UCAN- The Church in Cambodia says its first ever faith formation program for youngsters during the extended school break was a great success.

“It was important for the Church to teach kids how to live as Catholics,” said Father Nget Viney, the pastor of Kompong Thom in Battambang apostolic prefecture.

Around 230 children 7-18 year old joined the month-long program which ran July 29 to Aug. 21 in Kompong Rothe and Kompong Kor parishes.

Attendance during term-time Sunday catechism classes was not that good, said Father Viney. Sometimes youths came, sometimes they didn’t, hence the need for this program during the long school vacation, he said.

The formation program ran from 7:30am to 11:30am Monday through Saturday. The kids, including several non-Catholics, learned about Jesus’ life by watching movies, Bible reflection, and praying together.

Those who lived far away from the two parish churches stayed in the church compounds to save them traveling every day.

We were surprised so many turned up since the school vacation is a busy time for the children and their parents, Father Viney said. Many children have to help in the rice fields, so “we had to ask permission from their families to let them come and attend.”

“It was an enjoyable experience despite the church not having enough teaching materials,” said student, That Sreymom.

“However the teachers did their best and were good role models for us,” he said.

It was good so many parents let their children come, said Nouet Diet, a catechism teacher. “The example we adults set, especially parents, is very important for faith formation in children.”

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Peace dancing performed by a group from Ta Hen Parish

UCAN- The Cambodian government should sign the Convention on Cluster Munitions as these devices continue to kill people, say participants at an event marking the convention becoming international law.

“I want our world free from cluster bombs,” said Youen Sam En from Kratie province in northeastern Cambodia. “All governments should sign this convention, especially countries that produce” these devices, he said.

Sam En, who lost his arms and eyes in 2004 to a cluster bomblet, was one of hundreds who gathered at the Jesuit Refugee Service, Cambodia center in Siem Reap for the Aug. 2 event.

Participants, who included Buddhist monks, NGO representatives, cluster bomb and landmine victims, were celebrating the convention becoming international law the day before.

The convention prohibits all use, stockpiling, production and transfer of cluster munitions. Cambodia is not among the 108 countries that have signed this convention. Of those that have signed, 38 have ratified it.

The Cambodian government should sign the convention, said Buddhist monk Venerable Loun Sovath.

After decades of civil war, Cambodia still has many landmines and other unexploded ordnance that continue to kill people daily, he said.

The Catholic Church has been very active in the campaign to ban cluster bombs, said Monsignor Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzales, apostolic prefect of Battambang. “I hope Cambodia will sign [the convention] in the future.”

He said the convention becoming international law is “a step toward peace-building.”

Event coordinator Sister Denise Coghlan said she will continue to campaign for Cambodia to sign the convention.

She will do this with the help of the Cambodian Red Cross and also lobby for it at the convention’s First Meeting of States Parties in Vientiane Nov. 8-14, she said.

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UCAN- The many Cambodians dying daily from unexploded ordnance is one reason why the country faces development problems, says a Buddhist monk.

Religious and civic leaders must fight for a universal adherence to the UN Mine Ban Treaty, which came into force in 1999, says Venerable Vy Sovechea.

Leaders must also work toward supporting landmine survivors and the clearing of unexploded ordnance, said the monk at a July 23 gathering in Samlot, a district in western Cambodia heavily affected by landmines due to past civil war

Public pressure on governments to ban and destroy landmines is crucial to their eradication, he told the 500 people at the event, which aimed to spread awareness of the dangers of unexploded ordnance.

People disabled by landmines were among those present at the gathering, which saw the participation of NGOs such as the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS),  Buddhist monks, teachers, students, police and social activists.

Cambodia is one of 156 countries that ratified the Mine Ban Treaty, which came into force on March 1, 1999.

However, Cambodians still continue to be affected by these devices. From 2007 to June 2010, 1,025 people were reported killed or injured by unexploded ordnance.

The recent gathering allowed victims to share their thoughts on what has been accomplished as well as the challenges ahead, said JRS official, Kosal Sang.

JRS has been involved in landmine awareness activities since 1994 “and today we are working with other partners … to eradicate the danger from these killing devices,” said Sang, who is also Cambodian representative to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

In order to integrate victims into society, JRS has organized vocational training programs, wheelchair production and non-formal education services, said Sang.

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Monsignor Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzales at a celebration marking the 10th anniversary of his leadership of Battambang apostolic prefecture

UCAN- Monsignor Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzales recently celebrated his 10th anniversary as head of the Battambang apostolic prefecture.

