| Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler has been the leader of the Diocese of Phnom Penh for just about one year and in that time he has developed new programs, both of construction of buildings where the increasing numbers of Catholic faithful can pray and of formation and development of the spiritual life of the people. Looking ahead, he has initiated a three-year Pastoral Year project which will help the Cambodian Catholic people better understand and practice their faith. This program was begun with a liturgy to which all the faithful of the diocese were invited. | |
| The liturgy was held outdoors on a site at the back of the church compound used for gatherings of more than 500 people. A permanent outdoor covered stage is there and temporary tents are set up to protect the people from the sun during Bishop Olivier's liturgies which tend to be long. Here the people and the priests are gathering in preparation for the beginning of the ceremony. |  |
| The diocese of Phnom Penh has about 30 priests serving within its boundaries. They come from a variety of religious groups and many different countries. In this photograph, these priests are from the United States, Italy, India, France, and Argentina. |  |
| More than a thousand people gathered for this opening celebration. Everyone was invited and more were able to come because this was the third day of the Water Festival celebration when people were off from work. Eventually this outdoor stage and the buildings on the rear of the church property will be torn down and an actual church building will be erected here. |
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| Bishop Olivier is asking the different parish communities and individuals to pay special attention to the Gospel of Mark which will be read on all the Sundays of the coming liturgical year, starting at the end of November. To assist them, the bishop gave out small printed copies of the gospel, available in Khmer, Vietnamese, French, and English. |  |
| After the two-hour liturgy, about 500 representatives from the different parishes were invited to a simple yet nice lunch together on the church grounds before they headed back to their home villages. |  |
| Many of the villagers traveling from Catholic areas in the provinces rode in the back of trucks, a common way to travel in Cambodia. |  |