Understanding Spirituality

A priest, writing on spirituality for the Catholic Times, simplifies our understanding of spirituality by dividing it into four categories: basic, special, infused, and personal.

Basic spirituality, as the words imply, is foundational, dealing with the evangelical virtues of poverty,  purity and obedience; and with the supernatural virtues of  faith, hope and charity. This is the spirituality to be followed by Christians.

Special spirituality, however, is not for everybody. In the history of the Church, there have been many spiritual practices: Dominican, Jesuit, Franciscan, Benedictine, Legion of Mary, among others. It is the spirituality that attracts certain individuals, there being no obligation to follow this spirituality, thus the reason it's called special.

Infused spirituality involves contemplation, exemplified by Theresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. This spirituality is a gift of grace, the working of God in us. It may seem only for the few among us but our columnist says it is possible for all.

Speaking broadly. these three spiritual ways--basic, special and infused--are all directed to forming our own personal spirituality, the forth category. But what is important is not any particular spirituality but how they operate in us, how they affect our living.

Spirituality begins within the human condition. We were made with this spiritual possibility as the fulfillment of our humanity. Just as we can forget to be  thankful for the water and air needed for our physical well being, we can also forget our natural inclination for spirituality.Becoming intent only on our present reality and tending to see only the difficulties, we miss, the columnist says, the whole picture. The true meaning of life, the goal of all four spiritual practices is the  seeing, appreciating and living the ultimate reality.                                                                                           

Bishop's Letter to the Young--Life and Happiness

What is taking  hold of  young people's hearts these days? Are they happy? Do they appreciate the proper place of happiness in life? Materialism and the search for pleasure are the issues the bishop of Suwon wants to discuss with the young.

His book, Life and Happiness, written up in both Catholic papers, discusses these issues. The bishop has a doctorate in Moral Theology and has published a number of books in this field, but this latest book is addressed to young people, in language that is easily understood.

The bishop is concerned that young people today are facing intense competition in all areas of life. Their capabilities and uniqueness are often ignored and, after entering a prestigious college and graduating, most will enter a marketplace where work is difficult to find.  He wants to help them, first by cultivating their humanity. For many of them, even before they become familiar with who they are and the beauty of life, they will be exposed to a false materialism that will inflict emotional scars--these the bishop wants to help heal.

We are made to be happy, he says, and the book is his letter of hope to the young, who will not be able to find the reasons for this happiness, he says, from the current values of society; he also shows why a faith-life is important in achieving true happiness.

The bishop faults the grownups for much of the problem. The older generation, whose values have been compromised so what they say about happiness is not acceptable, must change and return to basic moral values. There is little in the life of people of faith that distinguishes them from those without faith. If  believers are seen as such only in church  and yet  live as though without any religious beliefs, what meaning does religion have?  Doesn't the Church then become just  a social gathering? he asks.

Individuals and groups, for the most part, are not moved by virtue but by opportunism, subjective and emotional tendencies that are deeply embedded in society. And when parents are not guided by moral principles, when they are not convinced of the rightness of their actions, they convey to their children that truth is relative and all values are subjective. It is with the recovery of proper values by the older generation that the bishop sees the young returning to a happier lifestyle.

The bishop reminds us that life is like having a bank account. But instead of money in our account, every morning 86,400 seconds are deposited in our life account.  However, every morning, unlike money in a bank account, if our seconds are not used,  they disappear and another account opens next morning. This is what we are given in time, and it is up to us to use these moments well. They are God's daily gift to us. The bishop is asking young people how do they intend to use this gift.

Understanding Children Not Always Easy

In his pastoral diary,  appearing  in the Peace Weekly, a priest working with young people recounts a troubling experience that keeps repeating each Sunday at the 9 o'clock morning Mass for children. Just before the sermon, around 9:15, a number of stragglers would enter the church, a not uncommon occurrence in most parishes.
  
He  called these latecomers 15-minute friends. In the beginning, he just laughed and showed little concern. But as time passed, the numbers coming late increased. He did not know why this was happening but decided to find out. At first he thought that since Sunday was a day of rest the children had difficulty getting up in the morning. Surprisingly, this had nothing to do with it.

The children told him they intended to get to the Mass on time, but spending time waiting was just too tedious, the waiting seemed endless.

To get a better grasp of the problem, every Sunday he began examining what was happening in the congregation. The ones that came early would play with their cell phones, their heads down, or they would be reading the Church bulletin. The adults and others in the church would not be concerned with them, and he began to reflect on his own lack of concern on what might be going on in the minds of these children.

