I am Huy (Joseph) Nguyen, born and raised in Vietnam. I came to the United States in 2014 with my whole family. My vocation journey is a circular journey in which God is patiently directing me to the vocation that He sees is best for me. My desire to be a priest started at a very early age. However, when I grew older, I got distracted and liked to do something else, for I thought I would never be worthy for the priesthood, which is such a high calling beyond my reach. Yet, I was quite active at my home parish in Vietnam: being a youth leader and catechist and volunteering for other activities at the parish. I experienced a strong call to a life of service, feeling energetic and enthusiastic about pouring myself out for any service at my parish.

Toward the end of high school, one day, I came to my friend’s house with other guys. Then her father told me, “The pastor had just announced the entry test to the diocese’s seminary. I think you can be a good priest. Why don’t you join the seminary?” After hearing it, my heart was burning and moving, though it was not the first time I heard this recommendation. Yet, I believe that God has His time, and thus that moment was the right time for me to courageously make the move. After praying about it, I decided to take the test. By the grace of God, I passed the test with the highest score, which qualified me to enter the seminary. I was at the seminary for two years and eight months in a parish, which was a remarkable and memorable time filled with joy, peace, and grace. My vocation to the priesthood and my desire to serve grew stronger after those years.

In 2014, I came to Washington State with my family. Since I was so happy with my vocation as a diocesan seminarian of my home diocese in Vietnam, I experienced that God still wanted me to continue with the diocese. After a few months of arrival, my diocese received a scholarship from Divine Word College Seminary in Iowa for me to study Philosophy. After three and half years there, I experienced God’s call to stay in the U.S rather than go back to Vietnam to serve my diocese in the future, especially through the advice of my bishop, who thought that my going back to Vietnam may not be a good fit because I had done most of my education and formation in the U.S. After a lot of prayer and discernment, I felt that God called me to try religious life at the moment. So, I joined the Divine Word Missionaries, at whose school I had been doing my study and formation.

After discerning with them for four years, God helped me to realize some challenges that a missionary vocation demands, especially being far away from home. By God’s providence, my family moved to Phoenix, and I came home for vacation last summer. The moment that I put my feet on this land, I inexplicably fell in love with it. I experienced a very strong call to commit my life to serve this diocese. After much prayer and careful discernment, I eventually decided to switch to the Diocese of Phoenix. I have felt very much at peace, and God continues to affirm my vocation through many signs. Now I am happy to return to my initial calling, diocesan vocation, and I am convinced that God is accompanying and directing me on this circular journey. Even though I have been moving around, I treasure all I have learned along the way, with the conviction that God has used those changes to prepare me for my future.