Loss of One"s Humanity

Netflix dramas 'D.P.' and 'Squid Game' are very popular these days. 'DP' is the story of the military police in pursuit of deserters who have escaped from military service, while 'Squid Game' is about people suffering from huge debt or needing a lot of money right away. The content of betting and playing a game for survival. People risk their lives to win a large sum of money.

As the hot response continues not only in Korea but also around the world, articles are pouring out proud of the power of our cultural content, but the columnist in the Eyes of the Believer of the Catholic Times was ashamed and heartbroken to see the shadows of Korean society vividly reproduced by these dramas. She is the director of a Theological Research Institute.

The two dramas expose how hierarchical and unequal Korean society is, and sharply denounce the absurd reality that violence inflicted on the weak by the strong is regarded as someone's 'fun' or an unavoidable 'world order'. It's even more terrifying considering that these dramas are based on real events rather than just fiction. 'D.P.' has the incident in 2014 where soldiers were involved in the bullying death of a junior soldier. It provides a glimpse into what Korean men who are obligated to serve in a divided country experience in the military. Contrary to the saying, "A man needs to go to the military to become a man," this is often true and one may experience growth in life. However, this drama depicts the experiences of destroying humanity in the military, where they adapt to such violence and oppression, ignore someone's suffering, and internalize violence.

The protagonist of 'Squid Game' is modeled after a laid-off worker at Ssangyong Motor, on strike for 77 days in 2009 in protest against large-scale layoffs. It shows how the life of a diligent family head fell apart after losing his job, the trauma left by the violent suppression by police, and reminds us of the successive deaths of Ssangyong Motor's laid-off workers and their families. 

In 'D.P.', people who are soft and gentle-hearted who do not fit into the military organization that demands toughness, and the poor who can’t help anyone even when faced with injustice, become victims of serious human rights violations and violence. In the 'squid game,' where one lives by killing someone, powerless old people, women, and migrant workers are dismissed as useless beings. Those who have a lot of power, and property ridicule and use violence against the weak and lose their humanity due to moral insensitivity. This is what Korean society looks like today in these dramas. 

Amid the 'culture of death' society that is destroying humanity, Korea has suffered the disgrace of being a 'suicide republic' with the world's highest suicide rate among OECD countries for the third year in a row. According to a report released by the National Statistical Office recently, an average of 36.1 people committed suicide per day over the past year, and 54.4% of those in their 20s died by suicide. As the strong social distancing situation continues due to the pandemic, an increasing number of self-employed and small business owners are making extreme choices that can no longer be tolerated. An acquaintance asked me, "As suicides are increasing like this, is there anything the Catholic Church in Korea is doing to approach or help these people in their difficulties?" She couldn't come up with an answer right away. 

There are churches in all regions, but the reality that those who are in the midst of a crisis cannot go to churches to ask for help makes us look back on whether our proclamation of the gospel is being carried out properly. The Latin noun 'salus', meaning 'salvation, also contains meanings such as health, well-being, peace, and life. Proclaiming the gospel of salvation goes beyond the invitation to be baptized and become believers, and it is the mission of Christians to take the lead so that all people in the world can live in health and peace in body and mind, and live with human dignity and full life as God's creatures. Is it not?

 

Are you Happy Living in Our Country?

 

Writing in the Kyeongyang magazine  a woman living a farmer's life for 15 years moves to the city and writes of her experience. 

She considered herself an introvert and found it difficult in meeting people for the first time. Even when a student she would wait for others to introduce themselves. She is thankful for the welcoming she received in the different places where she spent long periods of time in her schooling for which she is very thankful— She spent not a few years in high school, college and in a foreign county not knowing anybody and was able to overcome all the awkwardness and embarrassment thanks to the welcome she received.

Although she had economic difficulties, with her strong will she was able to  overcome her personality deficiency and study theology in Europe. She had a number of reasons for doing this. As a Catholic she felt that she was also always living on the edges of society. She was a woman in the Catholic Church. It was hard to bear the fact that no matter how the world changed, in her understanding she was regarded  and defined as neither a priest nor a man. She wondered if the church was being taught that way in Europe, where the roots of Catholicism could be found.

