Enculturation of Tết In Worship

Some US veterans may remember the word Tết due to its association with the January 31, 1968, offensive attack that occurred during the Vietnam War. It left deep psychological wounds due to the chaos, the surprise eruption of violence among American soldiers, and the South Vietnamese people. Nonetheless, Tết is the Vietnamese New Year celebration. This joyful occasion reunites families to gather in remembrance of their ancestors and give thanks for heavenly blessings in accordance with filial piety, a virtuous behavior.

This tradition continues in Vietnamese American families and in personal parishes, after 50 years of diasporic life. They express gratitude through the acts of chúc Tết (New Year blessings or good wishes to each other), the elders’ giving of lì xì (typically red envelopes with cash, a symbol of God’s providence) to the younger, and kính nhớ tổ tiên (remembering ancestors through prayers). They offer prayers at home, but more importantly, they gather at churches to celebrate the Tet Liturgy with reverence and solemnity. Enculturating Tết celebrations in the Eucharistic liturgy transforms a cultural New Year into a liturgy of gratitude and mission for Vietnamese‑American Catholics, deepening gratitude expressed through family blessing and ancestral respect, empowering families to transmit the faith, and strengthening parish solidarity in continuity with the U.S. Church’s historic welcome of Vietnamese refugees.

Enculturation and Gratitude

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council taught that Mother Church encourages enculturation in the liturgy, provided it promotes the good of the whole community. What’s more, it must harmonize with the Roman Rite in its genuine and authentic spirit. In Vietnam, the Conference of Bishops established additional Votive Masses to sanctify the four periods of the Vietnamese New Year celebration: the End-of-Year Mass, New Year's Eve, and the first three days of the new year.

In the Vietnamese Roman Missals and Lectionary, we find the Collects and readings for the End-of-Year and New Year’s Eve Masses emphasize the theme of thanksgiving. The votive Mass for the First Day of the New Year stresses trusting in divine power for peace and the blessings of a new year. On the Second Day of the New Year, liturgy shifts attention, reminding the faithful of their roots with particular prayers for their deceased parents and ancestors. Moreover, prayer and reading invite all to practice filial piety faithfully. Lastly, the Third Day of the New Year liturgy accentuates labor as a participation in the works of salvation, tracing to the Incarnation of the Word, who came to the world and shared in the labor of man, and sanctifies the works of human hands as a means for the glorification of God. Hence, by liturgical enculturation, Vietnamese Catholics experience the presence of God in all activities and are reminded of His vital role in life, a life of gratitude and missionary spirit.

Tết as School of Gratitude

The customary chúc Tết act during the celebration at many Vietnamese homes carries a certain sacramental likeness. When the youth kneel (or stand) before the sitting elders, they say the words of chúc Tết to parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, etc. This gesture shows respect, as when altar servers kneel at the cathedra during a bishop's liturgical celebration. Their warm and sincere wishes to the elders for health and wisdom echo Pope St. John Paul II’s words: “The sick, the elderly . . . teach us that weakness is a creative part of human living . . . Let us treasure them and recognize . . . the debt we owe them.”

John Paul II suggests that the elders are a treasure for their continuity of faith and for passing on the deposit of faith across generations through witness, wisdom, and fidelity. For the youths, when they offer good wishes (chúc Tết) in sincerity, they reflect the charitable virtue of the Fourth Commandment, “Honor your father and your mother” (Ex 20:12) with thankfulness. Hence, chúc Tết becomes a catechetical moment because it mimics intercessory prayer for the elders at Mass while reminding the youths of their reverence for the living deposit of faith in the elders.

The family-level festivities mirror the Church’s blessing of family at the New Year Mass, due to enculturation. The word Eucharist, from the Greek text eucharistia, which means thanksgiving. The Mass is then a gathering of a community to worship and give profound thanks to God for salvation accomplished through Christ. At the end of the Mass, the people are blessed in the name of the Holy Trinity to go forth with a mission. Similarly, family members scattered by work and profession may return home to celebrate Tết with siblings, parents, and grandparents. To chúc Tết and honor those who have gone before them in prayer, and most of all, to remember God’s blessing with gratefulness through the sharing of lì xì envelopes and foods.