However, even before his installation, he had been working with Cambodians, particularly those with disabilities, as early as 1985 through the Jesuit Refugee Service in Thailand.

The Spanish-born Jesuit priest, in an interview, speaks about the needs of the 5,000 Catholics in his Church territory, which covers nine provinces in western Cambodia, as well as the Church’s main priorities here.

Q: How has the church in Battambang progressed over the past 10 years?

A: The Church has developed a lot. We have a lot of activities to improve the lives of villagers, such as building primary schools, supporting children in their studies and serving poor sick people. All these because of Catholics’ involvement in society. Also many priests and nuns from various congregations and societies work with us.

Q: What are your top priorities?

A: I saw that people needed education, so education is our priority. We focus on literacy and general education from kindergarten to primary level for poor children. At least they can read and count and they know how to have good relations with other people in society.

At present, we support youths for their high-school and university studies. A few of them have the chance to go abroad for leadership courses.

In our efforts to promote education, we also promote Khmer traditional dance because we realize the value of Khmer culture. Young people, including Catholics, who love their own country must love its arts.

Another priority is catechism. Every year, we have had about 100 adult baptisms. This year we have about 200. We lack catechists even though we have a lot of catechism materials.

Catechism is not only teaching [a subject] like in school. Since a few years ago, we have been organizing camps, lasting a few days, every six months for our catechists. I think this is not enough.

Q: What are you doing to improve on this?

A: We want to set up a school to give professional training to catechists. But the problem is we cannot afford to pay catechists the same rates as professional teachers. They cannot live on being catechists alone.

On the other hand, we have lot of young people who work with us. They like to learn skills other than teaching catechism. They are very much involved in the Church until they set up a family.

My other plan is to have married Catholics actively involved in the Church.

The lack of funds has also limited our activities. Some of our programs are possible due to overseas funding. Local Catholics are mostly farmers who earn very little.

Besides these issues, we need inclusive development among Catholics to help them combat poverty.

When we talk about development, it has to include participation from marginalized people such as widows, orphans, children with disabilities and people living with HIV. We have to motivate them to be involved in the Church as much as they possibly can. We keep them in mind.

Q: What do you do to support these marginalized people?

A: We have a learning center for children with disabilities, a sewing program for women and a health-care center for poor, sick people. We support orphans and poor children in attending school, and build schools and hostels.

We also have poor families working on Church-owned rice fields. This helps to stop them from going across the border to look for work. For people who come out of prison, we give them work.

In all these activities, I would say we are so far 50 percent successful.

Q: Is the Church doing something about environmental issues and climate change?

A: We have seen a lot of problems resulting from climate change. In the last three years, we have had a campaign to educate people about the environment. We plant trees, clean our villages and churches, and keep the garbage in the right places.

In the rice fields, we focus on how to store water for longer use. Our partners such as Caritas Cambodia hold short courses on how to deal with natural disasters.

We not only speak about the physical environment but also build peace in the social environment – we encourage people to listen and talk to each other.

Q: What further plans do you have for this prefecture?

A: We have to continue to improve our work in education. We also ought to do more in the field of interreligious dialogue. We plan to hold common prayers with Buddhists and Muslims.

At present, we have good relations with Buddhist monks but we don’t have any joint actions yet. This is what we will do.

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Catholics celebrate the 10th year of Monsignor Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzales’ leadership of Battambang apostolic prefecture

UCAN- A Church leader in Cambodia has urged his flock to serve the poor and visit prisoners in order to build up the Church.

“Share food with the hungry, share clothes with the poor, visit sick people and prisoners, and welcome foreigners,” Monsignor Enrique (Kike) Figaredo Alvargonzales told about 1,000 Catholics in Battambang on July 4.

They were attending a celebration to mark the 10th year of Monsignor Figaredo’s leadership of Battambang apostolic prefecture.

“To build our Church, we do not only depend on priests or sisters,” the 50-year-old Spanish Jesuit told the people, some of them in wheelchairs.

The missioner has headed the Cambodian Church jurisdiction since July 2, 2000 and Catholics say they appreciate the work he has done.

The local Church has developed its social services and reached out to various communities under Monsignor Figaredo, said Dum Brachgna, a lay Church woman leader. “I thank God so much for him.”

Monsignor Figaredo has worked with Cambodian people, particularly the disabled, since 1985, beginning with the Jesuit Refugee Service in Thailand.

Battambang apostolic prefecture, one of three Church jurisdictions in the country, has about 5,000 Catholics in nine provinces in western Cambodia.

Bishop Emile Destombes, apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh, and Monsignor Antonysamy Susairaj, apostolic prefect of Kompong Cham, also attended the celebration in Battambang.