Jesus lived among people and spoke to foreigners, men and women, different ages, classes, and even the devils, he approached all kinds of people, asked questions and answered them, entered into the lives of those he met. Jesus was met with all types of abuse, disregard, but was always concerned for those who rejected him. Is the church acting in this way in our world today? She wanted to find the answer.

She looked for the opportunity to study overseas. She would meet many other woman theologians. In her class were priests, religious, and laypeople with whom she studied, conversed and fought, no walls. And this was also seen in the Masses they attended. It took her awhile to get use to the new environment. At the Mass before communion when the priest says: "Let us offer each other the sign of peace," each to the person next to them freely and naturally shook hands and exchange greeting with smiles and laughter.

She liked the atmosphere of the Mass. They were able to exchange intimacy, welcoming, with a family like environment, it was a feeling of we that she experienced. Frequently after Mass they would meet together at the homes of the different members of the community and share a meal together. They were able to keep the necessary distances required in a community.

When she returned from her years of study, married  and settled down she had her family, neighbors and community but she was not happy. Our village, our side, our church, we draw the dividing line. It's only an invisible line, but it's not easy to cross. It becomes a wall. As she started farming in the countryside, the scope of the line widened considerably.

In the village  where she lives there are many women who have entered the farming community. Already, in rural neighborhoods often women and children are considered as nobodies. Her experience of trying to fit into a unknown environment both in Korea and in a foreign country and the good experience she had in Europe has made her sensitive to the problems of foreign nationals in Korea especially the migrant workers and foreign brides.

She went to school again to become acquainted with people who have to live in a foreign culture and the ways to help them.

The articles finishes with reflections on why we don't see migrant workers and foreign brides in church. We as church consider ourselves open to everybody being  universalist but our actions often don't follow our beliefs. She does admit this is not only true of the Catholics. Whether the person is a native or a foreigner, citizen or not, we should accept all as brothers and sisters. She concludes with the words of Pope Francis on the Word Day of Migrants and Refugees 2021. 

"Ours must be a personal and collective commitment that cares for all our brothers and sisters who continue to suffer, even as we work towards a more sustainable, balanced and inclusive development. A commitment that makes no distinction between natives and foreigners, between residents and guests, since it is a matter of a treasure we hold in common, from whose care and benefits no one should be excluded."

We Know the Tree by the Fruit

There are words pleasant to hear, precious in value, and beautiful in meaning. The beginning of the Peace column in the Catholic Peace Weekly.
 

However, people often use words incorrectly. They wield the 'love rod' without love, or instill false ideologies, claiming to teach the truth. People thinking only of their supporters, inciting only for the worse, calling it reform while rebelling. There are those like the North Koreans that hold nuclear weapons and wave them while shouting for peace. A crowd that tarnishes good words.

People in good conscience put up signs with nice words and do different things. North Korea's national title is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. It's neither democratic nor a republic system. The name of the Democratic Justice Party established by the military dictatorship in the 1980s is also absurd. It's not democratic nor just, but it was named so.  
 
Names can designate that for what one aims, an earnest wish. But is it not necessary to show the image of upholding the spirit contained in the name? If the name remains the same even with do changes in behavior it's appropriate to change the name. Pretending to be what the name suggests is hypocrisy. To think that hypocrisy works is to underestimate the people.
 
The meaning of a word is a promise made by the members of society. Communicating with each other with the same thoughts about the meaning of specific words. If you cry out for justice while doing something unjust, you will be confused about who is truly just. The meaning of justice also fades. It is a mockery of the value of words. When possessed by such false uses, the swayed person becomes one with the agitator. Because they help the agitators and give them a justification. Consequently, the listener can't help but listen carefully. It is necessary to examine whether the person who calls for justice is just and whether the person who speaks fairness is fair.
 
One of the places where it is easy for words to become sloppy is probably the political field. If it's a good word, it won't be easy to make it say something else. When they try to attract attention and lead public opinion, they become slogans. When it turns out that the slogan is false, they pretend to be ignorant and continue to stick to their opinion. The more fluent with words the speaker is, often, the easier to make light of the value of words, because of recklessness.  
 
Shouldn't all politicians be careful in their use of words and exemplify them through their actions? These are the words of a member of the National Assembly who resigned over allegations of real estate speculation in the family. "Politicians should be held accountable for what they put out to the world." That's how politics works.   

