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 (aged 40–41) Battambang Province,Kampuchea |
Paul Tep Im Sotha Samath (Khmer:ទេព អ៊ីមសុត្ថា; 1934–May 1975)[1][2] was aCambodianRoman Catholic priest and the firstapostolic prefect ofBattambang.[3] Ordained in 1959, he was the second native Cambodian to become a Catholic priest afterSimon Chhem Yen.[1]
Tep Im was raised by his mother to be a Catholic, and at a young age began to be sent to various schools abroad, such as inVietnam,France, andItaly.[1] After his ordination at theNotre-Dame de Paris, Tep Im took furthertheological studies in Rome. However, growing concerns for his country's problems as well as a decisive conversation with American bishopFulton Sheen would lead him to decide against amonastic 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 theKhmer Rougeregime in early May 1975.[1]
Tep Im has been described by historianMilton Osborne as a priest with remarkable understanding of both the Catholic faith and Cambodian society.[4] A boarding house forsecondary andtertiary-level students in Battambang was named after him.[5][6] In June 2015, the Catholic Church officially opened an inquiry into Tep Im's presumedmartyrdom, alongside others such asJoseph Chhmar Salas who died during theCambodian genocide.[3]
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