Vietnam+Religions



There are some limitations in religious practice in Vietnam. Foreign missionaries legally are not allowed to proselytize or perform religious activities. No other religions than those the government have permitted (Buddhism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, Cao Dai, and Hoa Hao)are allowed to propagate. Preachers and religious associations are prohibited to use religion to propagate ideologies that violate the Communist government.

There are two types of Buddhism found in Vietnam, Mahayana Buddhism and Theravada. Mahayana Buddhism first spread from China to Vietnam's Red River Delta region around 300 BC and remains popularly followed throughout the whole country, whereas Theravada Buddhism arrived from India into the southern Mekong Delta region between 300-600 AD and remains commonly adhered to in only the south delta area of Vietnam. To this day, Mahayana Buddhism is largely affiliated with the majority ethnic Vietnamese. The Communist government would give orders and they expected it to be fufilled.If Buddhist monks and nuns denied certain thoughts or ways to live their daily lives, they were placed under house arrest or imprisoned, and their pagodas and possessions were taken for public use. The government also prohibited Buddhist organizations from creating schools to train new monks and nuns. By April 1980, most of the Buddhist organizations were fully controlled by the government. Because of this, Buddhist rituals and practices relatively decreased and most pagodas were eliminated.
 * Buddhism



Protestantism was introduced in 1911 at Da Nang by a Canadian missionary named Dr. R.A. Jaffray. As part of the Christian Missionary Alliance, over 100 missionaries were sent to Vietnam, assisting the faith's growth in the country.Present estimates of the number of Protestants range from the official government figure of 500,000 to claims by churches of 1 million. The two officially recognized Protestant churches are the Southern Evangelical Church of Vietnam (SECV), recognized in 2001, and the smaller Evangelical Church of Vietnam North (ECVN), recognized since 1963. The SECV had affiliated churches in the southern provinces of the country.Because Protestantism is closely associated with the United States, Protestants have been continually prosecuted by the Communist government.Baptist and Mennonite movements were officially recognized by Hanoi in October, 2007, which was estimated as some improvement of religious freedom in the country[18]. By words of the Baptist Church Pastor Nguyen Thong, since 1989 his Church has attracted more than 18,400 followers with 500 ministers, practising in 135 congregations in 23 cities and provinces around the country
 * Protestantism



Roman Catholicism first entered Vietnam through catholic missionaries in 16th century and strengthened its influence when Vietnam was a French colony. The French encouraged the spread of the religion as they thought it balanced Buddhism and supported Western culture. Jesuit(foot soldier of the Pope) missionary Alexandre De Rhodes created in 17th century a written system of Vietnamese language largely using the Roman alphabet - it is used today and now called Quốc Ngữ (national language).By the time the Communists had risen to power in Vietnam, monks and nuns were forced to work in agriculture, though the government officials claimed that they allowed the Catholics to continually practice their religion. By November 1977, the government declared religious freedom for the Catholics in the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, but under the condition that all Catholic organizations must be under the control of the Communist government.
 * Roman Catholicism

