The Apostolic Vicariate of Phnom Penh (french: Vicariat apostolique de Phnom-Penh) is a territorial subdivision of the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Church in

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...

. It is immediately subject to the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

and it is presided over by Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler M.E.P. since 10 October 2010. Chapelle interne Phnom penh

The vicariate covers an area of 31,946 km² of southern Cambodia, including

Phnom Penh Phnom Penh (; km, ភ្នំពេញ, ) is the capital and most populous city of Cambodia. It has been the national capital since the French protectorate of Cambodia and has grown to become the nation's primate city and its economic, indus ...

and other main urban areas such as Kep, Sihanoukville, Kandal, Takéo,

Kampot Kampot may refer to: *Kampot (city), a city in southern Cambodia *Kampot, an alternative spelling of the Slavic drink Kompot *Kampot Province, province of Cambodia * Kampot Municipality, a municipality in Cambodia * Kampot Airport, an airport in Ca ...

, Kampong Speu and Koh Kong provinces. As of 2002, of the 4.4 million citizens living in the area of this prefecture, 13,250 were members of the Catholic Church. The vicariate is subdivided into 7 pastoral centers, and has 26 priests.

History

The Vicariate Apostolic of Cambodia was erected on 30 August 1850. Since 1860 it was responsible for the provinces Phsar Dek,

Châu Đốc Châu Đốc is a city in An Giang Province, bordering Cambodia, in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. As of 2013, the city had a population of 157,298, and cover an area of . The city is located by the Hậu River (a branch of the Mekong Rive ...

and Sóc Trăng of lower Cambodia, now part of

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...

. In 1924, it was renamed as Vicariate Apostolic of Phnom Penh. On 20 September 1955, the vicariate became responsible for all of Cambodia. In 1968, the vicariate was split into three parts, with the

Apostolic Prefecture of Battambang The Apostolic Prefecture of Battambang is a territorial subdivision of the Roman Catholic Church in Cambodia. The prefecture covers an area of 80,430 km² of north-western Cambodia, covering the provinces of Banteay Meanchey, Battambang, K ...

responsible for the north west and the

Apostolic Prefecture of Kompong Cham The Apostolic Prefecture of Kampong Cham is a territorial subdivision of the Roman Catholic Church in Cambodia. The prefecture covers an area of 66,347 km2 of eastern Cambodia, covering the provinces of Kampong Cham, Kratié, Stung Tren ...

for the north east of the country. During the rule of the

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge (; ; km, ខ្មែរក្រហម, ; ) is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK) and by extension to the regime through which the CPK ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979 ...

, all religious activities were forbidden, and many Catholics were persecuted, especially priests and other ordinaries. Also many Vietnamese Catholics, the majority of Catholics in Cambodia, were either executed or expelled from the country. Most churches were also destroyed. The number of Catholics in the area of the vicariate fell from about 30,000 to less than 10,000. In 1989, the new constitution of Cambodia allowed freedom of religion once again, although the preaching of Christianity was still forbidden by the

Council of Ministers A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...

. In March 1990, the Cambodian government gave its approval for a group of Catholics to celebrate

Easter Sunday Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the ''Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel P ...

, the first public worship in Cambodia in 15 years. On 24 December 2009 the French priest Olivier Schmitthaeusler,

M.E.P. The Society of Foreign Missions of Paris (french: Société des Missions Etrangères de Paris, short M.E.P.) is a Roman Catholic missionary organization. It is not a religious institute, but an organization of secular priests and lay persons ...

was named

Coadjutor The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadj ...

Vicar Apostolic of Phnom-Penh and

Titular Bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox a ...

of Catabum Castra. He succeeded to bishop Destombes on 1 October 2010. On 1 May 2015 the Cambodian Catholic Church opened an official diocesan inquiry for the martyrs in Tangkok, Kampong Thom Province, where Bishop Joseph Chhmar Salas died during the

regime in 1977. The inquiry looks after the presumed martyrdom of at least 34 persons executed or let to die from April 1975 to 1978.

Bishops

Ordinaries

* Jean-Claude Miche,

: 1850 – 1869 (resigned) * Marie-Laurent-François-Xavier Cordier,

: 18 June 1882 – 14 August 1895 (died) * Jean-Baptiste Grosgeorge,

28 January 1896 – 1 March 1902 (died) * Jean-Claude Bouchut,

: 23 July 1902 – 17 December 1928 (died) * Valentin Herrgott,

17 December 1928 – 23 March 1936 (died) * Jean-Baptiste-Maximilien Chabalier,

: 2 December 1937 – 11 June 1955 (died) * Gustave-André-Ferdinand Raballand,

: 29 February 1956 – April 1962 (resigned) *

Yves Ramousse Yves Ramousse (23 February 1928 – 25 February 2021, in Montauban) was a French Catholic bishop, member of the Paris Foreign Missions Society (MEP) and Vicar Apostolic Emeritus of Phnom Penh in Cambodia since 2001. Biography Yves Ramousse ...

: 12 November 1962 – 1976 (resigned) * Joseph Chhmar Salas: 30 April 1976 – September 1977 (killed) *

: 25 July 1992 – 14 April 2001 (resigned) *

Emile Destombes Emile Jean Marie Henri Joseph Destombe (15 August 1935 – 28 January 2016) was a French Roman Catholic bishop. He was a member of the Société des Missions Étrangères de Paris (Paris Mission Society). Biography Born in Roncq, France, Em ...

: 14 April 2001 – 1 October 2010 (resigned) * Olivier Schmitthaeusler,

: 1 October 2010

Coadjutor Vicars Apostolic

* Émile Jean Marie Henri Joseph Destombes, M.E.P. (1997–2001) * Olivier Michel Marie Schmitthaeusler, M.E.P. (2009–2010)

References

catholic-hierarchy

External links