By Keo Kagnha, Battambang

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A student of Don Bosco School

BATTAMBANG: 9 June 2010 — June 7, 2010 was a day of celebration and thanksgiving at Andaung Chenhh village.  Bishop Kike Figaredo SJ, Apostolic Prefect of Battambang, Cambodia,  came to bless the classrooms in the presence of 250  teachers and students in the morning.

Andaung Chenh is a village of 700 families where Don Bosco Literacy School is situated. The Salesian presence started out there in 1999 for children of workers in the brick factories and paddy fields. Classes were taught in classrooms under the shade of big trees and a zinc-roofed building. Don Bosco’s concern and commitment for equal opportunities attracted Salesian friends and kind donors from the Netherlands who believe that school is the place for children and not brick factories or paddy fields. They assisted in the construction of a two-storey building of twelve classrooms.

Challenged by the words of the Apostolic Prefect, the teachers met in the afternoon for a 3-hour session to reflect on the rationale of the centre: building a community one person at a time where the child’s journey begins here and now; a journey of excellence.

The centre’s identity statement was also explained by Fr. Leo Ochoa SDB, “We build the Don Bosco Environment, home and family, wat (temple) and playground, where F.I.S.H is lived and shared, or in other words, F for Friendliness, I for Integrity, S for Solidarity and H for Harmony”. The day ended with a family supper of togetherness and cheerfulness.

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Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio conducting the baptisms

TA OM, Cambodia (UCAN) — A Catholic community established 130 years ago in western Cambodia but destroyed during the civil war and Khmer Rouge rule has been brought back to life.

Twenty-eight villagers were baptized last Easter, marking the re-establishment of a Catholic community in Ta Om village in Banteay Meanchey province.

The Church has for a decade been actively involved in development work in the village, including building a public primary school and embarking on literacy courses and hygiene and sanitation projects.

“Ta Om is a symbol of the Resurrection of God. In the people’s hard and painful experience of war and persecution, God has stood beside them … The God of life blesses those who seek him in this community, reborn from ashes,” said Monsignor Enrique Figaredo, apostolic prefect of Battambang, at the April 4 event.

About 800 people from parishes around the area gathered inside the village’s 130-year-old Neo-Gothic-style church. Although its walls have been repainted, they still bear bullet marks after Khmer Rouge soldiers tried to destroy it in the 1970s.

Twenty adults and eight children were baptized in a Khmer liturgy that included Cambodian classical dances and singing by a youth group. Monsignor Figaredo and Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio, the Bangkok-based apostolic nuncio to Cambodia, led the celebration.

“Live your faith by being witnesses of new life and God’s love,” Archbishop Pennacchio told the new Christians.

The Catholic church building in Ta Om Village

According to local Church sources, in 1881 a Catholic community was established in the village of predominantly ethnic Vietnamese fishermen, boat makers and timber merchants.

Later, the Providence Sisters of Portieux opened a primary school and health clinic here.

In the civil war of the 1960s and 1970s, the Vietnamese were driven out of the village.

Former villagers recall the past

Among those at the Easter event were former villagers.

A woman from Battambang said with tears in her eyes, “I am so overjoyed to see the old church still standing. This is where we used to pray. My brother used to be the church bell ringer.”

A young man said, “My father was a catechist here,” while an old man shared: “I was born here. I am eager to go around to see my former friends.”

In a small ceremony that followed the baptisms, local government officials thanked the Catholic Church for its developmental projects in the village.

Archbishop Pennacchio inaugurated a village library, presided at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Pope Benedict XVI Education and Pastoral Center, and blessed one of 15 wells that the Church built.

Church development work here was initiated in 2001, after news reached Monsignor Figaredo that Ta Om villagers were willing to welcome Catholic involvement in development.

The congregation during the Easter celebrations

After several visits to the village and discussions with local leaders, Jesuit Father Heri Bratasudarma, Siem Reap parish priest, started small development projects. These included rebuilding a primary school and starting literacy courses and hygiene and sanitation projects.

Later, the old church building was returned to the Church and some people requested catechism classes.

As Monsignor Figaredo put it: “With the baptism of first Christians after [the community’s] obliteration 40 years ago, Ta Om community comes to life again!”

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Episcopal installation Bishop Olivier accompaned by three bishops and the Catholic people at the martyr land for mass in Tang Kor, Apostolic of Battambang

TAING KOK, Cambodia (UCAN) — The day after his episcopal ordination and installation as coadjutor apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh, Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler traveled three hours to a village to draw strength from the “Land of Martyrs.”

