Phnom Penh Diocesan Gathering

30 March 2008

The Christian presence in Cambodia is quite small. There are about 20,000 Catholics in the country now, 15,000 of them Vietnamese who mostly live in villages along the Mekong River.  The Diocese of Phnom Penh today had a gathering of all the Catholics in the city. Masses were canceled in the parishes and all the congretations from the various towns were invited to the grounds of the Don Bosco Boys Technical School in Phnom Penh Thmey. 3,500 persons were expected for the gathering which began at 8:30 in the morning and continued until 3:30 in the afternoon.
Gathering of Catholics at Don Bosco School
 The Don Bosco School had set up extra tents beyond their large auditorium area, and most of the seats were full. Probably close to the expected 3,500 people attended.
Dancers leading the entrance procession Girls with peacock feather headdresses led the entrance procession with a graceful dance.
Bishop Destombes at the altar
 Bishop Emile Destombes and a large number of the priests of the diocese concelebrated the liturgy.
More dancers during the liturgy
 Every Cambodian celebration, civil or religious, has traditional Cambodian dancers. These young women were dancing during the procession with the bread and wine to the altar for mass.
Displays from the different diocesan organizations
 All the organizations in the diocese were asked to set up a display to inform all the those attending what is happening in the diocese and in the country through the work of the church.
Eating lunch
 When mass was over, there was a rush to the 30 food stations to pick up lunch bags which contained beef curry, a baguette, water, a tangerine, and cookies.
The cooking tent
 40 parishioners from the various parishes worked all night to prepare the food for the gathering. They cooked 1,300 pounds of beef for the curry in this tent!
Parish youth group performing
 In the early afternoon, various groups, such as the youth group from one parish, performed songs and skits and dances to entertain the crowd.
Games for the young children
 For the younger children, youth groups organized games such as this balloon-stomping game.

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