From Above? From Below?

A Catholic professor in the humanity department of a Catholic university writes about the Church in her column in the Catholic Peace Weekly as being like the soul of the world with the Synod on Synodality that will continue until next year.

There are times when she realizes what it is like to live as a Catholic. This is the case when people with different languages, customs, and cultures participate in the Eucharist together at a Mass held in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, even though they do not know the language. You can experience one faith, one Eucharist, and one church.
 
On the other hand, even though they are the same Catholic Church, they also know they are different from each other. The churches in Europe and Asia are different, and even within Asia, the situation within each country is so different that the methods of coping with it are bound to be different. So sometimes we ask if "one solution, one answer" is possible.
 
The hot issue in Catholic churches around the world right now is Synodalitas. Pope Francis said that the synodalitas journey is the path that the Lord expects from the 3rd-millennium church, and since then, churches around the world are moving along with synodalitas. Of course, the way each country responds to this will be different.
 
French theologian Yves Congar said that over the past 2,000 years, the church has repeatedly attempted reform, most of which began "from below" and "from the fringes". It is said that the reformation of the church was successful when the change that began through concrete life changes on the part of believers, religious, and clergy met with “a movement from above,” that is, with the magisterium. Of course, if it started “from above,” it succeeded when it met “movement from below.”

Synodalitas goes beyond the direction set forth by the Second Vatican Council and is greatly influenced by Pope Francis. And it seems that the characteristics of “from above” are more strongly revealed in that the ‘Vatican Synod’ is moving as the main axis and the local church must continue to cooperate and participate with their opinions. Perhaps this is why the local church complains of a kind of weariness.
 
Nevertheless, there are too precious motives and fruits that cannot be overlooked. In the first place, each local church, parish, diocese, or country, wanted to hear the voice of the people of God through the holding of a synod. It was to be a meeting of the whole people of God by doing so. In addition, how much joy, comfort, and hope the people of God experienced through the Synod is well shown in the ‘Work Documents by Continent’. Although the 'stimulus' came 'from above', it brought to the surface the diverse and lively voices and hopes of the people of God.
 
Some voices, of course, must be discussed at the level of the universal Church. But in fact, the different voices that come out of the various ecclesial communities are their treasures. It is our responsibility to create and develop our community based on these voices in our place of life, Korean society, parish, diocese, and each community. We don't just react to external stimuli, we actively use them. That is if the truth we discover is correct because of that stimulus.
 
What is clear is that the church that realizes synodalitas is a church in which clergy, religious, and laity enjoy equal dignity as children of God, are connected by brotherly love, respect each other's roles, and bear witness to Christ together. And this is the original spirit of the Catholic Church. Whether it is coming from above or coming from below what is important, is it precious, and necessary then can't we make it ours? 

Christianity and Pseudo-Martyrdom

Stoic thought in ancient Greece and Rome had a cyclical worldview and was not so attached to human life. Scholars influenced by this regarded giving up life when difficulties arose as an act of freedom. So begins the column on the history of suicide in the Catholic Times by the Director of the Suicide Prevention Center.

In the era of persecution in early Christianity, Christians said: "Whoever wants to follow the Lord must be able to hate his own family, his brothers, and sisters, and even his own life" (Luke 14:26).  And, "There is no greater love than to lay down your life for your friends." (John 15:13).

Numerous Christians who wanted to be free from the oppression and persecution of this world and their desire to defend their love and faith in God died as martyrs. With the Edict of Milan in 313, the situation changed drastically. Christianity, which had been persecuted as a minority religion, was allowed to be freely practiced by anyone, and in 381 AD with the Edict of Thessalonica, it became the state religion.
 
Even after that, the desire for martyrdom continued, but even though it was not inevitable they voluntarily pursued persecution and death and made extreme choices to become martyrs. Some believed that the reward that the martyrs would receive was much greater and they would go directly to heaven. They also saw that the church respects the martyrs and took care of their families.
 
