Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler (middle)

UCAN- A rural parish in southern Cambodia, with only 99 members, has set up a women’s group and a new Marian grotto.

Some 200 guests, including Buddhists, attended a celebration on Aug. 8 to mark these developments in Our Lady of the Smile Parish in Chamkar Tieng village, Takeo province.

The parish was set up in 1997.

Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler, coadjutor apostolic vicar of Phnom Penh, blessed the women’s group and grotto during the celebration.

The newly formed group comprises 16 women who clean the church and also cook for students of St. Francis High School, which the parish runs, as well as visiting priests.

“We hope to be a model to other women around us,” said Moung Sopheap, 27, a women’s group leader.

The main achievements of the parish have been education for children and youths, and building good relations with the majority Buddhist people of the village, said Kol Cheang, 56, the first person in the village to become a Catholic.

He is now a leader in the parish committee.

Cheang recalled when he became a Catholic, “the people here asked me why I had to adopt the religion of the Vietnamese.”

Most Catholics in Cambodia are ethnic Vietnamese.

“But I tried to explain and show my faith through my action,” said Cheang. “I started a small prayer group in my house and we got a priest to come once a month.”

The parish’s 99 Catholics now attend monthly Mass at the church and also come here every day for prayers.

Other villagers are now also joining them for prayers, said Cheang.

The parish presently runs a kindergarten as well as the St. Francis High School, which aims to reduce the number of young people leaving the village to study and look for work, Cheang said.

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After the resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord, we are now joining
the Khmer New Year which starts from 14-16 April.

In the whole country, we got a special holiday in order to go to visit our parents, relative and to celebrate new year with family
May God bless all the trip in safe and joyful.

New Year celebration also comes with many memorize popular games, they are Choul Chhoung, Bors Angkugn, Teagn Prort and also dancing with traditional songs.

Every Catholic parish will also celebrate new year with a mass and sharing food between Catholic Christians and other people.
We also perform all those popular games.
You may can find this event at your place at the parishes as well.

Christ is risen with happiness and joyful; And now New Year is coming with all smile and laughing.
May our lord bless you all the best.

HAPPY KHMER NEW YEAR 2010

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King Norodom Sihamoni with Archbisho Salvatore Pennacchio, Bishop Schmitthaeusler Olivier, Mrg. Kike and the staff at Takeo Eyes Hospital

TAKEO— King Norodom Sihamoni has opened a new wing of the Catholic-run Takeo Eye Hospital here in southern Cambodia.
“This is a new achievement in accordance with the development strategy of the Royal Government of Cambodia,” the King said at the opening ceremony on April 6.

The building was completed on Feb. 19 with funding from various Church agencies in cooperation with the Ministry of Health and the local government.

The hospital was first opened in 1997 by Maryknoll missioners and had 42 beds. However, daily overcrowding prompted Caritas Cambodia, the local Church’s social service agency, and Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul congregation to start the expansion project.
“With the new building, we now have 67 beds, four operating theaters, where we can conduct surgery on 20 to 30 patients a day with more than four specialist doctors and 28 professional nurses,” Doctor Sarin said.

Sister Myrna Porto, project director of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, said the hospital provides the same service to poor and rich patients, but the poor get their treatment free while the rich have to pay. “In the name of God, we want to provide dignity for all people.”

In Cambodia, blindness is prevalent among people over 50. Major causes of blindness are cataracts, corneal scaring and glaucoma.
Caritas eye hospital gives hope to the poor.

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Apostrolic Nuncio (L) Mgr. Olivier (C) and H.E. Yim Chaily visit computer lap at St. Paul Institute

Takeo (Agenzia Fides) – The new St. Paul Higher Learning Institute was recently inaugurated in Takeo, 70 km south of Phnom Penh, to train young people in agricultural sciences and informatics. This is the first institute of higher education opened and managed completely by the Catholic Church in Cambodia. As the local church tells Fides, the solemn inauguration ceremony was attended by senior authorities of the Cambodian Government, including the Vice-Prime Minister, representatives from the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Agriculture, and the Apostolic Nuncio in Cambodia, Archbishop Salvatore Pennacchio.

The institute was founded and built by the Catholic Church in Cambodia, thanks to the efforts of Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler MEP, new Coadjutor Bishop of Phnom Pen, with the specific aim to promote growth and social advancement of rural youth, who do not have the financial ability to relocate to study in the capital Phnom Penh.
The Apostolic Nuncio expressed great appreciation for the work accomplished, thanking the members of the local Church and the Cambodian authorities for their cooperation. The Higher Learning Institute will offer training in agronomy and information technology, acting in partnership with the Royal University of Agriculture in Phnom Penh and the Ngee An Technological Institute of Singapore, as well as other specialized institutions.

The school accepts 190 students currently, has 24 classrooms, a large library, and a computer room equipped with 100 personal computers and wireless Internet.
“St. Paul Higher Learning Institute – a source of the local church told Fides – will offer young people a place of education, from the intellectual, human and spiritual standpoint.”
Within the Institute, there is also a small chapel, a place of meditation, prayer, and encounter with God. The chapel was consecrated and inaugurated with a Mass presided by Archbishop Pennacchio.
The Cambodian Ministry of Education thanked the Church for her efforts in training the younger generations.

Educational institutions and vocational schools are instruments through which the Catholic community in Cambodia contributes effectively to social growth and cultural development of young Cambodians, making their contribution to building a just, open, and free society characterized by respect for the dignity of the person and fundamental human rights. This is the vision that inspires commitment to education and training of various religious congregations in Cambodia. That commitment, which is expressed in the creation of new institutions across the country distinguished by expertise in education, is appreciated by the population (a largely Buddhist majority), which is now turning to Catholic schools with a greater frequency. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 13/3/2010)

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