Prayer Meeting at Assisi

On Oct. 27 there will be a meeting of many religions at Assisi for a day of prayer and dialogue.  Koreans have little difficulty understanding the importance of what is being attempted at Assisi, but this is not true in some parts of the Catholic world. Korea, however, has been a good model for others to follow in learning how religions can succeed in living together in harmony.

A priest-professor at Sogang University, writing in a Catholic magazine, expressed dismay at some of the problems we have had between religions in recent years. Korea, he says, is a museum of religions. In our history Confucianism, Buddhism, Christianity, and  many other religions peculiar to Korea  have lived together in harmony. To have this religious harmony, he says it's necessary for them to be independent of the government and that the dignity of the individual be respected, since it forms the foundation allowing for our freedom of choice and the practice of religion.

The professor gives us a little history of how the Church in the past has understood freedom of religion. It was thought that in the presence of truth, there is no reasonable choice possible but to choose the truth. That by not choosing truth a person is choosing error. And that this freedom of not choosing the truth results in propagating indifference and relativism, and as opening the way to acknowledging the truth of other religions, diminishing the importance of belief in Jesus. It was thought to be destructive of the Church and, ultimately, of the individual since the truths of the Church were considered crucial to living the good life. To safeguard these truths, and the welfare of the individual, it was thought necessary to stress the error of other religions.

Many years later, the Church found that the best possible solution to adopt in religious matters was to tolerate other religions. This tolerance was not based on human dignity or rights but based on politics and the necessity of having stable societies.  In other words, to prevent greater social evil the Church accepted lesser evil. After much discussion at the Second Vatican Council, the Church fully accepted the right of all people to have freedom of religion, which was promulgated in the  Declaration of Religious Freedom (Dignitatis Humanae--#1): "A sense of the dignity of the human person has been impressing itself more and more deeply on the consciousness of contemporary man. And the demand is increasingly made that men should act on their own judgment, enjoying and making use of a responsible freedom, not driven by coercion but motivated by a sense of duty." This was a positive acceptance of freedom of religion as a fundamental right of  all. In the long history of the Church this was a new understanding. The Church was now acknowledging that the freedom that she had been working for in human dignity and fundamental rights includes freedom of religion.

The Church, in accepting this freedom of religion, is not relativizing the truth it teaches, but now sees that God's word can be expressed through other religions. The many beautiful and good things in other religions, the Church acknowledges. God's word makes us free. And it is God's word in all religions that is working, in its various ways, to make us free. Humans who are seeking  freedom should have the freedom to choose their religion. A religion that does not allow this freedom cannot talk about freedom.
                                                                                                                                                        

Benedictine Monks Protesting with Area Residents

Some months ago, the burial of  Agent Orange containers in a US military  base  here in Korea was brought  to the attention of the Koreans.  From the time of hearing the news reports the residents around Camp Carroll, an American military camp in the southeast of Korea, have  been living with anxiety.

The Catholic Times has reported that the Benedictine monks at Waegwan Monastery, located close to Camp Carol, sent a letter of protest to the Environment and Labor Committee of the Government. Former U.S. servicemen  said they buried the toxic chemicals in 1978. However, an American and Korean team of investigators announced they had found no traces of Agent Orange. The American military now admits that barrels of toxic material were buried at Camp Carroll, but were later dug up and removed.

Letters of protest from residents of the area make clear that they are not  relieved by the report of the joint investigation team, which satisfied neither the residents nor the monks, especially when the Catholic Times reported that the American servicemen  have said that the place where they buried the containers was near a helicopter landing area, and the investigating team did not go to that area. The residents also want the SOFA (status of forces agreement)  amended to avoid similar occurrences in the future.

In recent years there has  been a lack of trust in the way the American military has conducted itself in Korea. It is not only the residents of Waegwan that the the monks are concerned about;  news reports indicate that many of the other American military bases have underground water pollution much higher than government standards allow. To deal with all these revelations and the anxiety of the residents, the monks are asking the government to begin an independent investigation that will be transparent and put to rest the worries of the residents.

Educational System to Emulate

After seeing a video on Finland's schools, a priest working with the youth in the diocese, in an article for priests, compares the school system of Finland with the one we have here in Korea.  Finland 60 years ago was, he says, very similar to Korea, but since then both countries have gone in different directions.

"Since we have nothing, nothing is to be thrown away" sums up the Finnish approach to any issue or problem. Being a small powerless country, it  considers their people its greatest resource, and believes any society formed by those that have been brought up to compete with others is not healthy, and that all of a student's strong points have to be developed to have a healthy country. These were the thoughts of the priest as he watched the video.

For the first nine years of schooling in Finland, there are no exams and no grades. You compete with yourself and not with others. After 9 years, there is a national exam that determines what schools and  students are doing well and not so well. What the priest found significant and different were the efforts being made to help the students and schools that are not doing well.  Finland's educational policy is designed to help raise the level of all the students and all the schools, with the goal of producing better students and schools. No one in this educational agenda is to be left out, and it's all free until the master's degree in college.

