At Least Try Not to Hate

The Catholic Times' writer on spirituality discusses a common problem that is especially troubling for those desiring to live according to the teachings of Christianity. What do you do when loving another person seems impossible? He mentions the case of a young woman worker who came to him for help. "My boss at work," she explained, "is a woman I hate with a passion.  She  makes use of what I do with great ease and pleasure, but whenever I  go to her with a question, the only answer I get is "I don't know." And any time she does me a small favor she tells everybody in the office and makes me feel cheap. I find it difficult to sleep and I'm depressed. And I feel I can't quit because I got the job with the help of someone."

 

The writer let her cry. When she finally gained composure he asked her "How difficult are the working conditions that brought you to  hate your boss?" Her choked response was  "I hate her so much I want to kill her. I know it's wrong to hate like that, so I've tried to find her good points. As a woman to have  a position of authority in the company shows that she is very capable, doesn't it? That she has the ability I don't have made me jealous and is also  part of the problem."

 

We say the opposite of hate is love. And as followers of Jesus we know we have to love and not hate under any circumstances, which sometimes brings stress into our lives.The writer remembers a time when he had a similar problem to that of the young woman, and went to see an older member of the community to ask for help.  He was  reminded  that this problem was something  he had difficulty with in his confession for some time. Repeatedly he had heard that if you if can't love, at least try not to hate. In trying not to hate we may still hate, but we hate less, and over time it begins to diminish and we may then experience the beginnings of love. We sense something has changed, something more  fulfilling than hate has happened deep inside us.

Earth Day 2011

The Peace Weekly recently editorialized on the many environmental problems facing our society. Earth Day, April 22nd, commemorates our newly found ecological consciousness that began, according to the editorial, in 1969 when a devastating oil spill in California contaminated many of the beaches on the West coast. From this incident the grass-root movement took hold and spread to many other countries of the world.

This will be the 40th year since the first Earth Day of 1970 sought to alert the general public of the dangers to the environment. Buying water instead of drinking water from the the tap is now an accepted practice in many societies. And, increasingly, we are eating organic food to avoid the heavily processed foods on market shelves and the pesticide-sprayed and chemically fertilized produce from our farms. Our air is polluted with green-house gases and acid rain, and now the atmosphere has been further polluted with radioactive particles. Even in Korea, schools have recently given time off from classes  because of the fear of radioactive rain.

Humans are the ones that have caused the problem. God put everything in order and determined it to  be good, and told us to preserve and manage it. This has not been something we have done well, destroying much of what was given to us. We as Church should reflect on what we have done as members of the larger community. Do we see only the earth as a place for humans, and consider material progress and financial betterment as the only values of interest? Have we as  Church gone along with this thinking?

Many still see the preserving of our environment  as something foreign to our faith life. Humans appeared late  on the earth but  have destroyed much of what we were given. It is time for us to realize that the preservation of the environment is our work and we have to be active in its fulfillment. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church expresses it clearly (2415):  The seventh commandment (thou shalt not steal) enjoins respect for the integrity of creation. Animals are by nature, like plants and inanimate beings, destined for the common good of past, present, and future humanity. Use of the mineral, vegetable, and animal resources of the earth cannot be divorced from respect for moral imperatives. Man's dominion over inanimate and living beings granted by the Creator is not absolute; it is limited by concern for the quality of life of all, including generations to come. It requires a religious respect for the integrity of creation.

A New Beginning In the Taegu Diocese

The Diocese of Taegu is making preparations for the second synod in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the diocese. The Greek word synod means a journey taken together. In English, we would say council. It is a call to all the members of a diocese to come together to discuss important issues confronting the diocese. Some of the issues to be discussed at the Taegu Synod will be addressed under four categories: Evangelization of the young, Evangelization in the new society, Concern of the church for the alienated and marginalized, and The relationship of the diocese with the deaneries and the life of  priests.

The Church in Korea  has had many diocesan synods. The first Taegu synod was  in 1997. "These synods themselves are part of the new evangelization," wrote Pope John Paul in his 1994 apostolic letter. " They were born from the Second Vatican Council's vision of the Church. They open up broad areas for the participation of the laity, whose specific responsibilities in the Church they define. They are an expression of the strength which Christ has given to the entire people of God, making them a sharer in his own messianic mission as prophet, priest and king." (#21)

450 priests, religious and lay people will gather together as delegates,  remembering the words of the bishop who called for the first Korean synod 14 years ago: "Since this was our first synod  we did not know what to expect. We did not cover all we  should have covered," he lamented. "The next  time, having had this experience, the second synod will build on the first synod with wonderful results."

