Paul Tep Im Sotha
Paul Tep Im Sotha Samath (1934–May 1975)[1][2] was a Cambodian Roman Catholic priest and the first apostolic prefect of Battambang.[3] He was the second native Cambodian to be ordained a priest, after Simon Chhem Yen, in 1959.[1]
Paul Tep Im Sotha | |
---|---|
Apostolic Prefect of Battambang | |
Church | Roman Catholic Church |
Province | Battambang |
See | Battambang |
In office | 1968—1975 |
Successor | Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzalez |
Orders | |
Ordination | 1959 |
Consecration | September 26, 1968 |
Personal details | |
Born | 1934 |
Died | May 1975 Battambang Province, Cambodia |
Tep Im was raised by his mother to be a Catholic, and at the young age began to be sent to various schools abroad, such as in Vietnam, France, and Italy.[1] After his ordination at the Notre-Dame de Paris, Tep Im took further theological studies in Rome. However, growing concerns for his country's problems as well as a decisive conversation with American bishop Fulton Sheen would lead him to decide against a monastic life and return to Cambodia by August 1962.[1] Upon the establishment of the Apostolic Prefecture of Battambang, Tep Im was installed as its apostolic prefect on September 26, 1968, a position he remained in up to his death under the Khmer Rouge regime in early May 1975.[1]
Tep Im has been described by historian Milton Osborne as a priest with remarkable understanding of both the Catholic faith and Cambodian society.[4] In June 2015, the Catholic Church officially opened an inquiry into Tep Im's presumed martyrdom, alongside others such as Joseph Chhmar Salas who died during the Cambodian genocide.[3]
References
- Descallar, Blas; Ange, Mary. "Msgr. Paul Tep Im Sotha" (PDF). Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Parish. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- Anne Noeum Yok Tan; Pierre Chhum Somchay (1983). Una donna, una tragedia, la vita: storia di cristiani in Cambogia. Milan: Editoriale Jaca Book. p. 89. ISBN 88-16-30099-X.
- "Cambodian Catholics look for martyrs among genocide victims". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Phnom Penh. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- Osborne, Milton (1979). Before Kampuchea: Preludes to Tragedy. George Allen & Unwin. p. 69. ISBN 0-04-950021-X. Retrieved 8 May 2020.