The presidential campaign is in full swing. How do you find the right person? "The mouth speaks what is overflowing from the heart." (Luke 6:45) It's important to determine whether the promises are merely candy, and look over the words and deeds of the person. One needs to carefully examine whether what is said is different from what was done. The words and actions of politicians reveal their true intentions. "When a tree is good, its fruit is good; when a tree is bad, its fruit is bad. A tree is known by its fruit" (Mark 12:33).

A Life in Service to Others

 

Last week, the parish held a non-face-to-face Catholic lecture after a long absence. The pastor of the parish wrote about the experience in the Catholic Times Weekly Eyes of the Believer column. He hesitated, thinking that it would be a foolish decision to hold a parish event in a situation where all gatherings other than Mass were banned or suspended due to Corona 19, but in the end, fortunately good results were achieved.

Maybe it was because of the interest of believers in the lecturer invited for the event: Dr. Kim Yong-min (Peter), a relief activist for Doctors Without Borders, who was introduced to the readers in the Seoul Diocesan Bulletin recently. When the pastor read his book  "Relief Doctor Challenged By National Borders" (2019), the pastor felt that he was an extraordinary person who did not lead an ordinary life, so he looked forward to his lecture.

 

Recalling his childhood: He was the youngest in a poor family, couldn't make his own choices, confessing that if his will was 1% at every fork in life, the remaining 99% was living according to God's will and boasting of his 'tinker life' (one who fills in for others).

 

Freshly graduating from medical school, he volunteered to work in Sorokdo, (An island, in Korea, where sufferers from  Hansen's disease (leprosy), were exiled by a society that  stigmatized the illness.)  He waited for a year before giving up. Then, one day, he was assigned to fill a void in a specialist that suddenly occurred. 

Working on Sorokdo, he learns about the beautiful way so many work in love of neighbors, such as Sisters Marianne and Margaret, who cared for the abandoned. He decided to live a life of 'helping others rather than himself' after 10 years of apathy he returned to his religious life and chose orthopedic surgery as his major to help leprosy patients.

Although he has been immersed in nurturing juniors for a long time as a professor at the university's medical school, he kept in his heart the desire for a life of helping others. He applied to a relief team to help Haiti, which had suffered a devastating disaster in the 2010 earthquake, and even though it was not feasible, an unexpected contact came just before departure. He says he found out it was because they couldn't find an orthopedic surgeon. 

As a 'tinker' doctor, filling the vacancy of others and taking on the tasks that others were reluctant to do, he announced his retirement in 2018, six years left before retirement age and became a 'Doctors Without Borders' relief activist, traveling to and from the Gaza Strip, Palestine and remote Africa taking care of  patients.

  

Listening to his lectures, you can feel how big the difference in life is between those who realize their identity and mission and those who do not. It is very important that he knows who he is. Only a person who properly knows his identity can realize his life's mission and put it properly into practice.

 

Martin Schleske, world-renowned violin maker, author of Song of the Spruce (2013) said: "We can be the artists of our lives or we can be the consumers. Consumers of life do not need to realize anything in life. They simply leave their lives to chance. But the artist of life is concerned with the inner law of beauty,"  subtly urging the reader to choose. 

 

Living as a 'consumer of life' is choosing a familiar and comfortable life rather than an unfamiliar and inconvenient life, and in such a life, you can meet the standards of the world without asking questions about who you are, what you are doing, and why you are doing it. It will be a passive existence that follows. On the other hand, an 'artist of life' is a person who clearly recognizes his identity and mission and leads his life actively and creatively by balancing the familiar and stable as well as the unfamiliar and uncomfortable harmoniously for that mission. 

 

Brother Yong-min Kim (Peter), is a 'tinker doctor', an 'artist of life'. You will not be happy if your life is always compared to others. When you become an independent being who knows what your own desires are, you will be freed from the endless cycle of desire and you will be able to become an artist of life rather than a consumer of life. It will not end with self-satisfaction, but will be completed when it is for the happiness of others.

 

In the end, the artist of life will be valued in the love of neighbor. We all need to be like Dr. Kim,
artists of life.

Power And Dignity

 

"I can drop a bird from the sky." An expression used by persons who believe that everything they desire comes true. A person who believes in their power. A bird flying naturally in the sky is not usually dropping from the sky. Those with power can believe they are omnipotent, a misunderstanding of power. The priest head of a diocesan human rights committee has an article in Bible And Life magazine on Power and Dignity summarized briefly below.

