Turning off the national highway into the rice fields of former Tân Lý Đông, visitors will notice that the terrain here is not completely flat, instead rising in sandy ridges higher than the surrounding paddies, upon which stand houses, orchards, and village lanes. People in Southern Vietnam call those ridges giồng. Atop one such ridge stands Ba Giồng Church, beside a three-story tiled-roof building, and behind it lies the Catholic cemetery (Đất Thánh) with old stone graves carved with crosses.
This is Ba Giồng Pilgrimage Center of the Diocese of Mỹ Tho. Pilgrims come here in memory of a pastor, Saint Peter (Phêrô) Nguyễn Văn Lựu, a priest born in Gò Vấp who served as parish priest of Ba Giồng until he was beheaded in Mỹ Tho on April 7, 1861. He is one of the 117 Vietnamese Martyrs.
ISaint Peter Nguyễn Văn Lựu, pastor of Ba Giồng
According to the biography published by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Vietnam and the Diocese of Mỹ Tho, Peter Nguyễn Văn Lựu was born in 1812 in Gò Vấp, Gia Định Province (Công giáo và Dân tộc newspaper notes that his father was Mr. Nục, a Catholic from Bình Định who moved to Gò Vấp to trade). Sent to study at the seminary in Penang, Malaya, he returned home in 1844 to receive minor orders at Lái Thiêu before being ordained a priest, serving the parishes of Mặc Bắc, Sa Đéc, and Mỹ Tho before being transferred to Ba Giồng Parish near Mỹ Tho. Before him, Saint Philip (Philipphê) Phan Văn Minh had also ministered to this parish.
Accounts of his life all highlight the same trait, namely that he regularly visited families one by one, taught catechism, and cared for parishioners who had been imprisoned. In 1860, while ministering to the faithful in the Xoài Mút and Ba Giồng area, he was arrested. On the morning of April 7, 1861, he was beheaded at the execution ground outside the citadel of Mỹ Tho.
In Catholicism, a martyr is someone who dies for the faith and is canonized by the Church following a formal canonical inquiry. That process unfolds in two stages. The first is beatification, permitting public veneration in designated places, and Peter Lựu was beatified by Pope Pius X on May 2, 1909. The second is canonization, prescribing veneration throughout the universal Church, when Pope John Paul II canonized him on June 19, 1988 alongside 116 others as the 117 Vietnamese Martyrs. During the Jubilee Year celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Diocese of Mỹ Tho on November 27 (articles on the diocesan website record either 2009 or 2010), the diocese proclaimed him patron saint of the diocese.
To clarify the most common confusion, Ba Giồng is not associated with Father Francis (Phanxicô) Trương Bửu Diệp. That priest is associated with Tắc Sậy Parish in former Bạc Liêu, which has its own entry at Tắc Sậy Church. The two priests lived nearly a century apart, belonged to two different dioceses, and stand at different stages in the canonization process, as Saint Peter Lựu was canonized in 1988 while Father Diệp's cause for beatification is underway. Pilgrims traveling through the Mekong Delta often combine both sites in a single trip, leading to the mix-up.
A second point to note is that among the 117 Vietnamese Martyrs there are two saints named Nguyễn Văn Lựu. The one venerated at Ba Giồng is the priest Peter (Phêrô) Nguyễn Văn Lựu, martyred in 1861. The other is the lay parish leader Joseph (Giuse) Nguyễn Văn Lựu, martyred in 1854 (according to Diocese of Mỹ Tho records, in 1853 at Mặc Bắc, when soldiers surrounded the village searching for Father Peter Lựu right after his transfer to Ba Giồng, catechist Joseph Nguyễn Văn Lựu was arrested alongside Father Philip Phan Văn Minh).
IIA three-hundred-year-old parish
According to the Diocese of Mỹ Tho, Ba Giồng is the oldest surviving parish of the diocese. Around 1700 to 1702, roughly thirty Catholic families left Phú Yên aboard some twenty seagoing boats to flee religious persecution, settling along Chanh Creek before moving deeper into the sandy ridge country. According to notes by Father Hamon in the journal Les Missions Catholiques in 1882 cited by the diocesan website, the early church at Ba Giồng was burned down three times during waves of persecution. Today the parish numbers over two thousand faithful, recorded in 2019 at 2,069 parishioners in 613 households, most earning their living by rice farming and weaving baskets and hats from sedge leaves (lá bàng).
