priests
A taste for diversity and dialogue Father Tinh van nguyen, S.V.D. Father Tinh Van Nguyen, S.V.D. took a chance when he entered seminary several years ago. But risks were nothing new for him, having tried his hand at everything from flying planes (during a stint in the U.S. Navy) to commercial fishing to brokering deals for a painting company. “Religious life is a way of life for me now,” he says. COMMUNITY: Society of the Divine Word FAVORITE WAY TO PRAY: Sitting in solitude and complete silence. BEST PART OF LIVING IN COMMUNITY: I get to see friends from China, Indonesia, Vietnam, Mexico, Brazil. . . . We have a great mix of people, and community is a great place to meet people and make friends for life. NICKNAME: Tinman ADVICE FOR THOSE CONSIDERING RELIGIOUS LIFE: I had three wonderful friends who walked with me prior to entering religious life and helped me decipher the messages in my head. You need someone to guide you—talk to someone such as a vocation director.
Photo by Lloyd Degrane
WHAT I DO FOR FUN: I love boating, jet skiing, scuba diving. And I love to tweak high-performance Japanese engines and cars at auto mechanic shops. MOST EXCITING ASPECT OF MISSION: I’m really drawn to ecumenical and interreligious dialogue. I like to ask: What does God look like on the other side of town?
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6/14/2010 9:40:13 AM