ABOUT US AND WHAT WE BELIEVE.

Translate this page into Hmong (txais ua lus Hmoob)

By Fr. Joseph Johnson

The Church of St. Vincent de Paul was founded by Irish Catholic immigrants over one hundred years ago. Just ten years ago, the church welcomed a new set of immigrants.

The local Hmong Catholic community now makes this parish their spiritual home as well. Together American and Hmong people worship God here and seek to share His love with each other and with all people of every race and country.

What brings people to our church?

Each human person seeks happiness. We believe that we were created by a loving God who watches over us and seeks our happiness. God Himself is the source of our happiness.

Money and power cannot bring the peace and joy to our hearts that we truly desire. Only by entering into a relationship with God do we understand the meaning of human life and the path to happiness now and for all eternity.

Who is the God we worship?

God created the entire universe. He existed before the universe began and will continue to exist after the Sun and moon and stars fade away. We cannot see God with our eyes but our minds can discover Him in our world and within our hearts.

God chose to reveal Himself to us in time so that we can come to know, love and serve Him. God spoke to the ancient people of Israel through special men known as prophets. He promised to raise us from the troubles of this world to be with Him in the glory of Heaven. God's message to the world is recorded in the Bible.

What do learn in the Bible?

The Bible teaches us that there is only one God. He made the earth and the all the plants and animals in it. He also made human beings and spiritual creatures called angels. Both were created to serve God, but some angels and some men chose to disobey Him. The rejection of God is known as sin.

The chief of the disobedient angels is known as Lucifer, Satan, or the devil. He seeks to tempt everyone to reject God and seek happiness in the passing pleasures of the world.

The devil has no power to make us sin because he is only a creature. He is known as the "Father of lies" because he tries to persuade us to follow this false path away from God.

Sin is what brought misunderstanding, sickness, war, and death into the world. The only way to overcome the troubles we face is to be faithful to God and persevere in seeking to restore His original plan for human beings and our world.

How is our friendship with God restored?

The one God consists of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God the Father sent the Son by the power of the Holy Spirit to come down to earth and show us the way home to heaven.

The Son was born of the Virgin Mary 2,000 years ago and received the name "Jesus" which means "God saves". The birth of Jesus Christ is celebrated each year at Christmas as a remembrance that God kept His promise to redeem us from our sins. The death of Jesus, the perfect and sinless Son of God, paid the price for our disobedience.

By offering Himself on the Cross, He showed how great God's love is for us. Jesus rose from the dead and so now enables us to join Him after death in the kingdom of God. By the sacrament of baptism we are adopted as God's children and promised to inherit eternal life if we are faithful to Him.

How can we follow Jesus and be faithful to what God asks of us?

The life of Jesus shows us how we should live: in perfect obedience to the Will of God. The Ten Commandments are God's law for His chosen people and Jesus orders His disciples to obey them out of love for Him. We damage our relationship with God when we choose to do what we please instead of acting as He has commanded.

We struggle with our human weaknesses and sometimes fail to live as Jesus desires. We need to pray to God every day to receive the grace that He wishes to give us to overcome temptations.

The followers of Jesus, known as Christians, also need to encourage and strengthen one another through prayer, the example of a faithful life, and mutual support. God wants to gather all His children together in His love. This union of God and His children is known as the Church.

What is the Roman Catholic Church?

The Church was founded by Jesus to bring the knowledge of God's love to the entire world. The term "Catholic" means universal and so refers to the fact that the Church is much more than a local group of people. Jesus chose twelve men, known as apostles, to be the leaders of the Church. They taught and led the prayers of those first followers of Jesus.

Their successors are now called bishops. They ensure that God's message is taught accurately from one generation to the next and not merely subject to individual interpretation. The chief of the apostles was Saint Peter and his successor is known as the Pope. The Pope is the bishop of Rome because that is where Saint Peter died. Since he is the leader of all of the bishops, the Church is known as "Roman" as well as "Catholic."

The Church currently has over 1 billion members and can trace its origin all the way back to the twelve apostles commissioned by Jesus.

What is the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis?

The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis is the group of Christians in the Twin Cities who stand in continuity with the first followers of Jesus and follow the leadership of the Pope. Our local leader is Archbishop Harry Flynn and the Cathedral of Saint Paul is our principal church.

Who is Saint Vincent de Paul?

A saint is a person who faithfully followed Jesus and is honored by the Church as an example for all Christians to follow. The saints are in Heaven at the side of God's throne.

When we pray to them, we ask that they would obtain from God the graces we need to join them in worshipping Him for all eternity in Heaven. Saint Vincent de Paul was a great French priest who is the special patron of the Hmong Catholic community in Minnesota.

©Copyrights 2005

 Back to Home page.