Catholic saint biography
St. Peter Nguyễn Văn Hiếu
- Lived:
- 1783-1840 — Vietnam
A scoped Catholic liturgical calendar date has not been verified. The page heading and execution anniversary are not treated as a feast; a shared celebration requires its own calendar citation.
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Biography
Peter Nguyễn Văn Hiếu, also recorded as Lê Văn Hiếu, came from Đồng Chuối in Hà Nam. He was his parents' only son and had an older sister. Although this family position made his request to enter religious service difficult, his parents and uncle supported it. He studied while his parents were still alive and continued into the work of a catechist.
Peter was arrested at Đông Biên with Father Paul Phạm Khắc Khoan and John Baptist Đinh Văn Thanh. During an extended imprisonment he prayed, fasted, and encouraged Catholics who visited him. He refused to renounce Christianity. All three were beheaded in 1840 after walking together to the execution ground. He was canonized in 1988.
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What will you carry with you?
After reading about St. Peter Nguyễn Văn Hiếu, 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: Peter Nguyễn Văn Hiếu ↗
- Holy See: individual register of the 117 Vietnamese martyrs (79) ↗
Biography source comparison recorded on . This is an AI-assisted comparison, not independent human or ecclesiastical approval.
What the recorded review covers
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 79 is a distinct individual; source-name variants count as one person.
A source list helps you check an account; it does not establish that every claim is certain. Follow the biography’s qualifications about historical evidence, traditions and feast calendars.
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