The New Year Day at Kompong Cham

Posted: 23rd May 2005

Washing Jesus on the cross during the third day of Khmer New Year

Kampong Cham(C.S.C): Ever since 2002, the parish committee members of Kompong Cham city have been reflecting on the new year celebrations in a way that will be close to the Khmer tradition and also enable the Christians to live their faith in their Khmer context.

We have reflected about many traditional ceremonies that are spread out on the first three days of the Khmer New Year. We tried to understand the meaning and symbolism of these ceremonies. Our question was, “What is the meaning and Purpose of each ceremony?” We continued our research in this way to find a way of living these feasts in s Christian way. We have kept the visual Khmer gestures so as to visualize Christian faith in Khmer tradition.

The first day of the year serves as the day of entry into the New Year. It is the day of the Angel. Each family prepares a small altar to welcome the Angel who will arrive at a particular time to visit home concerned and to bless it. In a Christian point of view we understand the entry into the New Year as the occasion to celebrate the mercy and providence of God. Thi8s God never stops to shower his gifts on all people. The guardian angels are known am9ng us Christians as those who assure us that God is close by. So on this first day of the New Year, we celebrate the mass in honor of the guardian angels. During the offertory during this mass, we encourage the people to offer the four basic elements of our life, namely, water, earth, air and fire. There are also different kinds of trays with flowers and things produced by the manual work of Man. The Mass on this day concludes with the triple blessing of the New Year. We propose to each family to put up a small toy home just in front of their house door. We see that the Christians are full of enthusiasm in preparing this toy home and they add crosses, candles and pious images as sings of their faith.

The second day, the people visit their Buddhist pagodas to participate in a ceremony around a Sand Hill. This heap of sand symbolizes the stupa (a place of safe keeping in the form of a pillar) where the relics of Buddha were kept after his entry into Nirvana. By making this stupa, through a mall sand hill, one obtains for oneself and for one’s family or village the merits of Buddha especially the fruits of his life namely prosperity, peace and good health. We, Christians have also tried to keep this symbol as a sign of Calvary, where on Golgotha Jesus dies on the cross and is raised from the dead. Calvary becomes a symbol of God’s grace and our salvation. Our Celebration begins in front of the church where the people gather around a sand heap on which three crosses are planted. A little below, there is an empty tomb. Close to the sand hill a paschal candle is lit. There we recite the litany of saints and invoke our departed loved ones to join us giving thanks to God for His Gifts of salvation and eternal life. Each of us will then place an incense stick on this hill to show one’s place in the communion of saints.

The third day is meant for traditional ceremonial washing given to Buddha and to one’s parents. This gesture evokes very profoundly the gratitude of children towards their parents. As far as we are concerned, during the Eucharistic celebration we will read the gospel text of Luke 7/36-50 (washing the feet of Jesus by a woman), and then we will so the cleansing of the big crucifix in the church. Everyone will come forward to do this washing of Jesus on the cross to acknowledge the presence of Jesus in one’s life and to show one’s personal love for this Jesus. Towards the end of the Holy Mass, all the children and the youngsters will wash the hands of their parents and elders. Some of them go even further to wash the hands of the priests. While getting out of the church after these ceremonies, all will play by throwing water on each other as according to the traditional practice (Srong Preah). However these ceremonies will not stop as mere gestures of thanksgiving but will help us to recognize the image of Christ in this world, not only as a wooden crucifix but also as one who is present in the poor. We need to serve him by serving them.

All through these three days of Khmer New Year, there is also a celebration known as Bangsokol. It is to pray to one’s departed loved ones so as to transmit them one’s own merits here and now. For us Christians, it is a good occasion to entrust our departed souls to their divine merci and also to ask form the dead their prayerful support to all of us here on earth. It is in Christ that the Church of heavens and earth are united. By means of this short traditional ceremony of praying for the dead, the priest sprinkles holy water in the homes of Christians invoking on each of them, the blessings of God.

Article Source: Catholic Social Communication--C.S.C