The founder of the Samsung group, Lee Byung-chul in 1987 handed a paper to a priest friend with 24 questions that he compiled over many years and was asking the priest for answers.
The priest gave the questions to a scholar priest, a professor at the Catholic University of Korea, who prepared the answers and planned to visit the founder with the answers. Chairman Lee's health did not permit it and he died shortly after. This scholar priest after 20 years gave them to a younger priest who wrote a book on the 24 questions and made them known to the world.
Many have both within Catholicism and from the other religious groups given answers to the 24 questions from their own different traditions. In the recent addition of the Catholic Times, a bishop in Korea has also written a book with his answers from the Scriptures and had a review of the book in its pages. The wealthiest man in Korea lived with these questions for many years and shows us the anguish that we all have in one way or another with many of our existential problems in life.
Here below is a list of the 24 questions:
1) How do you prove the existence of God? Why did he not make it clearer?
2) How can you prove that God is the creator of the universe and all created things?
3) Biologists maintain that humans are the outcome of a long process of evolution, how is God's creation of humans different? Are not humans and other organisms the results of evolution?
4) It seems that life can be made in a laboratory, and the possibility of the extension of life without disease, would this not bring about the denial of God?
5) If God loves us why do we have pain, misfortune, and death?
6) Why did God create evil persons? Examples: Hitler Stalin.
7) What are the sins that Jesus came to save us from and yet leaves us to continue to sin?
8) How were the Scriptures made? How do you prove they are the words of God?
9) What do we mean by religion? Why is it necessary?
10) What is the soul?
11) What are the different kinds of religions and what are their characteristics?
12) If we don't believe in Catholicism we can't go to heaven? Those who don't believe, atheists, others with different religions many are good people when they die where do they go?
13) All religions have the same goal of living a good life, why then do you consider Catholicism best and the other religions heretical?
14) After we die the soul does not die, how can we believe that it goes to heaven or hell?
15) Without religion, many enjoy riches and honors what is God's teaching about this?
16) Scripture says that for a rich man to go to heaven is like a camel going through the eye of a needle, does this mean all the rich are bad?
17) 99 percent of the Italian population is Catholic, why so much disorder and crime and why aren't they a good example to the world?
18) Some Catholics are as demented as some of the Communists, how are they different?
19) Catholicism and Communism are mutually incompatible, why did so many Catholic Nations become communist? (eg. Poland and Nicaragua)
20) In Korea, it seems there is a church after every second house and we have many believers, so why do we have so much crime and suffering?
21) They say the Pope can't make a mistake, he is human, why so self-righteous?
22) What kind of person is a priest? Why celibacy? What kind of a person is a religious sister? Why celibacy?
23) Some Catholic groups consider industrialists as exploiters of the workers and foster division within the workforce, is Catholicism against the capitalistic system and its virtues?
24)Is the end of the world coming?
The bishop tells the Christians in his answers to the 24 questions that we are meant to be the salt and light of the world. Approaching Christmas we need to remember he did not choose us because we are good but we have the chance to be good because we accept his love. When we contemplate the infinite love of God are we not called to respond to that love and strive to be good?