As the number of these increased, the church fathers of the early Christian era rejected this pseudo-martyrdom and the opposition brought about the opposition to suicide.

The Council of Carthage (348) condemned those who took their own lives for various reasons. And this atmosphere condemning suicide reached its climax with Augustine (354-430) the Bishop of Hippo. Suicide is a murder of oneself, and killing oneself is also an act of killing a human being, so it is taught that it is against the commandment 'Do not kill'. Augustine was the first person in the history of the Catholic Church to explicitly write out the prohibition of suicide in his writings, and this became established in the church.

In modern times, there has been a change in this trend, and in 1983, the new 「Code of Canon Law」 deleted the clause prohibiting the funeral of a person who committed suicide. This is also confirmed through other documents.
 
"We must not despair of the eternal salvation of those who have taken their own lives. God can give them an effective chance of repentance in a way only he knows. The Church also prays for those who have taken their own lives" (Catechism of the Catholic Church- 2283).
 
"Suicide is always as morally objectionable as murder. The Church's tradition has always rejected it as a gravely evil choice.  Even though a certain psychological, cultural, and social conditioning may induce a person to carry out an action that so radically contradicts the innate inclination to life, thus lessening or removing subjective responsibility..."(The Gospel of Life) Article 66)
 

Medical Concern for the Poor

 

In   the recent issue of the Catholic Times a featured article for the International Day of the Sick was on the  journey of free medical care in Korean churches. A church that cares for the sick is serving the Lord.

The Korean church is running free clinics to take care of those in the blind spot of medical benefits.

 

"I couldn’t go to the hospital even though the bleeding didn’t stop all night, so I went to see a priest who works as a pastor for migrants." The operation of the free clinic could not be stopped because there are still desperate people who live among us who in serious poverty need medical care.

 

Sister director of Ansan Vincent Clinic, talked about the story of a Thai migrant worker who barely saved her life after being introduced to  the Clinic through her priest. She explained why free clinics should exist in our society. Even though there are many hospitals around, the reason why they cannot go to the hospital is because of 'poverty'. The cruel situation in which money and life are dependent on each other in the Republic of Korea in 2023, not in a developing country. Ahead of the 31st World Day of the Sick (February 11), we introduce the journey of the Church walking with the marginalized and poor.

 

"The poor are our Lords" In the 1950s after the war, Korea was overflowing with people suffering from poverty and disease. It was the church that held the hand of the poor in a situation where even rebuilding the ruined city was not enough. At that time, many missionaries came to Korea to do relief work. Free medical treatment was also one of the important missionary activities.

 

The missionary Franciscan Sisters of Mary, who entered Korea in 1958, opened the St. Mary's Hospital and stayed among the poor and marginalized. The Maryknoll Foreign Missionary Sisters established the Maryknoll  Clinic in Jeungpyeong, North Chungcheong Province, and took care of the sick. Hope Clinic, built in Daejeon in 1956, also provided free medical treatment to people suffering from poverty and disease after the war.

  

The medical support of religious orders, which began in the late 1950s, continued even after the scars of war were healed. Because there were still people who suffered from poverty. Monsignor So Aloisio, the founder of the Sisters of Mary, witnessed the situation in which orphans, beggars, and homeless people who lost their parents in the war were mistreated in hospitals and were not properly treated. He Established in 1982, Doty Memorial Hospital as a free charity hospital for marginalized neighbors in our society, such as the severely disabled, homeless, and foreign workers, in accordance with the wishes of George E, Doty.

  

Afterwards, Joseph Clinic in  Seoul (1987), Seongga Welfare Hospital in Hawolgok-dong, Seoul (1990), and Seongsim Welfare Clinic in Namsan-dong, Daegu (1992) opened one after another. These hospitals are operated based on the common gospel values of 'serving those suffering from poverty and disease' and 'caring for them with warm love'.

