Contermplation

 

In his column, Philosophical Chat, in the Korean Catholic Peace Weekly, a Jesuit professor offers readers some insight into the word "Contemplation."

The term “contemplation” derives from the Ancient Greek words “theorein” ( to see/observe) and “theoria”(contemplation/theory). Originally referring to the public act of visiting a sanctuary or festival, the concept gradually expanded to encompass philosophical and religious meanings. 

For Plato (428/7–348/7 BCE), contemplation is the event in which the human soul transitions from darkness to light and “sees” the true reality of the Forms, and this intuition serves as the basis for “recollection”. 

In contrast, Aristotle (384–322 BCE) defined contemplation as a theoretical activity through which humans recognize causes and principles to attain “wisdom,” viewing it as an activity of perfected actuality that constitutes human ultimate happiness. According to him, the “contemplative life” is the highest form of life, standing in contrast to the practical life.

Philosophical counseling, which seeks wisdom beyond mere knowledge, centers on “Contemplative Philosophy”. Contemplative Philosophy is the “science of wisdom” that pursues true and eternal truth through the intuitive insight of the intellect, going beyond rational and deductive reason. This does not remain confined to mere theoretical or speculative philosophy but aligns with “philosophical practice”, inspiring and revitalizing life. 

As a form of philosophical practice, philosophical counseling strives ceaselessly to advance toward the realm of truth and a greater reality by creating a “clearing” of thought in our lives through contemplative philosophy. This clearing of thought (contemplation) is a practical process that alleviates life's suffering and restores the vitality of existence by breaking free from the inertia of everyday thought and approaching reality.

Creating a clearing of thought is on a different level from simply “breaking down boundaries” to transcend limitations. Heidegger (1889–1976) defines a clearing as an open space where Being reveals itself. This is a fundamental mode of thinking that leaves space open for being to reveal its true nature. Contemplative thinking that opens a void within us does not mean reflection on reality, but rather reflection from reality and in communion with reality. If the characteristic of object-oriented thinking lies in establishing boundaries, then contemplative thinking that opens a void signifies boundaryless thinking—that is, thinking that breaks down boundaries. To put it another way, this can be described as a kind of “opening” of existence.

In fact, healing through philosophy is not possible when it remains merely at the level of speculative or theoretical thought; it becomes possible only when one enters the opening of the clearing where existence reveals itself. The experience of this clearing of thought, this opening up, is by no means easily attained; it is granted as an epiphany that arrives like a flash of lightning amidst ceaseless training in thought. This is also the very event in which the soul is healed. This opening—like a clearing that suddenly appears in a dense forest—is experienced only through a contemplative attitude that steps away from the bustle of daily life to dwell in thought. Heidegger understands this kind of thinking as a “reverent dwelling” that allows being to reveal itself.

Our thinking loses its sense of ease as it constantly compartmentalizes and defines objects. This kind of thinking, which draws boundaries, is an act of grasping and identifying with the object; it carries an element of exclusivity and ultimately leads to fatigue. In contrast, contemplation is a form of thinking that goes beyond definition to allow the object to reveal itself, dwelling in letting go and acceptance, and possesses the power to heal the soul.

 

Faith And Theology

 

According to traditional classification methods, there are four fields within theology in its proper sense: biblical theology, historical theology, systematic theology, and practical theology. In the Korean Catholic Times, a pastor offers insight into the division.

First, biblical theology deals with the 'source of faith.' It addresses the origin of literature as a definite certificate of faith, as well as its original meaning and its significance for the present. It includes individual disciplines such as Biblical Studies, Old Testament Studies, New Testament Studies, Introduction to the Old Testament, and Introduction to the New Testament.

Second, historical theology deals with the 'tradition of faith.' It covers the history of various theologies and churches in the process of faith transmission across generations. As individual disciplines, historical theology includes ancient, medieval, early modern, contemporary, and Korean church history, patristics, and the history of theology.

Third, systematic theology deals with the 'rationality of faith.' The rationality of faith refers, first, to the fact that faith can be justified logically and rationally, transcending emotional experience. Second, it means that the doctrines and confessions of faith can be explained and constructed within the comprehensibility of modern people based on philosophical, historical, and sociological grounds. This is a comprehensive undertaking that encompasses the logical statement of the content of faith, the formation of modes of expression, and the methods of its transmission

Therefore, systematic theology seeks to elucidate faith within the church's way of thinking, lifestyle, and structure in the present. As individual disciplines, systematic theology includes foundational theology, introduction to theology, dogmatic theology, moral theology, Christian sociology, and ecumenical theology.

The fourth discipline, Practical Theology, deals with the 'possibility of practicing faith.' It addresses the possibility for the Church and society, living together in the same era, to accept a living faith today. Practical Theology includes individual disciplines such as Pastoral Theology (homiletics, catechetical instruction, pastoral psychology, pastoral sociology, etc.), Canon Law, Liturgy, Religious Education, Missiology, and Spiritual Theology.