Power is the right to make others obey or control them with public authority. Competency is the limitation in which that authority may be exercised. In a democracy, all power (authority) is limited by competency. Putting this in another way: power must be directed to the common good limited by duty, and responsibility, and checked by law and structure— restrained by competency (capacity). But in our world, we often experience: "I can drop a bird from the sky."

In society, we see the separation of competency and power. In fact, they should be equal. Like the second, minute, and hour hands of a clock all working together to tell time. He gives some examples of what is meant. A politician is doing his job for the people, concerned for their good, this is his competency but when he is looking for personal gain the office is one of power. Prosecutors and judges when they punish the guilty and free the innocent they are acting within their competency, when they free the guilty and punish the innocent we have a show of power. Journalists are to report the news as is, but when they report what is not as if it is, they are using power. Police dealing with criminals confront them, this is competency but when they confront innocent citizens for no good reason this is power.

However, the discussion continues on whether a person's office is to be regarded as the power of position or competency. We need not look at the office of presidents or legislators for all around us those whose position can be considered a little bit higher than others, competency or power may easily be exhibited. This desire for power may be seen not only among politicians or officials but among farmers and inmates of prisons.

Why do people desire this power? Jesus was tempted with this desire for power in the desert. Even his disciples fought over who was first among them. There has to be a reason for this power search. What is it? Is it not our desire to be respected, our desire to make known our dignity? 

We all have dignity. This is all-natural and proper. We all want to be respected. My dignity comes from the respect I have for another person. My dignity is demonstrated by the other person's respect for me. The pursuit of power will be an act to satisfy this desire for dignity only through comparison and discrimination with others.

When we talk about human dignity often we hear it is because we are the lords over creation. This idea of dignity because humans are visibly the most developed among all creatures seems natural and plausible at first glance, but in fact, it is seeking the opposite of human dignity in comparative advantage. If the reason for dignity is because we are higher than the animals when we come into the presence of someone with better qualities than I have, does that mean I lose my dignity?

No the reason for our dignity is because we have been made in the image of God. It doesn't depend on what we have: material goods, education, place in society, pedigree, gender, we are all made in the image of God.  

 

'If one of you wants to be great, he must be the servant of the rest' (Mark 10:43). These words of Jesus, Serving God, and serving our neighbors are the only ways to break free from the lust for power of comparison and discrimination. It is a teaching that informs us that there is only one way. It is also a unique guideline for all powers in the world to be reborn with true authority for the common good. God, who is the most dignified above all, serves people. Who then can reign over people?

Male Suicide Rate In Korea

Korea has been for many years now the number one country in the OECD list of suicides. The Covid 19 has not helped the situation. In a recent article in the Catholic Times, we hear surprisingly that seven out of 10 suicides in Korea were found to be male.  

Critics point out that social and cultural remedies for the issue of male suicide need to be prepared, as well as pastoral efforts within the church.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare recently published a "five-year national suicide death analysis result report" with the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation, which analyzed the demographic characteristics, major causes, and frequent areas of suicide deaths from 2013 to 2017.
 
The report, which was created by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in cooperation with the National Police Agency thoroughly investigated 64,124 suicide deaths, nationwide over five years and contains the characteristics and related factors of the suicide deaths.
 
Suicide accounted for 28.1% of those 30 to 40, 27.7% of the middle-aged, and the rest were similar at 27.0%. It was followed by 15.7% in youth and 1.5% in childhood. However, the number of suicides per 100,000 population was the highest at 51.4 in old age.

In particular, the average number of male suicide deaths per five years was 9,029, about 2.4 times higher than that of 3,796 female suicide deaths. In all cities and provinces, the number of male suicide deaths was two to three times higher than that of female suicide deaths.

Experts cited the characteristics of men who do not want to complain of difficulties to others, the social and cultural climate that demands masculinity, and the choice of suicide means with high fatality rates as reasons for the high number of male suicide deaths.
 
