Marcel Van - The Triumph of Love by Catherine St-Pierre

Marcel Van (1928-1959). Exposed to harassment and abuse from his early childhood, Van, a young Vietnamese, was all the same haunted by a desire for sanctity and the priesthood. At his Communion on Christmas Eve, 1940, the mysterious meaning of suffering was revealed to him. He confided: "My soul was transformed in an instant. I was no longer afraid of suffering... God gave me a mission: to change suffering into joy." Soon "Little Therese" of Lisieux made herself known to the one she affectionately called "my little brother." From day to day she taught him the secrets of spiritual childhood and the love of God. Van eventually became a Redemptorist Lay Brother, and from that time on, his love for God and neighbour seemed to know no bounds. Arrested and imprisoned by the Communists, he died of exhaustion in a concentration camp, his soul nonetheless overflowing with joy, on July 10, 1959. "I am the victim of Love, and Love is all my happiness: an indestructible happiness..." Illustrated.