Saint John-Louis Bonnard

Also known as

• Giovanni Ludovico Bonnard

Memorial

• 1 May
• 24 November as one of the Martyrs of Vietnam

Profile

Studied at seminaries in Aix and Lyons. Ordained in 1848. Missionary priest with the Paris Society of Foreign Missions, assigned to Hong Kong. Re-assigned to Annam, Indo-China (modern Vietnam) in May 1850, working in the districts of Kebang and Ketrinh. Arrested at Boasujan in 1852 for the crime of being a missionary and baptizing children. Imprisoned and tried at Nadinh. Martyred with Saint Augustine Schoffler.

Born

• 1 March 1824 at Saint Christot-en-Jarret, Loire, France

Died

• beheaded on 1 May 1852 at Tonkin, Indo-China (modern Vietnam)
• body thrown into the river, but immediately recovered by local Christians
• interred in the college of Vinhtri
• his blood-covered garments, links of his chains, his hair and his beard were kept by heathen soldiers and sold to Christians

Venerated

• 2 July 1899 by Pope Leo XIII (decree of martyrdom)

Beatified

• 27 May 1900 by Pope Leo XIII

Canonized

• 19 June 1988 by Pope John Paul II

Additional Information

• Book of Saints, by the Monks of Ramsgate
• Institute of Saint Clement I Pope and Martyr
• Katherine Rabenstein
• Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints

MLA Citation

• “Saint John-Louis Bonnard“. Saints.SQPN.com. 30 April 2013. Web. 26 May 2013. <>