but we offer these little flower garlands,” said Fr Hoang in Chinese. His parents, listening through a translator, were visibly moved to tears.

Fr Hoang also expressed his gratitude to Archbishop Chung, recalling a lesson during an ethics exam: “The love of the Good Shepherd is to let sinners feel God’s love.” This, he said, helped him to understand the true meaning of hearing confessions.

Deacon Krocha then offered his thanks in English and Hindi to family and friends watching online, saying that he felt spiritually united with them. Deacon Pamei, who gave the closing speech, gave thanks to God, “the greatest teacher,” for calling the three of them in different places, at different times, and through different circumstances. He then invited Deacon Nguyen Dinh Minh Tri to join them, and the four of them sang Follow Me together.

In his homily, Father Provincial Tong referred the newly ordained to the day’s Gospel, where Jesus asks Peter three times, “Do you love me?” (John 21:14–19). He remarked that our love for God develops over time—sometimes beginning at a superficial level—but deepens with every renewed question. He urged the new priests and deacons to reflect: Are we doing everything out of love for God, for ourselves, or simply to please others? He urged the newly ordained to encourage one another on their journey, strive to follow God ever more completely, and make Him the centre of their lives.

This article is an edited version of the story published in Mandarin that appeared in the Chinese Province website. Photos from the Chinese Province.