In this way, supernatural theology deals with the 'source of faith,' 'traditional nature of faith,' 'rationality of faith,' and 'practicality of faith. Therefore, by reading theological books, we can internalize and synthesize the truths of our faith. In particular, reading conciliar documents and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which represent the remarkable theological developments of our time, is one of the best ways to internalize and synthesize our faith.

To add one more point, as the term implies, fundamental theology is a discipline that studies the most basic aspects of theology. What is the foundation of theology? It is revelation and faith. Therefore, fundamental theology is the discipline that studies these comprehensively.

There are two methodologies in theology: the positivist and the speculative. The positivist method corresponds to "hearing faith," while the speculative method corresponds to "understanding faith. The positivist method addresses the factual question of faith, while the speculative method addresses its essence. Therefore, these two methods cannot be separated but assist each other, enabling us to hear and understand faith.

No More War!

    

On April 30, the Korean Catholic Priests'

Association for Justice released a statement titled "God Rejects War," urging people to break free from indifference toward war and to pray for and stand in solidarity for peace. This statement was prepared to join Pope Leo XIV’s call for peace in a situation where armed conflicts, such as the U.S.-Israel-Iran war and the Russia-Ukraine war, continue, and to condemn all wars, and to call for the choice of peace. The statement pointed out that war destroys the lives of the most powerless first, but those who start the war do not bear the suffering. The priests emphasized, “The Lord, the Good Shepherd, is walking the path to true life and true peace yesterday, today, and tomorrow,” adding, “What is needed in an age of war is not effective strategies, but people who recognize the voice of the Lord and actually follow His path.” Following God's will to reject war and choose peace, every day at 9 p.m., they offered the Lord's Prayer and appealed to remember all beings sacrificed due to war during Mass, urging peace on the Korean Peninsula and the cessation of wars of aggression by the United States, Israel, Russia, and others. The priests urged, “Remaining silent or standing by is by no means neutrality, but another form of complicity in violence,” adding, “Let us draw the cries of the suffering into our prayers and respond to the peace chosen by God.” Furthermore, citing the Pope's criticism of invoking God's name in war, they called on the international community to fulfill its fundamental responsibility to protect life, transcending self-interest and political expediency. The group of priests stated, "The parties to the war must immediately cease the use of force and move toward the table of dialogue and negotiation," adding that "no justification can legitimize the sacrifice of innocent lives."

Catholic Universality

In the Peace column of the Catholic Peace Weekly, the director of a young people's community offers some interesting insights into the word "Catholic" and its meaning.    

For the past five years, he had the opportunity to spend Holy Week in Rome. There, over 1,000 young people from all over the world gathered together. They spent the Paschal Triduum close to the Pope, visited the tombs of Saints Peter and Paul to pray, share their faith with one another, and experience the Church's universality.

For the first few years, his heart was drawn more to visible things: magnificent buildings, long history, and the beauty of Rome. However, as time passed, his perspective gradually shifted. He began to live Holy Week more inwardly—within the liturgy, in silence, and in prayer. Amidst this, there was a scene that particularly touched his heart: the sight of people from different cultures, languages, races, and life backgrounds coming together to confess the same faith. Though they possess distinct sensibilities and paths, at the center of it all lies Christ.

He often conversed with people from other countries in St. Peter's Square. It was a very simple activity, but he realized many things. When you step out of your familiar surroundings, you naturally come to realize that there is not just one way to follow Christ. In the past, he often spoke of the Church's universality as an "open mind directed outward". This time, he wants to reflect on how that universality is lived out "within" the Church. 

There is not just one way to approach Christ. Diverse spiritualities and paths exist. Our goal is the same: holiness. However, God does not call everyone in the same way. For some, silence is important, while for others, action becomes more accessible. Some encounter God within the liturgy, while others encounter Him through concrete service to their neighbors. Yet, all these paths are connected as one within the same faith and sacraments in the Church. Church unity does not come from everyone doing the same things, but from walking different paths within the same faith while moving toward the same Lord.

Recalling my time in my hometown in Spain, I saw many believers living out their faith within diverse communities. While Sunday Mass was celebrated together in the parish, the concrete practice of faith—education, spiritual guidance, and retreats—was filled within distinct spiritualities. From the Society of Jesus, the Salesians, the Neocatechumenal Way, Opus Dei, and the Regnum Christi, to countless other religious groups.

In that scene, he often felt the church's universality. Diversity is not a division, but rather a force that helps each person find their place. This is because, while the paths are different, the destination is the same. We are not merely inside the church; we are the church itself.

