Saints of Culture: St. Andrew Dũng Lạc

• View High Resolution Photo! (25 MB)

St. Andrew is the most prominent of the Vietnamese martyrs. He was born in 1795 and died a martyr for the faith on December 21, 1839. He belonged to a peasant family, but eventually entered the priesthood at a time when the church was being severely persecuted by the Vietnamese authorities. His presence in this window represents another major ethnic group of the parish, the Vietnamese community, and indirectly, all those of Asian descent. He completes the trio of windows celebrating the ethnic diversity of our parish (which is by no means limited to the three cultural groups represented in the windows).

The face of St. Andrew is based on a popular representation consistent with the limited iconographic tradition. Although he is often portrayed wearing the black biretta of European origin, here he wears the typical conical hat which is a symbol of traditional Vietnamese life. It is worn throughout Vietnam and also appears in rural areas of neighboring Laos and bordering areas of Cambodia. In this window the hat is especially symbolic of the poor peasant background of St. Andrew’s family members who worked the land under the hot sun of Asia.

St. Andrew wears the vesture of a diocesan priest (black cassock, white surplice and stole). The red stole, reminiscent of his martyrdom, has a typically Vietnamese textile pattern. Around his neck is a thin red line, evoking his eventual martyrdom by beheading in 1839. His hands are chained to recall his suffering through imprisonment for the faith. At his feet are the typical Asian neck harness worn by prisoners of the time on their way to execution, as well as the blade used in his beheading. St. Andrew stands calmly above these instruments of death which he knows ultimately have no power over his soul. He holds the palm branch, symbol of his victory over death. In the background are plants typical of Asia, including palm trees to the left and right of his shoulders, evoking the psalm text, “The just man shall flourish like the palm tree” (Ps. 92:12). In the panel above his head is the sun, appearing here in the only window of a saint from the east. In the panel below his feet are lotus flowers and tropical fish evoking the beauty and colors of Asia.

The stole worn by St. Andrew is a common symbol of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. In this context, it takes on an even richer significance because it is worn by one who did not hesitate as a priest to “lay down his life for his sheep.”

The shield in the lower panel is that of Bishop Tod D. Brown, third bishop of the diocese of Orange (from 1998 to present). The left side of the shield is that of the diocese of Orange with the characteristic Santa Ana mountains, orange tree, mission courtyard and waves of the ocean. On the right side of the shield are the personal arms of Bishop Brown.