Preparing for the Future

On the opinion page of the Catholic Times, the priest-columnist expresses his surprise on hearing that the Kodak Company declared bankruptcy. He reminds us that the main reason for the collapse was the company's inability to keep up with the digital camera boom, despite having developed the digital camera in 1975. Because the new camera did not require film, its best-selling product, they let others take the lead and were not prepared to respond effectively when the public left the conventional for digital.

The columnist uses this example of unpreparedness for something that will also come to pass when the names of the beloved hometowns of many will disappear from the map. The government is planning to change the local administrative system because of duplication in finances, to gain more efficiency and prepare for unification of the North and South. This plan has been on the books for many years and is seen as needed by both government parties.

This will also mean combining territorial areas under different names. It will be not only a vertical reorganization but a horizontal merging of territories. Currently, there is a great deal of discussion and disagreement concerning how to go about implementing the plan, but some day soon it will be a reality.

He hopes the Church is now preparing for the eventual territorial changes, for there will be changes in diocesan lines, necessitating name changes that without  preparation will prove very disconcerting for many.

Whenever we have changes, there is always a danger of preparing for the new and discounting the old in a way that causes confusion and misunderstanding, and not only with the territorial changes being discussed here. The hope of the priest is that this will not be the case within the Church, following the proposed territorial changes. He gives us the words that Patriot Ahn Joong-gun wrote three days before his death, taken from  the writings of Confucius: "if one does not plan for the future, one will face many present worries."  He hopes these words of Patriot Ahn will be taken to heart by the leadership in the Church.

What Gives Meaning to Life?

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" are the words that begin the Beatitudes, and which the columnist of the "Half Transparent Notes on Life" in the Korean Times finds reason for great joy. They bring consolation to him and a reason for avoiding the unruly enticements of life.

This one verse of the Beatitudes sums up, he says without fear of exaggeration, the meaning of his life. And if he could possibly achieve the goal it describes for us, he would, he says with all the sincerity he can muster, give up his life for it..

The columnist has expressed this same feeling in his other writings. He recalls a novelist appearing on a TV panel show who mentioned that someone had said that "knowing the poor can be happy gives meaning to life."  The novelist went on to say that she couldn't understand how anybody could say that. What is so good about being poor? she asked. The columnist laughed on hearing this, knowing that she had read what he had written.

Her words, he says, are understandable. Who in the world, including himself, would say that poverty is good? Everybody is striving to do away with poverty. However, despite the good intentions of many to achieve equality the poor still greatly outnumber the rich. 

He goes on to tell us the reasons this verse from the Beatitudes is so important in his life. He understands it as giving voice to those who are without power, in a world that is ruled by those who have power--financial, social, political and military power.

In the past, he had favored the thinking and goals of the powerful, but early on gave them up; not only because he was not gifted with the capabilities of the powerful. But realizing that this was not in line with the truth, he decided to side with the powerless, and came to understand that, paradoxically, it is the powerless that have true power--truth is on the side of the powerless

Lao-tzu wrote that "the greatest virtue is to be like water." The columnist sees this as similar to what Jesus expressed in the Beatitudes. When water comes up against some obstacle, it doesn't expend effort in struggle but silently and in time overcomes the temporary hindrance. Water takes the posture of the weak and overcomes the strong.

But no matter how much one tries, the columnist insists, it is impossible to say all that is included in the phrase: "Blessed are the poor in spirit." The fascination it holds for him can't be captured by simple paraphrases, he says, and wonders if its profound meaning somehow comes from our knowing its divine source rather than believing it came from human thought.


      

Lent and Lectio Divina

During Lent many desire to deepen their prayer life. A Benedictine priest who has written on prayer was interviewed by the Peace Weekly on its proper place in living a Christian life. His wise words: "We have to learn how to pray and work at it continually until, unknowingly, prayer will come to us naturally."

For over 20 years he has made a study of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading) in  the early days of monasticism, and has written and lectured on the subject, enabling many to enter this world of prayer.

Asked what would be his definition of prayer, out of the many that we have, he said it would be dialogue, the interaction between God and ourselves, a lifting up of our hearts to God, completely, and preparing ourselves to hear the response. Solitude and silence, he says, are necessary for this encounter.