 

The church's journey to practice 'the love of Christ' also collided with some outside the church. Doty Memorial Hospital received administrative guidance not to waive or discount the patient's co-payment for the reason that it causes damage to nearby hospitals. Eventually, Dotty Memorial Hospital closed in 2017. The reason why church hospitals do not stop providing free medical treatment for the poor, despite the ups and downs, has not changed for a long time. Because ‘the poor are our lords’

 

The columnist  was curious about the identity of the foreigners who came to the neighborhood where all the shops were closed, so he followed one of them and stopped at Ansan Vincent Clinic. Unlike the empty outside, the inside of the clinic was crowded with foreign patients. People from various countries gathered here, including a Gabonese who came for a prenatal check-up, a Russian who came to get high blood pressure medicine, and a Cameroonian who injured his back while working.

Ansan Vincent Clinic, which opened as a free clinic, treats patients in extreme poverty who cannot use medical institutions because they do not have a health insurance card or protection card. Most of the patients are undocumented foreign workers. The target that the Korean church should be interested in has expanded to foreigners who do not receive medical benefits. Since the 2000s, foreign workers who came to Korea to earn money did not receive health insurance benefits and could not go to the hospital even if they were sick. Because they couldn't afford the expensive hospital bills.

To take care of those in the blind spot of medical benefits, the church opened Seoul Raphael Clinic (1997), Chuncheon Jericho Clinic (2003), Incheon Catholic Free Clinic, and Ansan Vincent Clinic (2004) one after another.

 

Sister Yang Su-ja, director of Ansan Vincent Clinic, said: "If there were many foreign workers in the 2000s looking for free clinics, climate refugees and war refugees have been looking for clinics since 2015." . As health insurance benefits for migrant workers have been expanded, the number of visits to clinics by Chinese, Vietnamese and Filipinos has decreased, but the number of patients from Africa and the Middle East has increased. Sister Yang explained that most of those who couldn't even think of going to the hospital because they had to work and live every day went to a free clinic only when they became ill and in a desperate situation. 

 

"Foreign mothers are more likely to give birth prematurely or give birth to high-risk newborn babies due to unstable circumstances," said Father Kim  chairperson of the Inchon Diocese Committee for Migrant Pastoral Care. We are looking for ways we can help.

 

Sister Yang also said: "Unregistered foreigners cannot get out of the bondage of poverty and when they cannot find a job and get sick the free clinics are their only resort." She added, "As the operation of free clinics has slowed down due to Corona 19, it is difficult to supply medical volunteers." She hopes that we will continue to be concerned with the poor sick in our society.

A Ladder to Heaven (The Seven Victories)

In the latest issue of the Kyeongyang Magazine, there is an article on the well-known book The Seven Victories, which was written in Chinese by the Jesuit priest Diego de Panatoja (1571-1618). 

The book contains an explanation of what we know as the 7 deadly sins and the prescription for their conquest with the contrary virtues. The following will be a brief summary of the contents of the article written by a university professor.

What is the reason for life? How do we live this life? Why do we continue to commit the same sins? How to live a life of virtue? Once we arrive at such a stage is it possible to remain there?

In Confucianism, we have various feelings: joy, anger, sadness, delight, fear, love, dislike, and desire and what comes from the deep self are the four moral feelings of compassion; a heart ashamed of being unrighteous and hates not being good; the heart that knows how to be humble and says no when necessary; a mind that knows how to judge right and wrong. In Buddhism, we have the 3 poisons: greed, hate/anger, and ignorance/stupidity.

In China when they heard the Catholic missioners' teaching they considered it a lower form of Buddhism and paid no attention. The missioners began a deep study of the spoken and written language to encounter the educated class in China. Matthew Ricci wrote the True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven, and Diego de Panatoja the Seven Victories (mortification). Reading these books one did not have a feeling they were reading a book on religion but were filled with words of wisdom and were well received by the educated class.

