Jean Khamsé Vithavong

His Excellency Jean Khamsé Vithavong
Apostolic Vicar Emeritus of Vientiane
Installed	7 April 1984
Term ended	2 February 2017
Predecessor	Thomas Nantha
Successor	Louis-Marie Ling Mangkhanekhoun
Other post(s)	Titular Bishop of Moglaena (1982–2024)
Orders
Ordination	26 January 1975
Consecration	16 January 1983 by Thomas Nantha, Jean-Baptiste Outhay Thepmany, Renato Raffaele Martino
Personal details
Born	(1942-10-18)18 October 1942 Keng Sadoc, Laos, French Indochina
Died	8 December 2024(2024-12-08) (aged 82) Vientiane, Laos

Jean Khamsé Vithavong (18 October 1942 – 8 December 2024) was a Laotian Roman Catholic prelate, and the Apostolic Vicar of Vientiane. He was also the Titular Bishop of Moglaena.[1][2]

Biography

Khamsé Vithavong was born on 18 October 1942. He was educated at a seminary in France and at Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines.[2]

On 26 January 1975, at the age of 32, he was ordained a priest and a member of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate.[1][2]

On 19 November 1982, he was appointed coadjutor vicar apostolic of Vientiane, Laos, and also titular bishop of Moglaena, by Pope John Paul II, and he subsequently was installed on 7 April 1984.[1][2] He served as well as administrator of the Luang Prabang vicariate from 1984 to 1999.[1][2] He was also a presiding manager of the Episcopal Conference of Laos and Cambodia in the 1990s and early 2000s.[3][4]

In 1999, he was interviewed about the Laotian socialist government's prosecutions of his diocese.[5]

Khamsé Vithavong retired as emeritus on 2 February 2017, which was accepted by Pope Francis.[6] He died on 8 December 2024, at the age of 82, after suffering from diabetes and a series of strokes.[1][2]

See also

• Catholic Church in Laos
• Christianity in Laos
• Religion in Laos

References

1. "Bishop Jean Khamsé Vithavong, O.M.I. †: Deceased: Vicar Apostolic Emeritus of Vientiane, Laos: Titular Bishop of Moglaena". Catholic Hierarchy. 9 December 2024. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
2. Monthienvichienchai, Chainarong (9 December 2024). "Laos: Bishop Khamsé, former Vicar Apostolic of Vientiane, dies at 82: Bishop Jean Khamsé Vithavongthe, Vicar Apostolic Emeritus of Vientiane in Laos and a dedicated OMI missionary, has passed away at the age of 82". LiCAS News via Vatican News. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
3. The Far East and Australasia 2003. Europa Publications. 2002. p. 758. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
4. La Documentation catholique: Volume 72, Issues 2009-2018 (in French). 1990. p. 956. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
5. 30 Days in the Church and in the World: Volume 17. 1999. p. 15. Retrieved 10 December 2024.
6. "Rinuncia del Vicario Apostolico di Vientiane (Laos) e nomina dell'Amministratore Apostolico sede vacante et ad nutum Sanctae Sedis". Vatican Press Office (in Latin). Retrieved 10 December 2024.

Bibliography

• Morev, Lev (1998), "Religion, state, and society in contemporary Laos", Religions, State, and Society, 26 (1): 31–38, doi:10.1080/09637499808431803, retrieved 27 December 2022

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Thomas Nantha	Apostolic Vicar of Vientiane 1984–2017	Succeeded by Louis-Marie Ling Mangkhanekhoun
Preceded by Edward Cornelius O'Leary	Titular Bishop of Moglaena 1982–2024	Succeeded by Vacant