We need to reflect on ourselves. We stop learning the moment we think we are doing the right thing and doing the best. We need the humility to learn from one another and a heart open to dialogue. It is also important to have a heart that knows how to rejoice with others' joy. We must be able to rejoice in their successes as if they were our own and give thanks together.

The attitude of absolutizing a specific way within the church and demanding it from everyone ultimately obscures the church's richness. The power of the church does not lie in uniformity. It lies in different aspects harmonizing to form one. It is not a diversity that divides, but a diversity that embraces.

In the past, it was not easy to encounter diverse forms, but if we turn our eyes just a little, we can discover how the church is alive and breathing in so many different ways. This should be a reason for joy, not anxiety.

When that joy fades, and when it becomes difficult to accept the goodness revealed in places that are not 'mine', it is not a matter of the head, but of the heart. Perhaps we have not yet fully lived out the 'universality' that we often speak of. Living more Catholicly is not about doing more, but about living with a bigger heart.

Hospice Palliative Care

The Window of the Ark column of the Catholic Times has an article on physician-assisted suicide and hospice palliative care by a professor at the Graduate School of Life Sciences of the Catholic University of Korea.

What image comes to mind when we think of family or household? We would probably first picture a family of three or four consisting of a mother, a father, and children. This image of a family is commonly referred to as the traditional family model. However, some refer to the emphasis on such a family model as the so-called "normal family ideology". The basis of their argument is that the proportion of 3- to 4-person households, which corresponds to the so-called normal family, is currently very low in Korean society, for the proportion of single-person households now exceeds 40%. However, the increase in the proportion of single-person households cannot be unrelated to the voices advocating for the legalization of physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia. The rise in single-person households ultimately implies the absence of someone to care for oneself, which can make euthanasia appear to be the only solution when one falls ill. In Korean society, where the issue of care is considered so important, if physician-assisted suicide is legalized, hospice and palliative care would decrease. 

Cicely Saunders, who established the first modern hospice center in 1967, was clearly opposed to assisted suicide and euthanasia, and made great efforts to develop hospice as a moral alternative to such practices. However, in the Netherlands, where assisted suicide was legal for several years, hospice palliative care did not develop properly, and in Oregon, USA, where physician-assisted suicide was first legalized, cases of inadequate pain management for terminally ill patients increased. While 1,832 hospice facilities were opened in other U.S. states over the same period, only 5 were opened in Oregon. The legalization of assisted suicide brings about changes in people's mindsets. This can be confirmed in the United States, where many medical organizations, including the Hospice and Palliative Care Society, maintain a neutral stance toward physician-assisted suicide. Considering that hospice care originally began in opposition to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, this neutral perspective indicates that many hospice workers no longer hold the view that assisted suicide is morally unacceptable. An important role of hospice or palliative care is not only to reduce the patient's suffering and pain, but, above all, to provide others with the opportunity to share in the patient's suffering. Hospice teams, families, and caregivers caring for terminally ill patients are given the opportunity to experience suffering alongside them. While giving someone the opportunity to suffer may sound negative, sharing in the patient's pain means participating with them in the discovery of not only the meaning of their life but also the meaning inherent in their suffering. In doing so, we can realize true solidarity with others, and such an attitude serves as the criterion for determining whether this society is truly humane. Pope Benedict XVI stated the following in the encyclical *Saved by Hope*, paragraph 38. 

The true measure of humanity is essentially determined in relationship to suffering and to the sufferer. This holds true both for the individual and for society. A society unable to accept its suffering members and incapable of helping to share their suffering and to bear it inwardly through “com-passion” is a cruel and inhuman society. Yet society cannot accept its suffering members and support them in their trials unless individuals are capable of doing so themselves; moreover, the individual cannot accept another's suffering unless he personally is able to find meaning in suffering, a path of purification and growth in maturity, a journey of hope. Indeed, to accept the “other” who suffers means that I take up his suffering in such a way that it becomes mine also. Because it has now become a shared suffering, though, in which another person is present, this suffering is penetrated by the light of love. The Latin word con-solatio, “consolation”, expresses this beautifully. It suggests being with the other in his solitude, so that it ceases to be solitude. Furthermore, the capacity to accept suffering for the sake of goodness, truth, and justice is an essential criterion of humanity, because if my own well-being and safety are ultimately more important than truth and justice, then the power of the stronger prevails, then violence and untruth reign supreme. Truth and justice must stand above my comfort and physical well-being, or else my life itself becomes a lie. In the end, even the “yes” to love is a source of suffering, because love always requires expropriations of my “I”, in which I allow myself to be pruned and wounded. Love simply cannot exist without this painful renunciation of myself, for otherwise it becomes pure selfishness and thereby ceases to be love.

We will need to ask ourselves what kind of society do we truly want.