The present intention of the Taegu Synod is to make use of what was learned from the first synod  and add and make up for what was missed the first time. We will adapt, a spokesperson said, to the changing times and consider present problems. The protocol is to have all the delegates vote on all of the the propositions brought before the general assembly. What has the approval of the delegates will be presented to the bishop for his approval; they then will be promulgated  to the diocese as their future work.

The Mass inaugurating the synod was celebrated on April 8th. The first meeting of the general assembly will be on June 12th. Four committees will meet to draw up guidelines prior to the first meeting of all the delegates. The work of the synod is expected to last for a number of years, and they are asking for our prayers for a successful conclusion.

The Korean Church has shown a great interest in these synods but the results have not always been successful. A lot of money has been spent with great expectations, but also with some misgivings. It's perhaps a necessary first step in breaking down some of the thinking from the top-down approach to governance to a bottom-up approach. The bottom-up style--a difficult and often bothersome way of solving problems--will take some time to get used to, but Taegu is showing us the way. May this second attempt be a lesson to the whole Korean Church of what is possible.

The Joy of Easter

The Desk  Columnist of the Catholic Times tells us about a grandmother that had nothing to be happy about and yet was happy. By the standards of our society she should have been pitied. Her husband and child had died many years earlier; she was poor and had no one to look after her, and yet when the writer visited her, she was singing doing the housework.

Reflecting on his own life, the writer had everything going for him, and yet he was not as happy as the  grandmother. He asked her what gave her such joy in life. She said with a smile that she is living with the Lord and how could she not be happy and thankful. The writer was embarrassed but remembered that faith --not knowing, thinking, and talking a lot--is crucial to a fulfilling life, a life lived with with the Lord, the way the grandmother was doing.

Faith is meeting the Lord daily and sharing what is received with others. A faith life is not something added on, but the very life itself. It is relating with Jesus in a personal way: sincerely, obeying  his will, responding to his love. Going to church, knowing  the scriptures, and praying is just one part of a faith life: our life has to manifest what we believe.

Our faith life is nurtured by the scriptures and  sermons, helping us to live a mature faith life. When we meet trials, we know what our attitude and  responses should be. However, it is not uncommon that when trials come, we lament and fear overcomes us. At that time, everything that we thought we knew disappears. Doing the will of God at that time seems very remote: we indulge in resentment, fear and despair. Life goes one way and our beliefs another.This is called by some the "separate rice soup" approach to life: you get the soup and rice separately. You can put the rice into the soup or eat it separately. It's your choice. When you go to Church you are a believer, otherwise life runs its own course.

Today is Easter.  Celebrating Easter for us is the climax of the liturgical year. It is a time when we are encouraged to renew our life according to our belief, not once a year but every day of our life, and especially during the difficult times. Experiencing the grace-given Easter joy in life, as our grandmother did, is the way a Christian gives proof of Easter. A Happy Easter to all.

Returing to the Past with the Seven Last Words.

Some years ago a very musically talented Augustinian Father arranged to have  a Tenebrae Service on the last seven words of Jesus on the cross, on Holy Saturday morning in a parish in Incheon. The service was beautifully done and had great meaning for the congregation.  The altar had a candelabra  with 7 candles lit and the Paschal Candle that represented Christ was on the side. After the reading and the meditation on each of the  words, we had an interlude with music. After the last candle of the candelabra candle was extinguished the Paschal candle was removed.  The music performed was Haydn's for a string quartet.


The service was explained by Haydn himself in an introduction to the composition of his work on the Seven Last Words:

  Some fifteen years ago I was requested by a canon of Cádiz to compose instrumental music on the seven last words of Our Savior on the Cross. It was customary at the Cathedral of Cádiz to produce an oratorio every year during Lent, the effect of the performance being not a little enhanced by the following circumstances. The walls, windows, and pillars of the church were hung with black cloth, and only one large lamp hanging from the center of the roof broke the solemn darkness. At midday, the doors were closed and the ceremony began. After a short service the bishop ascended the pulpit, pronounced the first of the seven words (or sentences) and delivered a discourse thereon. This ended, he left the pulpit and fell to his knees before the altar. The interval was filled by music. The bishop then in like manner pronounced the second word, then the third, and so on, the orchestra following on the conclusion of each discourse. My composition was subject to these conditions, and it was no easy task to compose seven adagios lasting ten minutes each, and to succeed one another without fatiguing the listeners; indeed, I found it quite impossible to confine myself to the appointed limits.