The Seven Victories was translated also into Japanese and Korean and read by the educated classes. In Korea, it spread even among ordinary Christians as a spiritual text. 

This book is divided into chapters and sections, focusing on major concepts, and explanations. Not only the core concepts discussed but also vivid and interesting illustrations were given which remained with the reader. It makes for an amazing experience. In other words, the Western, deductive method of knowledge was creatively accepted by Chinese intellectuals who were accustomed to inductive oriental thinking.

In the Seven Victories, we have a list of the seven capital sins that we can easily commit: Pride, Jealousy, Greed, Anger, Gluttony, Lust, and Laziness. The seven virtues that we need to overcome these faults: humility is needed to overcome pride; jealousy is overcome by forgiveness; greed is overcome by grace; anger by patience; gluttony by temperance; lust with chastity, and laziness with diligence.

The fruit of sin eaten unknowingly brings forth disease, all kinds of sorrow, and tribulation in the world. To become citizens of the kingdom of heaven, we must uproot this tree of sin from within our hearts. 

 

 

Buddhist Enlightment— Helping us to Carry Our Crosses

 

One of the Catholic Retreat Centers has taken the Buddhist 10 Ox herding pictures, often seen in the Buddhist Temples in Korea and given them a Christian interpretation. The steps are used to deal with our personal Crosses ( sufferings we have to carry in life). 

1. The Search 

The first picture is the search for one's true nature which is signified by the ox. The person is searching for oneself that he does not know// In the Christian's life suffering comes suddenly into the person's life— One that needs to be accepted — one doesn't know what to do. 

2. Seeing the Footprints

In the second picture, he sees the footprints of the ox and has an idea of what to do// The Christian realizes even though not what he wants he has no other choice but to carry the cross.

3. Seeing the Bull 

The person sees the ox at a distance// In prayer the Christian begins to accept the meaning of the cross.

4. Catching the Bull 

Binding the 3 poisons: greed, ignorance, and hate which requires self-mortification and austerity// Realizing the need to carry the cross but with anger.

5. Taming the Bull

 Staying alert, and keeping all under control// He has fulfillment and joy but still resentment.

6. Riding the Bull home 

The Bull and the self become one the struggle is over// The cross carries me freedom is achieved.

7. The Bull Transcended

The Bull is forgotten. One's inner nature and the person are one. Integration// Looking back, thru the cross another aspect of God's love is discovered.

8. Both the Bull and Self Transcended

Everything becomes clear, Empty but full// One knows that Christ is within. Gal. 2,19-20

9. Oneness with Nature

The fullness of life// Realization that we are living in God's kingdom.

10. Return to Society

Returns to ordinary life after one reaches fullness and is ready to help others// Goes in search of others who are suffering to give them strength.

 

Indo-Pacific Strategy for Freedom, Peace and Prosperity

 

In the Catholic Peace Weekly, Diagnosis of the Times column, a Catholic University professor gives the readers his  thoughts on a recent statement from the government.

On December 28, the government announced a report titled “Indo-Pacific Strategy for Freedom, Peace, and Prosperity,” and held a briefing session hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The report declared that “Korea is an Indo-Pacific country” and emphasized that “regional stability and prosperity are directly related to the national interest of the Republic of Korea.

The name Indo-Pacific is still unfamiliar to ordinary citizens. Rather, the term Asia-Pacific is more familiar. Why bother to let go of a familiar name and use a new, unfamiliar name? For this reason, it is necessary to point out that the concept of Indo-Pacific has rapidly become internationally accepted and universalized over the past few years.

Indo-Pacific, a geopolitical concept encompassing the Indian and Pacific Oceans, has been used as an official strategic concept in the United States since the end of 2017. Before that, Japan and Australia first actively reflected the concept of Indo-Pacific in their respective diplomatic strategies. In particular, Japan actively introduced the concept of Indo-Pacific to the United States. Since then, ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) has published an Indo-Pacific outlook report, and major European countries such as the European Union (EU), Germany, France, and the United Kingdom have also announced their own Indo-Pacific policies.