The Ecological Movement

Ecology/Environment posted in the Korean Catholic Times 'Our Common Home' Earth: Why Must We Continue This Fight? Written by a professor and the president of the Earth Law Society. 

The ecological movement does not continue because there is a guarantee of success; rather, it endures long retreats and failures because there is an awareness of why this struggle must continue. 

In *The Essence of Struggle: An Ecological Revolution Against the Myth of Growth and Technological Totalitarianism*, French political ecologists Bernard Charbonneau and Jacques Ellul state, “The audience that listens to the voice of ecology is very small. People merely worry and do not move toward the radical choice of confronting the causes of acid rain.” They then recall the following maxim often attributed to William of Orange, the leader of the Dutch War of Independence (Eighty Years' War, 1567–1648) against Spanish Habsburg rule.

"There is no need to hope. Just plan and act. There is no need to succeed. Just persevere."

William of Orange, who led a rebellion to break free from the oppression of the Spanish Empire—the most powerful nation of the time—realized that immediate victory was impossible. Instead of acting rashly based on short-term hopes and falling into despair, he chose a strategy of long-term endurance and persistence. His tenacious resistance, in which he acted persistently without being fixated on the outcome despite being at a disadvantage in power, eventually led to the independence of the Netherlands. 

The essence of this maxim lies not in denying hope, but in maintaining an attitude of persistence, even when success is not guaranteed.

Viktor Frankl’s *Man’s Search for Meaning* demonstrates that the meaning and purpose of life can serve as an inner strength that endures extreme situations. In the era of the global climate crisis, what meaning and purpose of life does humanity need? 

In *The Principle of Hope*, Ernst Bloch conceived of hope not as vague optimism or consolation, but as a practical force that moves individuals and society toward a better world that has not yet arrived but remains open as a possibility 

Professor John Cobb, an ecological philosopher who passed away in 2024, once said that the only task remaining for humanity is the struggle to preserve the foundation for reconstruction while preventing the situation from worsening. The ecological movement does not continue because there is a guarantee of success; rather, it can endure long retreats and failures only when there is an awareness of why this struggle must continue.

Even William of Orange, who said “there is no need to hope,” must have had a reason for resisting Spain. Responsibility toward those innocently exposed to the climate and ecological crisis, future generations, non-human species, and nature as a whole compels us to act, even in the face of the possibility of suffering and catastrophe. Therefore, we must continue this fight not because we are optimistic about a better world, but because we cannot abandon our responsibility.

Emotional Intelligence

In the Philosophical Chat column of the Catholic Peace Weekly, a philosophy professor emeritus offers readers some thoughts on the role of relationships on emotions: "Healing begins with the reconstruction of relationships."

The issue of managing one's mind has been a subject of continuous philosophical reflection since ancient Greek philosophy, particularly regarding the control of emotions. In this regard, while the Epicurean school aimed to achieve "equanimity of the soul" by restraining excessive human desires and eliminating fear, the Stoic school sought to attain a state of "emotionlessness" by overcoming "passions" through control of perception. What they sought to control were passions arising from flawed judgment, such as sorrow, pain, fear, desire, and inappropriate pleasure.

The English word "emotion" derives from the Latin "emotio" (movement outward), formed by combining "e" (outward) with "movere" (to move), and thus signifies an "emotional state that moves outward and becomes manifest." Thus, emotion possesses a dual nature: a "passively experienced state" and an "externally manifested emotional movement." For such emotion to arise, "sensibility"—the capacity for sensory reception—must be presupposed; only when sensory perception precedes do we have the emotional state. 

Traditional Western rationalism has regarded reason as the superior and desirable faculty, thereby denigrating emotion as inferior and negative. However, in everyday life, humans rely heavily on emotion—as much as, or even more than, rational thought—and form social relationships through it. We may identify with or reject others based on emotions even before making rational judgments. In this regard, reducing emotion to a mere, blind, impulsive reaction is not valid. 

The ancient Stoics regarded emotion as a "mental error" stemming from false representations and value judgments and viewed it as something to be overcome. The modern philosopher Hume grounded moral judgment in emotion and proposed an "ethics of sympathy" grounded in moral sentiment. Schiller also viewed emotions as the ability to intuit values that reason cannot grasp, and emotions such as empathy or love can be understood as concrete manifestations of this intuitive grasp of value.

For example, jealousy is the emotional expression of conflict and tension arising from an exclusive triadic relationship in which the intervention of a third party is perceived as a threat. At the same time, envy is the emotional expression of tension within an interaction premised on comparison and difference. In this sense, emotion is not a blind internal state, but rather the emotional manifestation of the internal truth of a specific social form when that form is in operation. 

Consequently, the healing of emotion in this context does not lie in eliminating a specific emotion, but rather in alleviating tension within relationships and establishing new distances and balances by reflecting on and restructuring the forms of interaction that produce that emotion.