These services were very common in the past but after  Vatican II because of the change of time to the evening for the   Good Friday Service,  the practice of the Seven Last Words disappeared, for the most part. You do have it in convents and monasteries and also in certain parishes but  no longer has the prominence as in the past. Having the service on Saturday morning was very appropriate and makes the building up to the last three days with the Seven Last Words  a fitting preamble to the  Climax at the  Easter Saturday Vigil Mass.

Surfing to  see what was listed under Seven Last Words in Korean I was surprised to see so many Protestant Churches having the service.One of the most beautiful meditations that I have read on the 7 last words was by a Protestant minister. You also see some ministers recommending the rosary to their congregations. The praying modes of the different Christian Communities should be something that we should be able to accept. The Protestant musical tradition has entered the Catholic Church, and the Protestants are being attracted to many of the Catholic prayer forms. This should be a help in  understanding each other with fewer misunderstandings, and  giving us a common desire to be closer in discipleship to Jesus.

"Examine My Hands" Good Friday Meditation

Writing in the "With Bible" magazine a Religious sister recalls her visit to a convent with a deaf person, during which they attended a Mass. She watched carefully as a sister at the front of the church passed along to the hard of hearing the words of the Mass and what was occurring on the altar, using not only her hands but her body to communicate. She wondered if there was any more beautiful way of giving praise than the soft and easy movements of the hands to form words, and the singing responses in sign language. It was, she said, like heat waves of life dancing in the air on a spring day.

For many centuries, artists have used the 14 stations of the cross as subjects for their art. She mentions a modern day rendition that appears in one of the churches in Seoul: the stations are depicted solely by the different positions of the 'hands of Jesus' carved in relief.

The hands are in different sizes, positions, textures and in a variety of frames.Each one separately can be seen as a unique masterpiece: hands supporting the cross, perplexed hands on the ground, violent hands grabbing the clothing, spastic  hands receiving the nails, entrusting hands after death. There is no extravagance in the expression of pain and anguish. Instead, the artistic description follows the  laws of the medium and is restrained in expression. Standing before the station, one is not overcome by the suffering  and extreme sadness but what is seen elicits repentance and regret. The form has been refined so it is not the emotions that are moved but one is still left with the meaning.

Jesus used his hands often in his ministry: Touching the lepers, blessing the children, holding simple food in his hands, washing the feet of his disciples, and finally stretching his hands out on the cross, and, after death, showing his hands to his disciples so they would know he was the one that walked with them before death.

The sister reflects on where the hands of Jesus might be found today. Haven't they been bequeathed through the Church to  us? she asks. They are a poor replacement, she admits,  but we, as Church, are his tools--weak and deficient as we may be. "My grace is enough for you, for in weakness power reaches perfection" (II Cor. 12:9). She ends her article by reminding us that it is all grace.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

Paris Foreign Missioners In Korea

An interview with Fr. Georges Colomb, Superior General of the Paris Foreign Mission  Society (MEP), was written up in the recent Catholic Times. Korean Catholics, he said, invited the missioners to come to their country, and not  an invitation from Rome.  This desire of the Korean Catholics moved the hearts of the early French missioners, even though knowing that death awaited them in coming to Korea.

The early years of missionary work in Korea were not always without problems, but the  early missioners were still able to send three seminarians to Macau, as support from MEP continued unabated. Ten of the missioners died a martyr's death and there is no regret. The faith and sincerity of the early Christians were repaid by the love and sacrifice of the missioners.

The growth in the  number of clergy in Korea is due in part to the influence of the Paris Foreign missioners. This was the initial intention of the missioners and the first goal of the society, in contrast to the situation in the Philippines and Indonesia where the religious orders where the  evangelizers.

In Asia, from the time of the beginning of the Paris Foreign Missionary Society in 1658, more than 120 dioceses have been established and 5000 seminarians formed. Except for Cambodia, all the different areas have a smaller number of Paris Foreign Missioners doing mission work, but in recent times we are seeing , he said, an increase in the numbers entering the society. Presently, there are 20 seminarians in formation. This year we had three deacons and three priests ordained. In June, we are looking forward to  having four more ordained to the priesthood.

Fr.Colomb mentioned that 10 years ago the society started a program for associate members, and a program for lay volunteers. The volunteers are trained and, under the auspices of the society, sent to experience the life of a missioner, many of them eventually entering the society.

The MEP are considered married to the country where they are sent, feeling a connection not only with its history but with its language, culture, and traditions. The society is  happy to see the  dynamism of the different churches in Asia, and the missioners continue to work for the formation of the local clergy. As long as there is even one missioner left, he will be united with the local clergy. Having left their own country for the mission country, missioners remain wedded to that country for eternity.