An Encounter That Makes You Reflect

Did we meet a saint or a hero?

One thing is certain: Francois Ponchaud is an extraordinary man. A scholar, engineer, and inventor, he has devoted his life and his talents not only to the Church but to the poorest of the poor. A French missionary who has lived in Cambodia for over half a century, he is the man who translated the Bible into Khmer.

He spoke to us for an hour — in Italian — in an empty room of an institute in Phnom Penh. He spoke about his Cambodia, now so different, perhaps even hopeless. We felt his solitude, mingled with anger and sorrow. He is uncertain whether the schools he built will have a future. He fears the country will be “bought” by the Chinese.

Perhaps it was just a moment of weariness — perhaps the fatigue of illness, or the exhaustion that follows a lifetime spent bearing witness amid the tragedy that has marked Cambodia since the 1970s. Perhaps it was simply a moment of weakness in a “lion.”

Ponchaud created a church where even Buddhists feel at home; he built schools, dams, and farming tools, and has done immeasurable good. Or perhaps what we heard was not despair, but the lucid reflection of a clear-eyed observer.

What remains beyond doubt is his deep desire to stay — in his beloved, complex, and contradictory Cambodia — and never to abandon it. Thank you, Father Ponchaud.

Thank you, Father Ponchaud.
Roberta e Elio