Whenever Fr. Linh Hoang, OFM, returns to his family, his mother greets him with a simple question: “Did you eat yet?”
It happens even when he’s just returned from a big meal. But in the question is a deeper meaning.
Fr. Linh, Vietnamese-born and raised largely in Kansas, notes that the greeting, found commonly in various forms in Asian languages, is a way of saying “I love you,” a shorthand that indicates warmth and concern.
Fr. Linh, a professor of religious studies at Siena College near Albany, New York, says that little nugget says much about Asian cultures. In a talk he gave during the Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis in July, Asian Catholics make the connection between the Eucharistic food and the central part that meals provide in various cultures.
It is something for the Church to keep in mind as it relates to an increasing Asian population in the United States.
“It is an indication of a way of saying I love you and I care for you,” says Fr. Linh. For Christians imbued with a devotion to the Eucharist, the connection between food and love is apparent. Jesus, he says, formed the Eucharistic meal with the ingredients – bread and wine – which were handily available in his culture. For the early Christians, meat was often unavailable and carried the stigma of having been offered to pagan gods. Wine at the time was a safe alternative to water, which was hard to find in drinkable form.
“He welcomed his followers to share a meal with him,” says Fr. Linh about Jesus’ teaching on the Eucharist.
Asian Americans catch the connection because it is integral to their cultures. For Pacific Islanders, a root plant is offered in hospitality and greeting. Asians with a history in the United States have created a “fusion” cuisine, through examples such as chop suey and California rolls, begun in North America and now part of the cooking scene on the Asian continent.
Fr. Linh’s theological insights grow out of his own experience, added to his academic achievements. He earned a doctorate in historical theology from Fordham University and served as department chair at Siena, a college founded by the Franciscans. He’s come a long way from a life with rocky beginnings. At the age of four, he left Vietnam with his family in 1975, as the country was about to be taken over by Communists at the end of the long war. His family was among the original boat people, landing for short times in the Philippines, Guam, and Hawaii, until eventually being sponsored and settling in the small prairie town of Lebo, Kansas.
There they were the only racial minority and one of a few Catholic families. To get to Mass the family traveled each Sunday for a half hour to the nearest Catholic parish. When a Vietnamese community settled in Wichita, two hours away, the family made a connection to a grocery store that sold Vietnamese food products. The family would make regular visits, connecting to their home culture.
The young Linh learned English via television and exposure to public school, while speaking Vietnamese at home. When he has returned to Vietnam, even though he is immersed in the culture and language, he is still referred to as foreign. He knows what it’s like to experience cultural tensions, and it’s important for the Church in the United States to be aware of the struggles of immigrant life as it ministers to the Asian community, he told the Eucharistic Congress.
Fr. Linh has served as a consultant for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Office for Cultural Diversity, In that role, he has written extensively on the history and traditions of Asian and Pacific Islander communities in the United States. He has assisted the bishops in understanding the role of colonialism, generational difficulties, and leadership issues, among others. He assisted the bishops in developing a pastoral plan for Asian ministry. While teaching at Siena, he has assisted in ministry to the Vietnamese community in Albany.
He brought his intensive pastoral experience to the Eucharistic Congress, which brought together tens of thousands of U.S. Catholics in celebrating the Eucharist and Catholic heritage. It was a national event that galvanized many. Fr. Linh’s contribution was to remind the church to continue to create environments that are welcoming to immigrants, particularly those from Asia. Starting with “did you eat yet?” might be a good start.