The fact that China's foreign behavior has changed aggressively has served as a background factor for the generalization of the name Indo-Pacific. In other words, several countries in the region felt the need to respond to the perception and prospect that the rising China was trying to revise the existing liberal world order. In this respect, the check against China's revisionism can be said to be the hidden purpose of the concept of Indo-Pacific.

The announcement of the Indo-Pacific Strategy Report by the Korean government this time has the greatest significance in keeping pace with many Indo-Pacific countries. Among them, it seems that the core of the concern was how to cooperate with the US while being highly conscious of the Indo-Pacific strategy.

However, the government's Indo-Pacific report suggested inclusiveness as one of the principles of cooperation within the region, leaving open the possibility of cooperation with China to the extent possible. In this respect, there is a certain difference from the US Indo-Thai strategy, which has a strong character of containing China, but it is an unavoidable setting for Korea, which cannot sever economic relations with China at once.

However, there is no strategic concern beyond positioning between the US and China. The report presents the vision of “the Indo-Pacific of freedom, peace and prosperity” and the cooperative principles of “inclusion, trust and mutual benefit”, “establishing a regional order based on norms and rules, cooperation in promoting the rule of law and human rights, and counter-terrorism and non-proliferation nine key tasks are also presented, including strengthening cooperation and expanding comprehensive security cooperation. However, it is regrettable that there is no sufficient explanation on how to promote and achieve these visions, principles, and tasks.

The geopolitical concept of the Indo-Pacific emerged and became common against the background of competition between the US and China, but the role of major countries other than the two countries is also important for the development of regional order. Of course, the ups and downs of US-China relations will primarily determine the nature of the regional order. However, since both the US and China are actively seeking solidarity and alliances with other countries, how other major countries in the region respond and what role they play is a variable that cannot be ignored.

In this respect, there is room for middle powers such as Korea to actively exercise leadership and to do so, they need their own meticulous strategies. Although the government's Indo-Pacific strategy report was virtually a vision declaration, it is expected that the government will prepare and implement more specific strategies for regional freedom, peace, and prosperity through follow-up work.

Catholic Rules of Law

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The Axioms in the interpretation of Catholic Law and regulations gathered over the centuries  would do a great deal in making our  society more human, genteel, kinder and healthier. Below is a list of some of the axioms in no particular order to remember in dealing with others in writing and speech.

When there is a doubt as to the sincerity of the narrator (when relating facts), we ought to understand it favorably.

It is better that scandal be allowed, than the truth be forsaken.

Necessity makes licit what in law is illicit.

He who fulfills a precept out of fear, does other than he ought, and thus really does not fulfill it.

There is no excuse for the shepherd who does not know that the wolf has devoured the sheep.

It is unworthy  that one should be compelled to render worship.

When the rights of either are obscure, the defendant is to be given the benefit of the doubt.

Odious things ought  to be restricted, while favorable ones ought to be extended.

He who involves himself in an affair which does not concern him, is not without fault.

One ought not to suffer for the offensive conduct of another.

One delays to his own detriment.

To one knowing and willing no injury or fraud is done.

That which pertains to all ought to be approved by all.

In obscure matters the minimum ought to be followed.

No one can  change his mind (judgement, advice , decision) to the detriment of another.

He who is silent seems to consent.

He who is silent admits nothing, neither affirms nor denies anything.

Ignorance is presumed, where knowledge is not proved.

If the law is doubtful there is (for all practical purposes) no law; a doubtful obligation is no obligation.

General words are to be understood generally.

The deduction from the red to the black is valid. (i.e., an inference from the red 'the title', to interpret 'the black' the text is valid.

This partial list of axioms was taken from the compilation done my Maryknoll Seminarians in 1955.