In Vietnam, catechists sometimes use family gatherings during Tết to illustrate the various parts of the Mass to children. For example, before handing out red envelopes (lì xì) to the younger generation, an elder uses inspiring words to encourage them to be grateful and to rely on divine power to achieve success in life. Such a short speech resembles the homiletic part of the Mass. Thus, the Eucharistic spirituality is evident in the domestic Church celebration of Tết.

Among the diaspora, cultural gestures speak volumes in comparison to abstract teachings. Enculturating Tết in the liturgy has allowed parents and grandparents to hand down the faith through gesture, prayer, and presence. This helps the Vietnamese identify with their roots and embrace the Asian Jesus Christ, as John Paul II encourages: “‘Behold, the savior of the world is born to us’, born in Asia.” The question is how cultural adoption in the liturgy helps the diaspora embrace their roots.

Ancestral Honoring: A Christian Reading of Tradition

One of the key attributes in Asian cultures is family orientation, which includes veneration of ancestry. Vietnamese culture is influenced by Confucianism, in which family members “present offerings to ancestors on the family altar at home, such as New Year's Day,” according to a humanities professor, Christian Jochim. Such practice reflects a deep respect for ancestors by connecting the living and the dead. In Catholicism, it is called the communion of saints. Vietnamese Catholics embrace the veneration, not worship, of their ancestors through incense offerings, praying for deceased family members, and placing their names and pictures near the altar. These acts of honoring do not contradict but harmonize beautifully with Catholic doctrine. Hence, visitors who attend the Tết Mass should not be surprised to see Vietnamese Catholics dressed in their traditional áo dài (tunic), a bronze censer to offer incense, and an iconic map of Vietnam near the altar area of the sanctuary. These things and gestures become moments of catechesis to express the communion of saints.

Remembering ancestors is a call of duty, normally assumed by the oldest son of the family. The oldest son must lead his younger sibling in honoring the ancestors because of filial piety. Filial piety requires demonstrating respect and loyalty to elders, parents, and those in authority within the family clans of the ancient world. In the Vietnamese culture, filial piety is often referred to as đạo con (literally, the way of sonship). In practice, filial piety builds the family to be a missionary unit of society, as the Catechism prompts us, “The family is the community in which, from childhood, one can learn moral values, begin to honor God, and make good use of freedom. Family life is an initiation into life in society.” (#2207)

With proper understanding, Jesus is the model of filial piety, and He is the oldest brother or the “firstborn among the many brethren” (Rom 8:29), to whom the baptized become co-heirs, and are able to call God, Abba (Gal 4:5–7). He honored and carried out his mission of redemptive works and sacrificed his life according to the Father’s will to call us to do the same.

Solidarity Rooted in Family Gratitude and Memory

After the tragic Fall of Saigon in 1975, the US welcomed thousands of Vietnamese refugees. They found a spiritual home in many dioceses and archdioceses of the US Church, in parishes, and religious communities. In gratitude, they established personal parishes (Vietnamese-speaking) in many major metropolitan areas, including California, Louisiana, Texas, and Florida, to name a few. Family and faith traditions, including Tết, cultivate the seeds of faith. As a result, they contribute significantly to priestly and religious vocations in the U.S., serving the Church.

When non-personal and broader parishes participate in Tết liturgical celebrations, it suggests the same solidarity that welcomed Vietnamese refugees. It also expresses the catholicity mark of the Church and strengthens unity across cultures and generations. Furthermore, it encourages the younger generation to embrace their Catholic identity through the lens of filial piety, a commendable value rooted in Vietnamese culture. Tết in the liturgy can form parishioners to live out gratitude through concrete acts of supporting immigrants, discipleship, family-centric faith, and foster vocation. After all, gratitude is a way of life, a mission to model after Jesus, who is the Firstborn.

In summary, Tết serves as a bridge between Eucharistic liturgy and Vietnamese family values of filial piety. It does this by expressing gratitude through family blessings and honoring ancestral members. As Vietnamese American Catholics celebrate these festivities yearly, the act becomes a catechetical moment to transmit the faith to the young, renew family bonds, foster vocation, and invite them to solidarity and discipleship. Hence, celebrating Tết in the liturgy is not only about preserving heritage but about empowering a vibrant, grateful, mission‑minded Vietnamese American Catholic community in the US.

Works Cited