A new community centre for the Vietnamese Catholic Community of Brisbane will signal a new beginning, filled with hope, and promote an environment of faith, care for each other, and cultural enrichment.

The Vietnamese Catholic Community Centre development at Inala was put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic, but is now back underway, with construction beginning on the church and the centre’s office.

This will be followed by the construction of the community hall and car-parking area.

Stage Two of the development will see the building of the church’s bell tower, the presbytery and classrooms. And Stage Three will include the installation of an outdoor Stations of the Cross, a columbarium and landscaping.

Fr Joseph Vu SVD, Chaplain to Brisbane’s Vietnamese Community says the project has been a long-held dream for the city’s Vietnamese Catholics.

“This new Vietnamese Catholic Community Centre offers a new beginning filled with hope for its members,” Fr Joseph says.

“As the community transitions and moves forward with this exciting new project there are challenges and the community has been hard at work fundraising.”

Fr Joseph says the purpose for establishing the new centre is to cater for the current and future needs of the expanding Vietnamese Catholic Community of Brisbane.

“It is vital for the continuance and nurturing of the authentic Vietnamese Catholic faith and practices, and especially to pass this on to the younger generations,” he says.

“It matters not where a Vietnamese Catholic resides, it is their strong Catholic faith, entwined with their traditions and culture that defines a Vietnamese Catholic.”

The centre will be located a few kilometres from the current centre in Inala. The Archbishop of Brisbane Mark Coleridge laid the first stone and blessed the site in August, 2018.

Stage One of the project is expected to be completed in two years.

Fr Joseph says the Vietnamese Catholic Community of Brisbane has been established for more than 40 years and has developed a strong relationship and bond with the Archdiocese of Brisbane.

“Established by the first group of Vietnamese Catholic immigrants escaping the horrific Vietnamese War, those people, about 20 in number, laid the foundations for the vibrant Vietnamese Catholic Community of today, which numbers about 3000 people,” he says.

As the community grew, Archbishop Coleridge advised and allowed the community to undertake this building project to cater for the expanding numbers of people and to meet the needs of the community-members.

“This would give the community a new beginning and allow more pastoral care services to be offered, to build a stronger and united community through love and nurturing of the authentic Vietnamese Catholic faith. It would also create facilities to offer more missionary events,” Fr Joseph says.

“This new centre, in essence, will promote an environment of hope, where current and future members can grow in faith, follow in the footsteps of Christ, care for each other, support missionary works and have a place they can call home.”

PHOTOS

TOP RIGHT: Members of Brisbane's Vietnamese Catholic Chaplaincy with Fr Joseph Vu SVD centre.

MIDDLE LEFT: A visualisation of the new Vietnamese Catholic Community Centre in Brisbane.

BOTTOM RIGHT: Fr Joseph joins in a concert performance with young members of the community.