Both Finland and Korea score very high in the international tests, but the priest notes that in Finland, they have no private programs of study; they are interested in all the students, not only the good students. In Korea, however, the students have no time to play but are always at the books, preparing for exams.  He asks, whimsically, why is it that Korean students have the world's greatest amount of private study, studying from morning until night, and yet don't do any better than students from a country without private study and with concern for helping the poorer student?

The priest recalls a meeting of all those in the diocese who work with students. They went to where a priest  had a shelter for young people. The priest at the shelter shocked the group by recounting that in the past those who had difficulty fitting in at school were disciplined or suspended for a short period of time but now  told not to come back to school. Many of them wander the streets, receive food aid, and are involved  with drugs.He laments that the  present situation with our young people is troubling.

Our society finds it easy to see and reward the attractive,  bright and accomplished young people but not so keen in helping the unattractive, slow-to-learn and less accomplished. Finland has made an important discovery that Korea, and the rest of the world would do well to acknowledge and emulate.  Incorporating the best features of the Finnish school system means less emphasis on  the economics of the  country and  more interest  on its greatest resource people.

Korean College Entrance Exams

One of the trials high school students face in Korea is their college entrance exams. It has turned into an ordeal because of how important passing the exams has become in the culture. Whether it deserves to be so important is another question, but the extraordinary effort often made to pass the exams makes the life of the students and parents difficult.

The president of a girl's Catholic high school in Seoul writes a letter of encouragement  to those who, in about 100 days, will be taking those dreaded exams. The sister- president begins by mentioning the weather, the damage and even deaths caused  by the rains, and during this time, she feels sure they have been at their desks preparing for the exams.

"All of you in 3rd year high school and those taking the exam again are in my heart," she tells them, "and I want to show you my concern. You have worked hard at your studies and have overcome the temptation to play. You have nurtured your dream and have sweated much. Your parents and teachers have encouraged you, but you have no peace and are fretful."

She continues by telling the students that they will feel unprepared for the exams, that the time is short and that they will be comparing themselves with others and come up short.  That one day of exams, she says, will be a judgement not only on their high school years but on their whole 12 years of schooling. She, as a predecessor and one who spends time with them in school, wants to say something that she hopes will give them some peace.

"First of all, the exam is not determining your individual value or capabilities," she reminds them,  "but your faithfulness to the study program; it will give you a chance to look at your attitude to life and to examine it. Of course, you can see what your objectives were and can determine whether your efforts were satisfying and sufficient. It is the first serious exam you will be taking  but it is not everything." She prays that they do not drink the bitter cup of defeat from the exams.

She goes on to say that she has met many who, by experiencing the anguish of defeat, have grown strong and mature. In life, there are many exams and trials, failing some and succeeding with others, but what is necessary is to do your best and leave the rest up to God.

She wants them to consider, above all else, their health and what would be a fitting way for them to spend this last period of study. 100 days is still a good period of time, but if they face it as in a sprint, the chances are they will tire out quickly. She also hopes they will have the peace of mind to see the other students not only as competitors but as deserving of the same victorious results as they hope for themselves.

She ends her words of encouragement with the following prayer: "Lord, may our students receive the results that their efforts merit. May they have a clear mind enabling them to display what they have learned. And if by chance they don't do well may they not become dejected but give them patience and strength. Amen."

Korean Catholic Church Efforts in Mission Overseas

At the Suwon Cathedral, the diocese will be ordaining 17 deacons to the priesthood on August 19th. With this class of newly ordained, we will have 417 priests in the diocese, and, as Korea continues to be blessed with vocations, 4,490 priests in the country, for about 5 million Catholics, which makes it  relatively easy for our bishops to plan and develop programs for the dioceses.

Interviewed by the Catholic Times, Auxiliary Bishop Jung of Inchon, on returning from a meeting of Korean missioners in Panama working in Latin America, knows that Korea by sending missioners to countries in need of them, will be  blessed. Korea will be returning to other countries what Korea has received from foreign missioners.

Bishop Jung, president of the  Committee for Pastoral Care of Koreans Living Abroad, carefully expressed in the interview his feelings on a name change for the committee. "It is not the overseas Koreans but evangelization overseas that should be the focus of our work, " he said. "Consequently it is time to change the name of the committee to the more appropriate title of  Evangelization in Overseas Missions." He feels that the committee should have its primary interest in missions overseas to the non-Christian. "Water that stays put putrefies," he said. "The Church's involvement in mission work will make us break out of our stagnate situation."

The bishop concludes the interview by saying, "The missioners overseas need your financial aid but more so your interest and  prayers.  I hope all  understand that  missions  overseas are not the work of others; there are many places that we can be of help. The Committee for Pastoral Care of Koreans Living Abroad will form a network for missioners abroad, supporting and publicizing their efforts; to this task, I will zealously devote myself."