“For me, martyrs are the Church’s strength and an example for new Catholics to continue the evangelization mission,” he told some 300 Catholics from across the country who gathered for his first Mass after his installation. The March 21 Mass was held in Taing Kok village, Kompong Thom province.

“This place is very special to me. This is the starting point of my task as a bishop, to get inspiration from the faith of the martyrs of the Cambodian Church and to show that we are part of the history of Cambodia.”

It was in Taing Kok that Bishop Joseph Salas, who was apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh and the first and so far only Cambodian-born bishop, died in 1977 while doing hard labor under the Khmer Rouge. The small village, where many other Catholics including priests also perished, has become a place of pilgrimage.

“Though the Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot killed the Church in the 1970s, the faith of Catholics did not die,” Bishop Schmitthaeusler asserted.

He recalled the words the father of Father Paul Tep Im Sotha, the former prefect of Battambang who was also killed by the Khmer Rouge in 1975, said to the communist officials: “You can take everything from me but not my faith in God, which is my strength.”

Moung Ros, 30, a seminarian said, “I think the bishop wanted to express his intention to be a witness, like the martyrs.”

All bishops, priests and Catholic people are praying infront of the martyr cross in Taing Kor

He hoped the new bishop will develop the church develop and introduce new faces because “he is young and strong.”

“He has prepared himself to serve the Church. On his ordination day, he told us that he wanted to say ‘Our Nation, Our Country and Our Friends;’ this means that his heart is that of a Cambodian. He loves Cambodia.”

After the ceremony, Bishop Schmitthaeusler went into a straw house that was once home to Bishop Salas.

Yu Prakot, a sister of the late bishop, said she “was very excited about the new bishop coming here to honor the martyrs and to serve the church in Cambodia”.

Paris Foreign Mission Bishop Schmitthaeusler, 39, was ordained and installed apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh on March 20 at Don Bosco Technical School in Phnom Penh.

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Landmine victims and people with disabilities celebrating the international milestone

BATTAMBANG, Cambodia(UCAN)— The Catholic Church in Battambang, western Cambodia, recently celebrated a milestone of an international agreement banning the use of cluster bombs.

On Feb. 16, Burkina Faso and Moldova became the latest countries to ratify the Convention on Cluster Munitions, bringing the total number of ratifications to 30. This would allow the treaty to become binding international law, coming into force on Aug. 1, according to Cluster Munition Coalition.

The convention bans the use, production and transfer of cluster munitions, sets strict deadlines for stockpile destruction and clearance of contaminated land, and obliges states to support survivors and affected communities.

In Battambang, more than 100 Church people, along with those with disabilities and landmine victims, gathered at the Arrupe Welcome Centre to celebrate the international milestone.

They wrote messages of peace and hope on 106 paper doves, and released them on balloons as a sign of solidarity with people who continue to suffer the effects of cluster bombs in various parts of the world.

Besides the 30 ratifications, 106 countries have so far signed the convention since it was opened for signatures in Oslo in 2008. Cambodia is not among them.

Arrupe Welcome Centre is home to 30 children with disabilities caused mainly by landmine accidents and polio.

A Battambang Church official said, “From our little corner in Cambodia, we will continue to hope and work for the day that war will be a thing of the past and that the future will only bring peace.”

Up to 6 million unexploded weapons including cluster bombs and landmines remain in Cambodia after more than three decades of conflict, according to various estimates. U.S. forces are believed to have carried out more than 17,000 cluster-munitions strikes in Cambodia during the Vietnam War from 1969 to 1973.

Cluster bombs dropped from aircraft, delivered in rockets or shot from artillery release numerous small explosives over a large area. Many of these fail to explode on impact and remain a fatal threat long after a conflict ends.

Meanwhile, the first international meeting of parties to the ratification of the Convention on Cluster Munitions has been scheduled this November in Laos, the country most heavily contaminated by cluster munitions.

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Being at the centre of communication in the diocese, the parish serves as a hospitality centre for all the sick from the villages, the point of gathering for all meetings of various diocesan committees, and youth synods.
A Parish Social Committee is organized to look into the needs of the people in the neighbourhood, without prejudice about any person’s religion:  care of the sick, production of rice to share to those who are hungry during lean months, support of children and youth who have no means of going to school, visits to the elderly in their homes, support for families who are in bereavement, care of the elderly and the children, and many other works.

Youth activities are carried out:  vocation groups, catechism classes, youth synods, retreats and recollections and Catechism lectures.  We are hoping that in time, our youth will be become better persons and become good leaders.

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