- c. 1700Parish foundedAround thirty Catholic families from Phú Yên settled along Chanh Creek, forming Ba Giồng Parish.
- 1852 or 1853Father Peter Lựu arrives at Ba GiồngHe took charge of Ba Giồng Parish. Sources record different years, as noted below the timeline.
- 1861Martyrdom of Father LựuArrested in 1860, he was beheaded outside the citadel of Mỹ Tho on the morning of April 7, 1861.
- 1872Reburial in the parish cemeteryFather Hamon, pastor of Ba Giồng, exhumed and reburied the remains of the martyred faithful from the rice field near Gò Chết Chém into the parish cemetery (Đất Thánh).
- 1997 to 2000Church rebuiltOn November 16, 1997, Coadjutor Bishop Gioan Baotixita Phạm Minh Mẫn laid the cornerstone for a new church replacing the small 24-by-6-meter lime-and-sand church adapted from a classroom in 1950. On March 16, 2000, Bishop Phaolô Bùi Văn Đọc consecrated the church.
- 2004Pilgrimage center designatedBishop Phaolô Bùi Văn Đọc designated Ba Giồng as the pilgrimage center of the Diocese of Mỹ Tho in honor of Saint Peter Lựu.
- 2011 to 2017Construction of the pilgrimage centerOn November 19, 2011, marking the 150th anniversary of his martyrdom, the cornerstone was laid. On November 24, 2017, Bishop Phêrô Nguyễn Văn Khảm inaugurated the center.
- 2023 to 2026Construction and consecration of the new churchOn May 12, 2023, the cornerstone was laid for a new two-story church dedicated to Our Lady Queen of the Vietnamese Martyrs. On June 26, 2026, Bishop Phêrô Nguyễn Văn Khảm presided over the inauguration and consecration of the new church and altar.
Several points where sources differ are noted directly below.
Year of his arrival at Ba Giồng. Some records state 1852, the biography on the websites of the Bishops' Conference and the Diocese of Mỹ Tho states spring 1853, while an article in Công giáo và Dân tộc gives the range 1849 to 1853 and notes that he ministered at Ba Giồng for eight years. The library records 1852 or 1853 without forcing a single date.
Burial place of his remains. The biography by the Bishops' Conference records that immediately after his execution, his body along with his cangue, chains, and a clay jar stained with his blood were brought by the faithful for burial at Ba Giồng. The historical account on the Diocese of Mỹ Tho website and Công giáo và Dân tộc clarifies that later on the faithful of Mỹ Tho exhumed his relics and placed them beneath the high altar inside Mỹ Tho Church, before they were transferred in 1960 to Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral.
Year of the execution of the faithful at Gò Chết Chém and commemorative dates. One article in Công giáo và Dân tộc states that 27 faithful of Ba Giồng were executed in 1862, a year after Father Lựu, whereas another article in the same newspaper gives 1861. The date Ba Giồng was designated a pilgrimage center is given as either November 21 or November 24, 2004, and the year Saint Peter Lựu was proclaimed patron of the diocese is recorded in one diocesan article as November 27, 2009 (opening of the 50th-anniversary Jubilee Year) and in another as November 27, 2010 (closing of the Jubilee Year).
IIIThe church, the pilgrimage center, and the cemetery
Ba Giồng does not feature a colossal monument perched atop a high hill. What makes this site compelling is the juxtaposition of three layers along a single sandy ridge, namely the parish church, the pilgrimage center building, and the parish cemetery (Đất Thánh) with its ancient stone graves. About two kilometers away lies Gò Chết Chém (Execution Mound).
The church consecrated in 2000 was replaced by a new two-story church begun on May 12, 2023, and consecrated on June 26, 2026, with an open ground level welcoming pilgrims and an upper level for liturgical celebrations.