is a religious tradition based on Buddhism founded in 1939 by Huynh Phu So, a native of the Mekong River Delta region of southern Vietnam. Adherents consider So to be a prophet, and Hoa Hao a continuation of a 19th century Buddhist ministry known as Buu Son Ky Huong ("Strange Perfume from Precious Mountains," referring to the That Son range on the Vietnam-Cambodia border). The founders of these traditions are regarded by Hoa Hao followers as living Buddhas —destined to save mankind from suffering and to protect the Vietnamese nation. Hoa Hao claims approximately two million followers throughout Vietnam; in some provinces near its Delta birthplace. An important characteristic of this sect is its emphasis on peasant farmers, exemplified by the old slogan "Practicing Buddhism While Farming Your Land." Farm life is considered to be the most conducive to religious practice and self-improvement. Patriotism and willingness to defend the homeland are valued.Hoa Hao also stresses the practice of Buddhism by lay people in the home, rather than focusing primarily on temple worship and ordination. Aid to the poor is favored over pagoda building or expensive rituals; religious and social ceremonies are ideally simple and modest, and are not to include the food offerings, divination services, and elaborate wedding and funeral customs found in some manifestations of Southeast Asian life. These are viewed as a waste of money which would be better spent helping the needy.In Hoa Hao homes, a plain brown cloth serves as an altar, at which the family prays morning and night. Separate altars are used to honor ancestors and the sacred directions. Only fresh water, flowers, and incense are used in worship; no bells or gongs accompany prayers. A believer away from home at prayer times faces west (i.e., toward India) to pray to the Buddha. Adherents are expected to attend communal services on the 1st and 15th of each lunar month and on other Buddhist holy days. The exact dates of Islam's spread in Indo-China is not known for certain. However, generally speaking, Islam arrived in Indo-China before it reached China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). It was introduced by merchants from the Muslim world who sailed along the coastal cities.What is known for sure is that by the 11th century, Islam was already in Vietnam due to recent discovery of two gravestones belonging to the Champa Muslims, dated from the early 11th century. When Islam came, few Champa people adopted it. However, some time between 1607 and 1676, the king of Champa became Muslim thus precipitating most of his people to enter Islam also. During the reign of the Vietnamese king, Minh MÕng, the Champa were severly persecuted. As a consequence, the last Champa Muslim king, Pô Ch½n, decided to gather his people (those on the mainland) and migrated south to Cambodia. Whereas those on the coastline, they migrated to Trengganu (Malaysia). The area where the king and the mainlanders settled is still known to this day as Kompong Cham. They were not concentrated in one area but were scattered along the Mekong river in Vietnam, forming 13 villages along it. Throughout the years, their children were sent to Kelantan (Malaysia) to learn Qur'an and Islamic studies. Once studies were completed, these children then return home to teach others in these 13 villages. Also, another factor which helps them to preserve the true teaching of Islam was the interaction between them and the Malaysian Muslim traders who sailed through the Mekong river. As a result of this interaction, the descendents who had lost Islam began to return to true Islam. Furthermore, with the help of the Muslims community in Saigon, mosques were built in Vån Lâm, An Nh½n, and PhÑ½c Nh½n (Central Vietnam). After April 30th 1975, while the majority of Vietnamese Muslims remain in Vietnam under the communist regime, a sizable number of them managed to escape to other countries. The majority of them settled in America, France, Malaysia, India, Canada and a handful in Australia.
 * Hoa Hoa
 * Islam



is a relatively new, syncretist, monotheistic religion, officially established in Tây Ninh, southern Vietnam, in 1926.Đạo Cao Đài is the religion's shortened name, the full name is Đại Đạo Tam Kỳ Phổ Độ (Great Religion [of The] Third Period [of] Revelation [and] Salvation). The term Cao Đài literally means "high place." Figuratively, it means that highest place where God reigns. It is also the abbreviated name for God, the creator of the universe, whose full title is Cao Đài Tiên Ông Đại Bồ Tát Ma-ha-tát (Chữ Nôm: 高臺天皇大菩薩摩訶薩, translation: Cao Dai [the] Ancient Sage [and] Great Bodhisattva Mahasattva). Within the title are representations of the Three Teachings: Saint, Sage and Buddha.Caodaiists credit God as the religion's founder. They believe the teachings, symbolism and organization were communicated directly from God. Even the construction of the Tây Ninh Holy See is claimed to have had divine guidance.
 * Cao Dai

Cao Đài's first disciples Ngô Văn Chiêu, Cao Quỳnh Cư, Phạm Công Tắc, and Cao Hoài Sang claimed to have received direct communications from God, who gave them explicit instructions for establishing a new religion that would commence the Third Era of Religious Amnesty.Adherents engage in ethical practices such as prayer, veneration of ancestors, nonviolence, and vegetarianism with the minimum goal of rejoining God the Father in Heaven and the ultimate goal of freedom from the cycle of birth and death. Estimates of the number of Cao Đài adherents in Vietnam vary, but most sources give two to three million.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cao_Dai http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoa_Hao http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.cominganarchy.com/saigon/vietnam/mosque.jpg&

[|Protestants in Vietnam]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/28/ChuaTranQuoc.jpg/300px-ChuaTranQuo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Vietnam

http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Den/5908/religion/religioninvn.html

http://www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/learn_about_vietnam/culture/beliefs_and_religions/

http://www.history.navy.mil/pics/religion1.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_Vietnam

http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Den/5908/religion/religioninvn.html