The interviewer mentioned that since there are steps and levels of prayer, how do we develop our prayer life? Many, the priest said, use a prayer book for their prayers and are at the level of asking for blessings. How can we go deeper? In the books on spirituality,he noted that nine steps are usually mentioned;  the journey begins with vocal prayer and ends with the prayer of transformitive union.  The higher the ascent the more God's activity is seen, and the more passive we become. God does the leading.

Contemplation, he says, is not reserved for a few but is for all. If we stay with the reading of Scripture and meditating, God will lead us to the higher levels.  Lectio Divina is reading the Scriptures with  our whole being, having it  become part of us. As St. Jerome said, if we do not know the Scriptures, we will not know Jesus.

If we divide life, as we usually do, into daily life and faith life, the interviewer asked, will prayer bring them together? The priest answered that life should not be compartmentalized into prayer life, service to others and everyday life.  It is all one. If we take the readings of Scripture that the Church gives us daily, and have them accompany us in our lives, our spiritual life will benefit greatly. We will have harmony, and all  will tend to unity.

From Loser to Healer

Alcohol-related problems are many, and programs to solve the problems are constantly being established. One of the best-known and successful has been the '12-step program'. The Peace Weekly reports on how one man, using the 12-step program, could  free himself from his addiction to alcohol, and is now helping others to do the same.

Joseph was 36 years old when alcohol made him a dropout from society. He was a graduate of a prestigious university, a recognized expert in computer science, and taught at a technical college for about  ten years. Because of his drinking, he lost his job and his marriage fell apart. His family recounts the time he spent in a mental hospital, but the help he received there was not enough to overcome the habit. 
 

Alcohol dependence is part of his family history, Joseph said.  His father, the president of a college, had to leave because of drink.  Joseph was dependent on drink from his college days. Even when he was a professor at the technical school, he would, during a lecture, take time out to drink.  And there were many times during his ten years of teaching when he did not show up for his lectures, and often was in and out of hospitals seeking treatment. In one year, he was admitted to a hospital 23 times.
 

Pride he considers his biggest problem. He thought he could control his drinking, and for a year or two he was able to go without drinking but would eventually succumb to the habit. He even took courses in order to conquer the habit, acquiring in the process all the credentials necessary to be a therapist in pastoral counseling and drug abuse therapy. He did in fact, using these credentials, find work as a therapist in a counseling center and in hospitals. At the same time, at the end of the work day, he would go to a bar for a few drinks. 

After hitting bottom in 2002, the day did come, with God's help, when he finally stopped drinking, and he hasn't had a drink since. He realized that it was beyond his power to conquer the habit. And with trust in God all changed. He started the 12-step program here in Incheon, and for those who can read Korean his 12-step program  is now helping many to become sober:  www.12step.or.kr

Joesph runs the center with the money he receives from lectures and from writing. More than 70 families are being helped at the center, and others are getting the necessary help, so they can help others in overcoming their dependence on drink. Joseph says he finds the greatest satisfaction in his work by knowing that he has helped a person break free of the same shackles that imprisoned him for so many years, returning him back to his family and to society.
                                            

                                           
           

Catholic Marriages

Doing a good thing for the wrong reasons is very common. A Korean secular paper thought it newsworthy to discuss the reasons for the popularity of Catholic Church weddings. According to the article, the desire of many to have their marriage ceremony in a Catholic Church motivates them to be baptized, not the best of reasons for becoming a Catholic.

Old churches with a colorful history and beautiful exteriors are especially attractive to those planning marriage, and entice a few to join the Church before marriage. There are so many marriages planned that in some churches, on special days, there is a drawing of lots. This past November, 200 showed up to determine the order of marriages in the Cathedral parish in Seoul, and in some parishes dates are booked to the end of the year.

We are told that a reason for this is that many entertainers have added to this popularity by having their own marriages celebrated in these churches. When a famous movie star picks one of the churches, there are many fans of the star who will do the same. The popularity of church weddings has even prompted the business world to have 'chapel halls,' which try to imitate the atmosphere of the churches.

Problems connected with the recent financial depression have added to the popularity of church weddings. Churches are cheaper than the marriage halls, and the meals are cheaper compared to the meals at a hotel. However, the article goes on to give another important reason for their popularity.

Catholic marriages require that instructions be given to the couple, with an interview before the wedding. To have time to prepare for the marriage and be concerned not only with externals is another plus, giving the participants a feeling of being cared for. In many of the marriage halls, however, there is often a marriage every half hour, which gives the couple a feeling of being rushed and their welfare of not much importance.

