Ep14 BONUS: Another Voice of Faith

Title: Languaging in Hampton RoadsEpisode 14 - Bonus : A Vietnamese Voice of Faith Hosts: Jill Winkowski and Prue SalaskyDate: March 25, 2025Length: 18:13Publication Frequency: Occasional (bonus)In this Bonus episode, we talk to Trung Phan, a pastor at Vietnamese Hope Baptist Church in Annandale, Va. Phan is the youngest of a trio of Vietnamese brothers who lead churches affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention in northern Virginia; all offer services in their native Vietnamese. Like Phan, most of his congregants come from Buddhist backgrounds.This interview is an addendum to Episode 14: Voices of Faith in Hampton Roads, which featured Vietnamese, Korean and Chinese pastors talking about the use of their respective native language in worship services. Phan falls outside our geographic area of Hampton Roads in SE Virginia, but his sentiments echo theirs. He also emphasizes the importance of language in identity and stability for young people. His experience ties in to languagingHR Episode 9: What it Takes to Raise Bilingual Children; in that episode we spoke to multiple immigrants in Hampton Roads about their commitment to having their children learn their native language, its rewards and challenges. Phan, who was exposed to both Buddhist and Christian traditions in childhood, came with his family to the U.S. from the Saigon region in S. Vietnam in 1991 when he was 17. He completed high school and went to night school for IT, a career he has pursued for 20 years. He was called to the ministry in 2005 and attended seminary in Kentucky. His congregation numbers about 80 people, which swells to 150 on special occasions, such as the New Year. He describes himself as a “bridge” between the first generation of older non-English speakers and his American-born children’s generation of English-only speakers.Send your feedback and questions to [email protected]. Don’t forget to ‘like’, ‘follow’, ‘review,’ or ‘subscribe’ to languagingHR so that you never miss an episode (or a bonus episode). It’s FREE to do so and it helps others find us. THANK YOU!