By Chainarong Monthienvichienchai
CAMBODIA – The Catholic Church in Cambodia celebrated a historic milestone on Sep 6 with the episcopal ordination of Monsignor Pierre Suon Hangly as bishop and his installation as Coadjutor Vicar Apostolic of Phnom Penh.
The solemn ceremony, held at the Catholic Pastoral Center of the Phnom Penh Vicariate in Phnom Penh Thmey, drew thousands of faithful and dignitaries, marking the consecration of the first Khmer bishop since the fall of the Khmer Rouge era.
The ordination was presided over by Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler, Vicar Apostolic of Phnom Penh, with Archbishop Peter B. Wells, Apostolic Nuncio to Cambodia, and Bishop Jean-Marie Prida Inthirath of Savannakhet serving as co-consecrators.
Cardinals and bishops from Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Malaysia joined about 100 priests, many religious men and women, including missionaries, and almost 4,000 lay Catholics in a moment of profound significance for the Church in Cambodia.
“This is a very historic moment. The first Cambodian bishop since the Khmer Rouge,” Archbishop Wells told LiCAS News. “It was a beautiful event, filled with hope and renewal.”
Remembering sufferings
In his homily, Bishop Schmitthaeusler recalled the tragic history of the Church in Cambodia, particularly the ordination of Bishop Joseph Chhmar Salas in April 1975, just days before the Khmer Rouge seized Phnom Penh.
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