Another strong point: in churches, the bride and groom are center stage and not the officiator; the congregation is there to pray for the couple and to congratulate them. There are, however, certain limitations when one has a church wedding: it is not as boisterous as the marriage hall, nor as free to do what the couple and their guests want, and photographers have certain rules to follow. But it is clear that these are minor considerations that are not preventing many to seek the more significant church wedding as the couple begins their life together. It is hoped that though the motivation for having a church wedding may not have been the best, the blessings received may be sufficient to inspire them in the days to come with a love for the Church.

Uderstanding Those Who Have Left the Community

How does a church community work to bring back to the fold those who, for one reason or another, have left?  A diocesan priest, a pastor who works in a spiritual counseling center, considers the possibilities in an article in Bible & Life. He begins by telling us that the word we use to describe those who have left the church is not helpful and prejudices us from the start: the word 'tepid' means cold and indifferent.

 

No one is free from problems in living the spiritual life. All have the possibility of becoming tepid in their faith life. He wonders whether this may be a natural phase in life, like the teenage years: a period of contrariness. Keeping this possibility in mind, the priest would like us to be more sympathetic toward those who have left the Church.

One of the reasons for leaving, he believes, is that the life of prayer was not helpful in getting what was wanted. They were seeking their own will, and in these cases it is better to allow them on their own to come to a realization that life is not always about getting what you want, and to be content to remember them in our prayers.

Another reason for leaving would include those who had problems with priests, sisters, or members of the community. This group can be divided into two types: those who are very sensitive and, without any deliberate offense intended, were hurt--they are likely to return. The return of those who have been hurt deliberately, however, will be difficult.

A third reason would include those who have lost hope in having a relationship with God, or were doubtful of having a meaningful relationship, and gradually distanced themselves from the community. Some consider themselves atheists, have an animosity towards the sacraments, or criticize the Church as hypocritical.  Some of these expressed reasons, despite what may be said, are probably best understood as stemming from the burdens of working to support a family and thus losing contact with the Church. He feels that with some outreach by the community they have a chance of returning. Some would  be looking for a deeper spiritual life and often on their return will become zealous workers in God's vineyard.
 

For some, a period of rest in their spiritual life may be of help to growth, instead of living with a  lack of enthusiasm and a routine life of the spirit; this group would be looking for a deeper way of living Christianity. This, he says, should not be difficult for a priest to understand, coming from many years in the seminary, and even after. Priests, he reminds us, are also faced with doubts, and at times even consider leaving, but by working through the difficulty they may come to another level in their faith life. He concludes with the thought that confronting our doubts honestly and working through them may be the way many of us will grow in the life of faith.
 

Maturity of the Korean Catholic Church

The Catholic Times recently interviewed the president of the Catholic Bishops Conference on the 50th  anniversary of the formal establishment of the  Korean hierarchy.

The bishop acknowledges the rapid growth of the Catholic Church, that it's been blessed with many vocations, but he stresses that more attention has to be paid to  the inner qualities of our faith life. The Korean Church needs now, he says, to go out to other countries to give them what Korea has received. We have moved from a receiving Church to a giving Church, a local church  ready to help others.

The Korean Church in the last 50 years, with North Korea included, has grown greatly. There are 18 dioceses, 32 bishops (9 retired), more than 5 million Catholics and 4,500 priests. This external growth has been great but humbling, the bishop says. We have to confess that internal maturity has not accompanied the external growth. Because of the rapid growth we have not had the time to ripen in certain areas.

The bishop mentions that unlike many other countries the period of the catechumenate in many of our parishes is six months. Not enough time, he says, to reflect on the gift of faith received. It is not only the head that must be involved but the whole person.

He brings to mind the words of Pope Paul VI, in his Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization, where he states that we are to become a new people, to become different persons from what we were. It is to be born again, which we are far from achieving in  Korea,  the bishop laments. Although many have been baptized, we cannot say that many have undergone this type of change in their life: adopting new values and and a new way of living.

To the  question: What will the Church of Korea contribute to Asia and the rest of the world? "To help the poorer countries of the world," was his answer. He went on to say that what the foreign missionaries did for the Korean Church, the Korean Church should do for others. He concludes with a wish that Korean clergy will dream of going out to the world to make others disciples of Jesus.