Boredom seemed to be at the root of the problem. So the priest decided to start a welcoming group made up  of high school students. They would come early to the morning Mass for children and spend time with them, making friends. In just a few months there was a noticeable change in the children. The high school students enjoyed what they were doing. And the boredom of the young children before Mass ended.

Children find  boredom difficult to accept. And yet finding ways to deal with the boredom is a great growth experience. Expecting  children to sit and visit with the Blessed Sacrament may be asking  too much; it's even difficult for an adult who does not have the proper motivation. However, the attempt to spend quiet time with Jesus in the tabernacle should not be seen as an impossibility. With time and proper instruction attitudes do  change. Jesus said, "Let the children come to me. Do not hinder them. The kingdom of God belongs to such as these" (Matt. 19:14).  .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

                            

Survival Motif of Society

Seven singers appear once a week on a popular TV program called "I am a singer," and each week one of them is disqualified. The studio audience of  five hundred votes and the singer with the lowest score is eliminated, replaced the following week by another singer. The columnist in the Catholic Times begins his article with the thought that this "I am a singer" syndrome has spread to all of society.

The columnist wants to know what has caused this frenzy. "Could it be the competition for survival, the survival motif, that is central to the program?" he wonders. The goal of the game is to stay in the game--staying 'alive'--as long as possible. He presumes that this similarity to the survival methods used to stay competitive in society is what gives the program its appeal.

That is the bitter side to the program's appeal. In our present society, the programs and projects that are getting so much public attention are often survival-related. It is seen not only in the world of singing competition, but in cooking, fashion, dieting and even in the  innocent world of games for the young. If the survival motif is not there, it is considered, cynically, as lagging behind the times.

We all from an early age learn to survive. Our friends, even brothers and sisters, become potential competitors. Our writer sees neo-liberalism as the culprit. Society is becoming more jungle-like, and our attempts at survival more cruel. Everybody wants to disassociate from this jungle but the situation is such that it is difficult. So they give themselves to their cravings and are controlled by them.

For those who are trying to live a life of faith, the influence from  society with the emphasis, "I have to live first" is not small.  In the parish and in parish groups  the  survival game is played; others are seen as competitors and pushed to the side. Because of this competitive mentality some are saying, even in the Church, we are not experiencing the fullness of humanity.

As Christians we know that the order and values of God's kingdom are different than those on earth.  Victors on the earth are not necessarily the ones that God sees as victorious. God, we are told, makes the first last and the last first.

We all make our 'Gunghap'

When people are considering marriage in Korea the word Gunghap is often heard. This is the matching of the four pillars (saju): time, day, month and year of birth, with the five elements (metal,water,fire,wood and earth). With this information the fortune teller forecasts the couple's marital harmony. Gunghap has a long history; it's used not only for marrying couples but for other relationships, including business purposes. When the  reading is not propitious then the Gunghap is not considered good.

A priest from the Suwon diocese, who heads the Family Pastoral Research Center, writes about the Gunghap in his column in the Korean Times. For a Catholic, putting one's trust in this method and in effect turning away from God, is to rely on superstition and give oneself over to idolatry. No matter what the reading of the Gunghap is, the couple themselves will determine their future.

In the reading of the Gunghap, the focus is on determining what qualities the partners have in common and the qualities that are antagonistic. The priest says that in his experience, he has found that it is precisely the non-common, 'antagonistic' aspects of personality that unite a couple, rather than separating them as the Gunghap believes. The effort to come to terms with these often friction-causing aspects of personality, the priest says, that helps foster understanding and concern for the other. Seeing their own failings and making an effort to understand the other, they become more like each other.

Dialogue is what is important and the time together to foster heart-to-heart conversation. It is not just enjoying each others company. It is getting to know the other deep down: what they like and dislike, what was difficult in their growing up years, what was their relationship with parents and siblings, what is their world view and values in life, what are their dispositions, personality and efforts to come to an objective  understanding of what they are facing in life.

Catholics in the past. he  explains, made much of having the same religious belief. But in Korea because we have few Catholics, the Church allows for a dispensation marriage although Church Law does not allow for the marrying of a non-Catholic. Among devout Catholics, in times past, a dispensation was never even considered; they would make efforts to have the partner baptized before the wedding. This has always been considered an important element in a happy marriage.

With the passage of time the partners in a happy marriage become more like each other. This is because the sacrifices and concern for the other has made the Gunghap  similar. They know each other, and with constant dialogue their thoughts and hearts tend to become one.

