Francois-Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan

François-Xavier Nguyễn Văn Thuận was a Vietnamese Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Born in 1928 in Huế, Vietnam, he was a nephew of South Vietnam's first president, Ngô Đình Diệm. Ordained as a priest in 1953, he became the bishop of Nha Trang in 1967 and was appointed coadjutor archbishop of Saigon just days before the fall of Saigon in 1975. He was imprisoned by the Communist government for thirteen years, nine of which were spent in solitary confinement. After his release, he was prevented from returning to his diocese and lived in exile. In 1998, he was appointed President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and was created a cardinal in 2001. He passed away in 2002 in Rome, Italy, and is remembered for his deep spirituality and his writings, particularly 'The Road of Hope', a collection of spiritual exercises written while he was in prison.