A ground floor and two upper stories under a tiled roof, covering roughly 3,500 square meters and housing a chapel, a main auditorium, an exhibition room, a dining hall, and lodging for pilgrims from afar.
The burying ground of the parish, preserving ancient stone gravestones carved with crosses. In 1872, the remains of the martyred faithful were reburied here.
Located about two kilometers from the church, where the faithful of Ba Giồng were executed. Their bodies were initially buried in the rice fields over a hundred meters away before being reburied in 1872.
The Ba Giồng cemetery preserves an intriguing detail. Công giáo và Dân tộc newspaper notes stone headstones carved with crosses bearing dates from 1663 to 1664, earlier than the c. 1700 parish founding milestone recorded by the diocese. Sources do not explain this discrepancy. It is possible that Catholics were already living scattered through the area before the group from Phú Yên arrived, though the library notes this only as a possibility without drawing a conclusion.
After more than three years of construction following the cornerstone laying on May 12, 2023, the new Ba Giồng Church was completed and consecrated alongside its new altar by Bishop Phêrô Nguyễn Văn Khảm on June 26, 2026, standing in harmony with the pilgrimage center building inaugurated in 2017.
IVThe lie of the land and orientation
A clear preface is needed here. Catholicism does not teach feng shui. Older churches were typically oriented according to liturgical direction, meaning the placement of the altar and sanctuary according to liturgical norms, while the site of Ba Giồng Church is where the parish community settled three hundred years ago. What follows is the library's reading through the lens of traditional geomancy, not anything found in Church documents, offered solely as a point of comparison for readers familiar with traditional Vietnamese site reading.
First, sandy ridge terrain (đất giồng). Giồng are elevated sandy ridges standing above the surrounding rice paddies, remnants of ancient coastal beach ridges across the Mekong Delta. Traditional site reading regards such ridges as raised land (đất nổi), dry and free from flooding, where Southern Vietnamese settlers historically built houses, founded villages, and placed graves. In Sino-Vietnamese, this area was formerly called Tam Phụ, meaning three mounds, the exact counterpart of the vernacular name Ba Giồng.
Second, surrounding watercourses. The parish began along Chanh Creek, and this ridge system lies between the Vàm Cỏ Tây River and the Tiền River. In traditional land reading, a raised strip of land encircled by flowing water is terrain that gathers qi without stagnation, well suited for long-term settlement.
Third, church and cemetery sharing a single ridge. Vietnamese villagers traditionally placed their house of worship and their burial ground close together on the highest ground of the settlement, and Ba Giồng Parish follows that exact pattern, with the church, the cemetery, and the pilgrimage center standing side by side. Traditional site reading calls such a layout a place that anchors the roots (giữ gốc) of a community.
Fourth, the distant mound and the near mound. Gò Chết Chém lies about two kilometers from the church, outside the residential settlement. In traditional thought, an execution ground belonged outside the village, whereas a place of veneration belonged at its heart. The 1872 reburial bringing the martyrs' remains from the distant mound to the near ridge brought the deceased back into the circle of the living community. The library records that observation simply as a traditional reading.
VWho comes and on which occasions
A parish church follows the daily rhythm of its local parishioners. Ba Giồng carries the additional rhythm of a martyr saint, drawing groups from across the Diocese of Mỹ Tho, Ho Chi Minh City, and the Mekong Delta dioceses on dates connected with Saint Peter Lựu. In 2018, during the Jubilee Year marking the 30th anniversary of the canonization of the Vietnamese Martyrs, Ba Giồng was designated as a pilgrimage site for the Ecclesiastical Province of Saigon. The table below lists dates only, without service hours.
