The announcement was made on the church’s website on Friday and signed by Priest Giuse Nguyen Duc Giang.
Bui Chu Church
Giang, who is head of the construction board of Bui Chu Church, wrote that after listening to concerned priests and people with goodwill towards the church, the plans to pull down the church would be postponed.
The rebuilding plan has stirred the public opposition, including architects, cultural experts and tourism managers.
A group of architects and cultural experts have sent a petition sent to the prime minister, minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism and chairman of Nam Dinh Province’s People’s Committee to stop the destruction of Bui Chu Church.
In the letter, the architects said that after a two-day examination of the church, they found only minor damage caused by rain and damp.
However, having read the plan approved by church authorities, the architects found the task would involve destroying the whole building and rebuilding it in a different shape and size, with a new wooden frame and pillars.
Many experts suggested that Bui Chu Church, the cradle of Catholicism in Vietnam, should be preserved as a tourist destination.
