My name is Rev. James Long Hai Do, CRM. I am a religious priest of the Congregation of the Mother of the Redeemer (CRM), in the city of Carthage, Missouri. I was born on February 10, 1976 in Saigon, Vietnam. In the early year of 1989, I escaped Vietnam by boat and stayed at a Refugee Camp in Bidong Island, Malaysia for about six months. At the end of 1989, I came to the United States and settled with my family (who had arrived before me) in Denver, Colorado.
In the summer of 1995, after graduating from Abraham Lincoln High School, I decided to join the religious order of the Congregation of the Mother of the Redeemer. I attended the minor seminary at Conception Abbey, Missouri, and graduated in June 2004. In the Fall of 2006, I began my studies at the major seminary of Notre Dame in New Orleans, Louisiana.
After graduating Notre Dame Seminary, I was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop James Van Johnston, Jr. on June 5, 2010. After becoming a priest for one year, I served at St. Agnes Cathedral in Springfield, Missouri from June 2011 to June 2014, as a parochial vicar. Then, from July 2014 to June 2017, I served at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Houston, Texas also as parochial vicar.
So, how did I get sent to Saint Ambrose in Deerfield Beach, in Florida? Believe me, I have asked myself this question, too. However, I believe that it is all God’s and the Blessed Mother’s divine plan! After finishing my assignment in Houston, Texas, I made a pilgrimage to Fatima and Lourdes to give thanksgiving. When I came back at the end of June 2017, I felt a “strong spiritual call” in my heart to come and serve in this Archdiocese. Then, after talking with Archbishop Thomas Wenski, Bishop Peter Baldacchino and Vicar General Chanel Jeanty, I was accepted!
What is my mission here at Saint Ambrose? After much prayer and reflection, an inspiring thought of Saint Mother Teresa came to my mind and heart: Give them Jesus! This will be my motto while serving at Saint Ambrose, to imitate the Blessed Mother to offer Jesus to others just as She had offered Jesus to her cousin Elizabeth (Lk 1:39-45).
May our merciful Lord Jesus and the Blessed Mother use me as their instrument so that I am able to make this new journey of my life with you as a Christian and for you as a priest. Amen!
Sincerely yours in Christ and Our Lady of Fatima,
Rev. James Long Hai Do, CRM
