Pierre Sophal Tonlop
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The Reverend Pierre Sophal Tonlop | |
|---|---|
| Church | Roman Catholic Church |
| Province | Battambang |
| See | Battambang |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 22 July 1995 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1953 (age 72–73) |
Pierre Sophal Tonlop (Khmer: ទម្លាប់ សុផល; born 1953)[2] is a Cambodian Catholic priest best known as the first native of Cambodia to be ordained a priest after the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979; he was ordained on 22 July 1995 and assigned to the Apostolic Prefecture of Battambang.[3][4]
Tonlop was a resident of Canada from 1984 to 1990, during which he studied at the Grand Séminaire de Montréal (Major Seminary of Montreal).[1][5] From 1990 to 1993, he continued his studies in France.[5] By 1994, after his ordination as a deacon, he volunteered to become a missionary in Cambodia for a return to his native country, where he later became a priest the year after.[5]
As of 2012, he is Battambang's Vicar Delegate in charge of caring for Vietnamese Catholic communities in the country, alongside heading the Rice Bank of the Church.[2][6]