Hearing what the bishop had to say brought to mind our own Catholic Mission Society of America (Maryknoll) that will be celebrating this year our centennial year. Sadly, we are not doing well in recruiting vocations to the missionary life, as once was the case. I received a few days ago a video, another attempt to  move  the hearts of our young people to consider the work of mission. The efforts  of those assigned to this very important work are great, but the results are few. For those interested, the video can be seen at: http://www.vimeo.com/27536509.

Building a Culture of Life

The Peace Weekly, in efforts to strengthen the culture of life movement, is spreading the word in its weekly column and  news dispatches. In a recent issue a professor emeritus of the Catholic University reports that the birthrate in Korea is the lowest in the world. Theoretically, to maintain the present population each couple has to give birth to one daughter who in turn gives birth to another daughter. In Korea this is not happening.

What makes the  situation worse is that women in larger numbers than in the past  are avoiding marriage. And those who do marry but don't want children is increasing. In  2005, the number of women who said it was of little concern to them whether they married or not was 44.9 percent. 35 percent said it made no difference whether they had children or not; in 1997, it was only 9.7 percent, a colossal change.

This change began in 1961 with the government's efforts to lower the birthrate. Their approach was to dispense family planning advice in public health centers, with personnel having little sensitivity to the circumstances of the expectant mother, recommending to all the use of artificial means of birth control. Another means to lower the birthrate was to curtail health insurance for giving birth to a third child. In addition, those who were sterilized were given preference for apartments. During this time, there was a climate of not respecting the human rights of citizens in these matters, and abortion became the accepted method of reducing births.  

Other countries are showing more anxiety  with our reduced birthrate than we are, the professor laments.  David Coleman, professor of demography at Oxford, said that if Korea continues in its present direction, it will be the first nation to disappear from the earth. The UN Future Forum also said that if the birthrate in Korea continues to decrease, by 2305, it will be a country with a population of 50,000, 20,000 men and 30,000 women. This should make us think seriously about our present policies.

Our government, however, is now working to bring about a change, to alleviate the most pressing problems. With many avoiding giving birth because of the expense of raising and educating the children, the government is offering help to lessen the financial burden.  Many local governments are giving about $10,000 for any 3rd child, but this is not having much of an  effect because of the persuasive policies of the recent past to lower birthrates.

In 1980,  one of the slogans was "Even one is many."  And the government set up the Family Planning Association to decrease the number of births. In 1999, this group became the Family Welfare Association, and in 2005, the name was again changed to the Public Health and Welfare Association, whose goal was now "Making a world fit for  children to be born." It soon became a movement to help raise and educate  children and to help sterile couples.  Looking back, the professor says it is laughable to see how exaggerated were the threats to the country of an increasing birthrate.

The Church from the beginning made clear its position on this issue, but was reviled by the government for not going along with their policy. It is important to do all that is possible to raise the birthrate but also to keep in mind the importance of bringing about a culture that sees the preciousness of life and the family.      

Experiencing the Religious Life

For more than ten years Buddhists in Korea have conducted temple-stay programs, providing an opportunity for both Koreans and foreigners to experience  the life of a Buddhist monk or nun  by living like they do for a few days.

One write-up on the temple-stay program quoted a monk, "Everyone has  the potential to be enlightened, but they have to overcome the greedy mind, the angry mind and the foolish mind." To quiet this 3-fold mind, time is spent in chanting, partaking in the tea ceremony and monastic formal meals, doing 108 prostrations, and practicing zen meditation. The experience is not easily forgotten.

Catholicism  has been influenced  by the success of these programs and now has similar programs in  many of their convents and monasteries, which will acquaint the young people during their vacation time on what the life of a Catholic religious is like. These programs did not start with the temple-stay programs but were given impetus by what they were able to achieve.

The Benedictines have had programs for all ages for a long time, and during student  vacation time, programs are aimed at the young men to help them experience the life of a Benedictine religious.  They live, eat, pray and work with the monks, reflect on their life, and work at developing a mature spiritual life. It gives them an opportunity to find vitality in the life of the spirit. Other Religious orders--Augustinian, Salesian, Jesuit, Dominican, and many others--have their own programs to introduce their particular spirituality to those who are interested.

The number attending these programs and the number of different religious groups that have developed programs continue to increase each year.  Both the sisters and monks have programs that help give the young an idea of what the religious life is, but at the same time help  to see themselves  on a deeper level.

Similar to these programs, and a quick way to learn, are the immersion programs that are available today, such as the language immersion programs and, offered by Maryknoll, mission immersion programs for those wanting to learn about mission life. It is a way of activating more than the head in the process of learning. The popularity of these retreats is a good sign of the desire of our young people to deepen their spiritual life. Hopefully, it will continue to develop.