Importance of Interfaith Dialogue

Korea is seen by many to be a country where religions can exist in harmony.  Few countries have the variety of religions living side by side with so little friction: indigenous religions, religions from the outside, and a mixture of these. There is no religion that  can be considered representative of the country. And although it is easy to say that Koreans have a spiritual outlook on life, almost half of them do not consider themselves believers. Some would even say that Korea is one of the 10 most atheistic countries in the world.

Statistics mean little without interpretation, and yet there is something that is unique about the way Koreans see life and its meaning. Percentage-wise, Christianity has more followers in Korea, except for the Philippines and East Timor, than in other Asian countries. There is a feeling on the part of Koreans to live and let live; they do not like to confront others or inflict pain. Foreigners can see this as somewhat artificial: saying yes when they mean no. The Korean, however,  has little difficulty in understanding what is meant.

Shamanism, also a part of the religious background, influencing many other religions, including Christianity, helps to explain the Korean openness to other beliefs, even though most religions  have beliefs that can be considered exclusive or absolute or deeply embedded within a culture . The many years of Buddhist and Confucian ascendancy have greatly influenced the culture and the way Koreans see the world, sometimes for good and sometimes for the not so good. 

One of the big changes in our understanding of Catholicism since the II Vatican Council is the openness of  the Church to other religions and its desire to participate in interfaith dialogue and ecumenical contacts. The Church, realizing  that many of the conflicts in the world--in the past and in the present--have had a religious basis, wants to work for a world without conflict and oppression. The Church strongly supports religious freedom; though proposing  what she believes is true she does not desire others to believe against their will. The words we hear often today: "She proposes, not imposes."

An  example of the efforts of the Korean Church to foster understanding among religions is the 4th annual meeting of religions sponsored by the Korean bishops. On June 23 and 24, the bishops and the apostolic nuncio, with 19 deacons, will be spending time learning about other religions, as they visit with the Orthodox, Anglicans, Buddhists, and  Islamists.

The need for such exchanges is felt by many. Others are also doing what they can as individuals, as parishes, and as religious communities to  foster understanding and respect for the  beliefs of others. Seeing the need, the Korean bishops have increased the formal exchanges to twice a year. A sign to the whole Church of the importance of interfaith dialogue.

Chasing After the Rainbow--A Parable

Naming in order the  seven colors of the rainbow, our columnist in the Catholic Times recalls from his school days that if the light waves were either longer or shorter we would not see the beauty of the rainbow. Each color has its special  place in the rainbow but its relationship with the others is indistinct. How far do the colors extend is impossible to determine but they all make up the rainbow.

The writer  gives us this as a  parable  of our present 'reality' and  'ideal' relationship. The colors of the rainbow melt into each other and yet are separate.The writer wants us to see our present reality and ideal  relating in this way.

Reality and the ideal  are joined together as the colors of the rainbow, in a way that each has its own domain. As a writer he has to prepare his manuscripts if he is to make his living; take the children to school for their exam; these actions are part of the here and now.  In the mix are the thoughts that precede these  actions. Thoughts may be part of the near or distant future, but they are moving and giving direction to the  present reality.

When giving a brief talk at a celebration or a memorial when numbers or quantities are mentioned the audience does not seem to be paying attention, but they are all ears. If he mentions how much he makes  during a month, the audience begins comparing the figure to what they receive: "I am doing better than he is."Hearing a figure larger makes the listener want  to do something to change the reality. On the other hand, when you say something  that can't be refuted, concerning a  model for  good living that fits reality and hits home, everybody is apparently listening  but nobody is interested, and they forget quickly. A defense reaction takes over--people don't like to be taught.

When we very minutely look at some reality, one of its kind, according to the subjective mentality of the individual the boundaries of  what is being viewed seem to oscillate. When we go back into history this is even more evident.  Imagination comes into play and we often see a  mirage.

Present reality, actuality, present condition, real life are items  opposite to  desire, ideal,  dream, myth, and fiction. Concerning the boundary lines between them  he quotes a poet who  said that ' what is real begins to become myth and  lies become history.'

The writer asks the readers, whether the parable  of the rainbow as an explanation of reality and the ideal, succeeds. The parable of the rainbow is beautiful  beyond dispute. Living is difficult, cold, sad, living with pollution, contamination facing death, and yet we are taking one step at a time towards the  beauty that is beckoning us. The ideal directs reality, the ideal that is rooted in the present. He concludes with the words of another poet, Wordsworth in his  poem 'Rainbow':   'The child is the father of the man.'   

Translating this vague and philosophical article  was without  doubt done poorly, but since there were certain thoughts the writer expressed which were interesting and primed the mind, it appears above with apologies to the columnist.