A professor of psychiatry at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, said, "A large number of male suicide deaths is inversely proportional to a large number of female depression patients. Women often seek help before attempting suicide, but men often rely on alcohol instead." He then explained, "The success rate of suicide increases because impulsiveness increases when drinking alcohol." In addition, he said, "Men often use suicide methods with a high fatality rate, such as jumping from heights, but women tend to cut their wrists or take medicine, so the suicide mortality rate of men is high."
 

The government's report shows that men are more vulnerable socially and culturally than women and are not receiving proper help. It is pointed out that in order to reduce the number of male suicide deaths, measures should be taken to suit the characteristics of male suicides. Experts said that men after retirement are often no longer active socially and stress tends to increase rapidly.

The professor said, "When men enter middle-age they develop a lot of physical diseases along with economic difficulties, and these two increase the risk of suicide," and suggested, "We need to introduce a plan to provide mental health counseling." Men tend to think of suicide due to economic problems, said the head of the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation. "If they find someone with signs of suicide during interviews with banks and other financial sectors, it is also a good idea to connect to a professional counseling center." In fact, the Korea Life Respect Hope Foundation has a system that connects people with signs of suicide during financial consultations with certain Banks and the Credit Counseling and Recovery Services.
 
It is pointed out that the church needs to be concerned with the serious male suicide problem. An official from the church said: "Women reduce stress through various activities within the church and in society, but men who have lost their jobs or are experiencing financial difficulties are more likely to stay away from others."We need to make efforts to reduce male suicide through active discovery, and efforts to help them.

We Reap What we Sow

 

We will gather what we have sown. The Corona counter-attack. The title of an article by a retired university professor of biotechnology in the Kyeongyang magazine.

I was born in Wuhan China. Rather than born my true identity was made known to the world at that time. I was hidden in the wildlife market of Wuhan.

In the past two years, civet cats, minks, raccoons, some 38 species among the about 47,000 animals were in the market before the pandemic.

My introduction is somewhat late. You may have guessed, my name is Covid 19. I didn't realize I would  be so famous and the king of all the viruses. I received a message congratulating me on my success in spreading so quickly. "Now you can begin your second phrase."

I will not be doing  this because of my kingship among the viruses. My family will be doing this. My family in the South American rain forest is in a serious situation. Trees are cut down and in their place building pig farms and the like, the sound of tractors are  heard all day.  If this continues we will be without a home. The other relatives: influenza, MERS, Ebola SARS all live in fear for all the animals we live with are being evicted from their homes.

Our places of residence are lost we have to find other places to live. That's my secret mission. Our virus family needs places to live and humans are our target. Wuhan China where we  arrived was a suitable place for this operation.

The area of my abode was the bat. Originally the home of the bat was the forests of South America. The forests little by little began to decrease in size, humans with all their energy took over and heat developed and the change in the weather.

Unlike other creatures that take only enough to make ends meet. Humans cut and eat everything they see, and increase their numbers. After learning how to farm, it becomes more arbitrary.

Bats are the most common mammals on Earth and account for 20% of all mammals. In addition, it flies.  It is a great landlord for the spread of the virus. Because the bat is friendly with other wild animals, they often interact with pangolins, so Corona 19 is easily  transferred.   This is called spill over by humans. Pangolins are a favorite wild animal cooking ingredient in China. In 2002, the SARS family also by  means of  bats and civets. penetrated into the human lungs.

Our virus was originally pacifists. All  that was necessary was to let us live in the forests. However,  war began on us and evicted us. So we responded. My secret order was simply to find a  place for us to live. Humans were the most suitable place.

The sixth mass extinction on Earth is being driven by humans. Today, the number of wild mammals has decreased to one in six at the start of agriculture. 36% of land mammals are humans, and 60% are livestock raised for human consumption. Wild mammals  account for only the remaining 4%.  

There are so many livestock that they become the intermediate bridge between wild animals and humans. Also, if we get on a passenger plane it goes around the earth in half a day. This is a golden opportunity for our virus to spread to the world. 

The last section of the article the writer deals with the HIV infection of humans. Here the host was the monkey  and when their habitat began to diminish and contact with humans increased we had the virus passing on to humans.

This earth is God's creation his master piece. There are not a few people who know that the earth itself is the work of the Creator, and that all living things must coexist. If their words were heard and we could find a way of mutual coexistence, our virus will gladly cast a vote for it as well. The only worrying thing is that humans don't really know we don't have much time.