Catholic saint biography
St. James Đỗ Mai Năm
- Lived:
- Vietnam
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Biography
James Đỗ Mai Năm came from Đông Biên in Thanh Hóa and entered religious formation while young. He studied at the seminary of Vĩnh Trị. Before ordination, he served as a catechist with responsibility for the hospital at Kẻ Vĩnh: he cared for patients during the day and taught children in the evening. After becoming a priest, he ministered among Catholic communities under increasingly difficult conditions.
During persecution James found shelter in the household of Peter Nguyễn Đích. Officials arrested the priest together with his host and the host's son-in-law Michael Nguyễn Huy Mỹ. James withheld information that could expose relatives and other Catholics to punishment. The three were beheaded in 1838, and their bodies were brought back to Vĩnh Trị. James was canonized in 1988.
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What will you carry with you?
After reading about St. James Đỗ Mai Năm, take a moment to consider:
- Which event or decision in this life stood out to you?
- What virtue would you like to understand or practice more deeply?
- What small action could you take today in response?
These are reflection prompts from Saint Discovery, not quotations from the saint.
Sources and further reading
- Archdiocese of Hanoi: James Đỗ Mai Năm ↗
- Holy See: individual register of the 117 Vietnamese martyrs (25) ↗
Biography source comparison recorded on . This is an AI-assisted comparison, not independent human or ecclesiastical approval.
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Individual Catholic institutional source review; original concise factual summary. AI-assisted institutional-source comparison; no qualified human review is claimed. Compared canonical and source names, aliases, clergy or lay status, family relationships and martyrdom details against all 685 baseline canonical or archived identities (625 published) and all prior directory batches. Holy See register number 25 is a distinct individual; source-name variants count as one person.
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