| Time | Occasion | Details |
|---|---|---|
| April 7 | Martyrdom of Saint Peter Lựu | His death anniversary, when parishioners and pilgrims gather for Mass at the parish where he served as pastor. |
| November 24 | Feast of the Vietnamese Martyrs | The largest annual gathering, also marking the inauguration of the pilgrimage center in 2017. Pilgrimage groups from many dioceses attend. |
| November 27 | Anniversary of diocesan patronage | Commemorating the proclamation of Saint Peter Lựu as patron saint of the Diocese of Mỹ Tho (during the 2009 to 2010 Jubilee Year). |
| Year-round | Parish pilgrimage visits | Groups from Mekong Delta dioceses and Ho Chi Minh City visit the church, pray at the center chapel, and visit the cemetery and Gò Chết Chém. |
A typical pilgrimage visit to Ba Giồng unfolds in four steps, namely attending Mass, praying in the pilgrimage center chapel, walking out to the parish cemetery to venerate the graves of the faithful, and, if time permits, visiting Gò Chết Chém. The cathedral of the diocese is Mỹ Tho Cathedral, whereas Ba Giồng is a pilgrimage sanctuary tied to a martyr saint. Those two roles belong to different ecclesiastical orders, and in the Diocese of Mỹ Tho they stand a provincial road's journey apart.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Ấp Tân Quới, xã Tân Hương (xã Tân Lý Đông cũ, huyện Châu Thành cũ, tỉnh Tiền Giang cũ), tỉnh Đồng Tháp
- Getting there
- The church is located in Tân Quới Hamlet, Tân Hương Commune (formerly Tân Lý Đông Commune, former Châu Thành District, former Tiền Giang Province), Đồng Tháp Province, near Cổ Chi Market, about sixty kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City.
- Coordinates
- 10.475, 106.3402
This is an active parish and a sanctuary honoring a martyr saint rather than a tourist attraction, so sanctuary etiquette applies, including dressing modestly, removing hats inside the church and chapel, and keeping silence during Mass. In the parish cemetery, please stay on the walkways, avoid stepping on graves, and do not touch the ancient stone headstones. To visit Gò Chết Chém, please ask for directions at the church and follow the indicated path.
Nearby places in the library
VIIContribute To This Page
Contribute photos, information or video for Ba Giong Pilgrimage Center
Góp ảnh, thông tin hoặc video cho Trung tâm hành hương Ba GiồngEveryone is welcome to enrich this page: a photo you took, a detail the page misses, a short video. Every contribution is read and answered.
Thầy Ưng Khiêm mời cộng đồng cùng làm giàu trang này. Ảnh chụp tận nơi, một chi tiết lịch sử chưa được nhắc, một đoạn video ngắn: mọi đóng góp đều được đọc và trả lời.
No community contribution yet. You could be the first. Chưa có đóng góp nào từ cộng đồng. Bạn có thể là người đầu tiên.
?Quick Questions
Whom does Ba Giồng Pilgrimage Center venerate
Ba Giồng honors Saint Peter (Phêrô) Nguyễn Văn Lựu, a priest born in 1812 in Gò Vấp who served as pastor of Ba Giồng Parish, was martyred on April 7, 1861, in Mỹ Tho, and was canonized in 1988. This site is not associated with Father Trương Bửu Diệp, who is venerated at Tắc Sậy.
Where is Ba Giồng located
In Tân Quới Hamlet, Tân Hương Commune (formerly Tân Lý Đông Commune, former Châu Thành District, former Tiền Giang Province), Đồng Tháp Province, near Cổ Chi Market, about sixty kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City. Founded around 1700, it is the oldest surviving parish of the Diocese of Mỹ Tho.
When did Saint Peter Nguyễn Văn Lựu arrive at Ba Giồng
Sources give different dates. Some records state 1852, the biography by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Vietnam and the Diocese of Mỹ Tho states spring 1853, and an article in Công giáo và Dân tộc gives the period 1849 to 1853. What is certain is that he served as pastor of Ba Giồng until his arrest in 1860 and martyrdom in 1861.
What is Gò Chết Chém at Ba Giồng
It is an earthen mound about two kilometers from Ba Giồng Church where lay faithful of the parish were executed for their faith. One article in Công giáo và Dân tộc records 27 people executed in 1862, while another records 1861. In 1872, parish priest Father Hamon reburied their remains in the parish cemetery.
What are the main pilgrimage days at Ba Giồng
The largest annual gathering is November 24, the Feast of the Vietnamese Martyrs, which also marks the 2017 inauguration of the pilgrimage center. April 7, the martyrdom date of Saint Peter Lựu, is observed as his feast day. In addition, pilgrimage groups from the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City visit throughout the year.