Source: Agenzia Fides – MIL OSI
Prefettura Aoostolica Kompong Cham
Kompong Cham (Agenzia Fides) – The Keo Seima area, in the province of Mondulkiri, in eastern Cambodia, is known as a “wildlife sanctuary,” as it is a natural forest reserve that extends over 290,000 hectares. An ideal destination for ecological turism, this province is home to the so-called “mountain tribes” (the “montagnards”), mostly indigenous Bunong people, who make up 80% of the local population of Mondulkiri.Now, these communities have another kind of “sanctuary,” a “house of God”: a new brick church dedicated to St. Joseph, inaugurated a few days ago by Monsignor Pierre Hangly Suon, former Apostolic Prefect of Kompong Cham and current Apostolic Coadjutor Vicar of Phnom Penh. The church, built thanks to donations collected in Cambodia and abroad, has a capacity for more than 100 people and was built in the village of Sre Khtum in about a year, with the laying of the foundation stone in 2024 (see Fides, 30/6/2024).Evangelization in Mondulkiri province has developed over the past ten years, with the first Bunong natives opting for baptism in 2009. “Currently, there are about 40 Catholic families in Ko Seima, all belonging to the Bunong minority,” reports Father Jean Marie Vianney Borei Phan, priest responsible for the Mondulkiri communities. “Priests, religious, and lay people have all participated in proclaiming the Gospel in this province; now we are reaping the first fruits: let us give thanks to God,” he said.During the Eucharist of consecration and inauguration of the church, before more than 400 faithful from throughout the Apostolic Prefecture, Monsignor Pierre Hangly Suon recalled: “God makes justice and praise grow in the ‘land of Israel,’ which today is the land of Ko Seima.” He added: “In this holy place, our Christian brothers and sisters and the inhabitants of the surrounding villages will be able to gather to pray, hear the word of God, receive the sacraments, and help the Kingdom of God to grow.” He concluded by saying: “This church will be a place of continuing education in the faith, a sanctuary of hope, where people can know and love Jesus.”The ceremony also included the blessing of the bell, whose ringing will remind the surrounding inhabitants that the liturgy is being celebrated in the church: its sound will become a constant proclamation of faith, hope, and charity in the sanctuary of Keo Seima. (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 22/7/2025)
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