In View from the Ark column of the Catholic Times a newly appointed pastor reflects on what would be the results of loving more and more deeply.
As we usher in the January 1st, the New Year he doesn't set any grand goals for the new year, but his first task in the new year is to offer a Mass on the Feast of the Virgin Mary Mother of God, and pray that he will not be lazy in the things he has to do, and will be able to do the new things he needs to do carefully in the future.
Last year, he remembers the day when he came to the Dongducheon Parish community to assume his first role as pastor. Half of the burden—Will he be able to do well in a parish with a long history of over 60 years, as he has only been a priest for 7 years? The history of the parish is strong, so if he works hard, he will be able to learn a lot!
To sum it up, the past year spent in the Dongducheon Parish community was a time of ‘receiving without giving anything, so much so that he feels sorry'. What moved him the most was the unconditional love they had for each other after knowing each other for a long time. He often hears from the members of the community about other members: "I even know how many spoons and chopsticks there are in that house!" Words that you rarely hear these days. This family-like atmosphere was truly a great gift from God.
In fact, our parish lives as ‘two families under one roof.’ This is thanks to the birth of the ‘Dongducheon International Catholic Community (DICC)’ for immigrant and refugee believers based in our parish in 2012.
However, the relationship between the Dongducheon parish community and DICC is stronger than the relationship between general parishes and ethnic communities. On ordinary Sundays, Mass is offered separately, but on the Feast of the Resurrection of the Lord and the Feast of the Nativity of the Lord, the parish is cleaned and a Mass is offered together. DICC is invited to big events in the parish community, and conversely, parishioners are invited to big events in DICC. Although they are two communities of different nationalities and languages, they have been communicating through hand gestures and foot gestures and sharing joys and sorrows together for over 10 years. Watching from the side, it seems as if they have reached the stage of ‘pretending to pretend’.
Nevertheless, there are still many mountains to overcome. This is because conflicts arising from cultural differences still persist. Immigrants in the Dongducheon area, where the majority are located are from the African continent. They choose to stay within the immigrant community, protecting their own language and culture, rather than learning the Korean language and culture and entering the larger society. This was their choice, but it was also forced upon them by Korean society.
A small number of people who know how to speak Korean are appointed as foremen, give orders, and make them work long hours, so the way for them to take Korean language classes is blocked. In a situation like this, it is impossible to one-sidedly blame those who find peace by eating food from their home country with their compatriots, who are the only people they can communicate with within a country where they do not speak the same language.
Although the pastor feels frustrated watching from the sidelines, the parish families who have been dealing with American soldiers for over 60 years hug them tightly even as they express their frustration. They leave the parish with a smile, saying: "Today, too, we have committed the sin of not being able to love in our pettiness."
Peace among people is only possible when we embrace each other as we are and love each other. It seems that ‘love as it is’ is something that we take for granted in our heads, but we do not feel it in our hearts, much less live it. If only I could love my family, friends, immigrants, and even people with whom I disagree, who are on the opposite side of me, how much more would this world resemble God's love and the kingdom of God that has already arrived? On this first day of the New Year, when we honor the Mother of God, we would like to ask the Queen of Peace to fill us with love that will bring peace among us. This year, may we all have a year of loving more and more deeply.
