From Porridge to Priesthood: My Journey to the Society of Jesus

I am a Jesuit Scholastic from Cambodia.

My journey to the Society of Jesus began most unexpectedly—with a bowl of porridge.

In 2009, I visited Taom Parish with my classmates. It was my first time at a church, and I was excited to be with friends, mainly because the church was giving out porridge to the children. But when I stepped forward, I realized I didn’t know how to make the sign of the cross. I turned to a friend for help, but he mischievously taught me the wrong gesture, so I didn’t get my porridge!

Refusing to give up, I approached one of the older kids and asked how to do it properly. She gently guided me, and I practiced over and over in my head:
“In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

Finally, I got it right—and I got my porridge. But even more than that, I felt joy in belonging, in being with my friends, and in being welcomed.

That small moment sparked a path I could not have imagined.

In 2013, the Church offered me a scholarship to study in Battambang City. I completed Grades 10 to 12 in a private school, and every Sunday, I attended catechism classes. After three years of formation, I was baptized in 2016 at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish.
I had embraced Catholicism, leaving behind Buddhism—not in rejection, but in response to something deeper that had moved in my heart.

The teachings of the Church deeply inspired me: to love others, care for the poor, educate the young, stand beside the marginalized, and walk closely with Jesus.

Later that year, I moved to Phnom Penh and began a five-year civil engineering degree at Norton University. I worked part-time while studying full-time. It was tough, but worth it.

During that period, I attended a Vocation Gathering in Kampong Som province, where I met a Jesuit Scholastic from Indonesia. His friendship and witness stirred something in me. A quote I heard—“Sinners, yet called by the Lord”—touched me profoundly. I began attending monthly Jesuit gatherings and joined a Vocation Discernment Program in Phnom Penh.

I was drawn to the Jesuits’ way of life: the Examen, apostolate work, and living a faith that engages the world.

In 2019, I joined the Missionaries of Charity Brothers for a one-month immersion. Afterwards, I worked as an engineer at Fuxin Steel Building. Then, the pandemic hit. Phnom Penh went into lockdown, and I couldn’t return to my rented room. I chose to remain at the site and work alongside the laborers.

In the silence of lockdown, my heart changed.
“I want to do something better in my life—with the Jesuits.”  

By the end of 2020, I resigned from engineering and joined St. Francis Xavier School in northern Cambodia, where I taught math tutorials to hostel students. I also began writing my vocation story to formally apply to the Society of Jesus.

When the time came to choose a novitiate, I was torn between Myanmar and the Philippines. My heart was moved by the suffering of the people in Myanmar amid the military conflict, and I chose to go there, despite the risks.

Just as I received approval, I was involved in an accident.  While riding my motorbike at night at a speed of 80 km/h, I collided with a cow that was walking on my road. I was hospitalized with serious injuries.

In April 2022, after one month of recovery, I visited my mother in Thailand, where I quarantined for five days in Yangon before finally arriving at the Novitiate in Taunggyi.

Two years later, in April 2024, I professed my First Perpetual Vows—poverty, chastity, and obedience—in the Society of Jesus at Banteay Prieb, Phnom Penh, Cambodia. That day was the culmination of many quiet “yeses” to God along the way—a significant moment in my spiritual journey and my contribution to the apostolic work.

In May 2024, I was assigned to the Loyola House of Studies at Ateneo de Manila University, Quezon City, Philippines, to begin my First Studies, which included Juniorate and Philosophy.

I often reflect on this incredible path—from a boy who didn’t know how to make the sign of the cross, to a Jesuit Scholastic filled with immense gratitude for the gift of love.  God has been present every step of the way and has been guiding me.

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam—For the Greater Glory of God!