Hearing, but not Caring to Understand

A 19-year-old only son left home on a motorcycle one night 25 years ago, and did not return that night as the mother expected. After waiting for her son all night, she had been told by a police officer next day that he died in an accident and that his face was beyond recognition. This tragedy, documented in a recent TV series, was the subject of an article in a priest bulletin.

The mother had to live with the memory of this tragedy for 25 years, until May of this year when her daughter received a call from the police station telling her that  Min-nam, the son they thought dead, was alive. The family had been offering the rites for the dead for the last 25 years, so it is not difficult to understand how the news was received.

The man who said he was the son had an accident and had been admitted to a hospital, where he had brain surgery. The doctor who performed the operation said that what he knew about the man and what the mother had said were identical.

After the accident this man, later confirmed to be Min-nam, spent ten months in the hospital.  Not being able to remember who he was, he was thought to be mentally defective and was admitted to a mental institution.

The man would often tell those who attended him his name, address and middle school from which he graduated, but no one  paid any attention to what he was saying. (This was before the fingerprinting of all citizens and a reason little was made of what Min-nam was saying.) The provincial office, with no fingerprints to certify what Min-nam was saying, also paid no attention to what they heard. It was a social worker who, on hearing the story, started checking and notified the family that he was alive. If it wasn't for the social worker, the writer has no doubt that there may well have been another 25 years of waiting for the family.  

"I will spend some  time looking into the case!" is the kind of response the writer feels is all too rare nowadays. Our busy lives do not allow most of us the time to look with sufficient attention into anything that doesn't seem immediately apparent to us.  Is unconcern for what is going on around us the reality we live in? he wonders.  This unconcern is what the writer worries may be happening to him. There are  many in our society, like Min-nam, he says, who live with others and are at the same time isolated from them. He hopes he will be freed enough from bias and indisposition to hear the cries of despair of those who need our concern..

Wisdom Gained from Fishing

The Catholic Times desk columnist recounts a fishing trip that he made with some friends, during which they caught few fish but came away with some interesting insights. On arriving at the island and seeing the color of the water, they made some judgements on what was to be the result of their trip.

The water was muddy, and one of his companions blurted out:  "Ouch, the water is disturbed, and we have been away from fishing for a long time; it will not be a good day."

The journalist, who admitted to not being an expert, came to the same conclusion. They started fishing at 3:00 in the afternoon and finished at 10:00 that evening, catching one flounder the size of a person's hand. One of the companions took time off to take a nap.

They had something to eat and returned home. One of them said that when the water is so muddy the fish can't see the bait, which means there is going to be a problem. They had picked the wrong day, he said, for fishing.  

Another said that it was not all bad; when the water is turned upside down, as it was on that day, it's time for a  cleaning; the top is exchanged with the bottom. The garbage at the bottom comes to the top and becomes food for the seagulls.  Fish also will be removing the edible material floating on the water. 

When things are disturbed, reflected the journalist, we  know what peace and  tranquility means. The journalist had come to the same conclusion in his own life: when things are upside down it is then that he makes the step to renew himself.

He wonders if this is not also true of the Church. When the Church appears to be too much at peace and too comfortable, he questions whether this is the reality. He sees the disturbance 'at the bottom' and wonders if this is being overlooked. He is left with the question: Is it a good thing to have what is happening at the bottom come to the top so that something can be done?

This is a question, he says, we all can ask ourselves. When we don't have transparency, we may be fooling ourselves into thinking all is well. That which bothers us, if not allowed to see the light, does not always leave us unharmed.Bringing to the light what is 'down below' can be the effort required to  remedy many of our troublesome issues.                                    

Things We Have Lost in Life

 

Looking at Our Present Reality

And Seeing the Things We Have Lost  in Life

(From an internet website and printed in the bulletin for priests.)

 
Buildings are taller but our characters have become smaller,
Turnpikes have become wider but our vision narrower.
Consumption has increased but our spirits poorer.

We buy more goods, but our happiness has decreased.
Houses have become larger but families smaller,
Life is more comfortable but there is less time to enjoy it.

Formal schooling has grown but elegance reduced,
Knowledge expanded but the ability to discern lessened.

Specialists are everywhere but problems have multiplied.

Medicines are many but our diseases have mushroomed.

Possessions have  multiplied but values decreased.
Words are many, actions meager, and lies abundant.

We live longer but have forgotten how to live,
And lost the ability to give meaning to life.

Grown taller but character has been dwarfed.
In the  search for more profit, relationships have suffered.
We have more leisure  but joy has diminished.

What has been said could probably have been said, similarly, for every century from the beginning of time. We can go back to Qoheleth where we are told that "All is vanity," and "What has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun." This puts the above in the right perspective.  We do not learn much, sadly, from our history. And as the saying goes are condemned to repeat it.

St. Benedict's Enlightened Leader

It  took us about 100 years to  see  business enterprises as  living organisms which is not difficult to understand. The way they function is going to determine the way the hearts of persons are going to be moved. Writing in the Peace Weekly a professor in the business department of a university wants us to see the influence of big business on society.

Employees, consumers,  investors and many others place much  hope in these enterprises. The energy of those involved with the enterprise will determine the success of the business.

The cells of the enterprise  are the workers; they have to be healthy if the enterprise is going to have vitality. This very obvious principle of management  is difficult to follow in this world of unlimited competition.  If a business enterprise wants to grow healthily it is necessary to be vigilant about the problems of unlimited  competition. 

There are examples of companies that have developed  this  concern for one another and  nurtured the growth of the company.  It is the enlightened  leader who is the motivating cause for the  growth  of the company and helping in the enlightenment of the workers. 


An enlightened leader can be described as  a loving and humble person. This is the secret that attracts one person to another. When the workers see  a leader as a father figure the workers  are more disposed to devote themselves to the work.


 Benedictines have shown  us  this type of management for the last 1500 years. This is what the Rule of St. Benedict says about the person who is responsible for the finance of the community.  " As cellarer of the monastery let there be chosen from the community one who is wise, of mature character, sober, not a great eater, not haughty, nor excitable, not offensive, not slow, not wasteful, but a God-fearing man who may be like a father to the whole community. "(Chapter 31)

The professor leaves us with the thought that one enlightened  leader in the world of business  with an inspiration has the possibility of changing the world. This  he sees as a great blessing.

Oriental Medicine and Sterility

From the very beginning of the Scriptures, in Genesis, we are told of God's desire that we are to propagate. The culture of life column in the Peace Weekly, written by a doctor of oriental medicine and a member of the Seoul Catholic Committee for Life, reflects on the problem that one out of five Korean couples desiring children are sterile.  

Many of these couples, after an examination that finds no medical reason for the infertility, will decide for artificial insemination. However, there are problems with this method. According to the doctor the method is used without first trying  to find the cause of the infertility, and solving the problem artificially sometimes results in failure, and often in multiple births. The health of the prospective mother, during this period of attempts to conceive and the repeated failures, is a serious concern for all involved in the use of this artificial solution to the problem, says the doctor.

Oriental  medicine, relying heavily on herbal preparations, looks for the causes of the problem, with the intention of bringing about conception naturally. It looks on sterility differently than Western medicine. Instead of describing the condition negatively as sterility, with the implication that it may be a permanent condition, oriental medicine prefers to describe it simply just as the woman is experiencing it: difficulty in conceiving.   

When a woman is not able to conceive they consider there is something not functioning properly in her body, even though the exams of Western medicine will find nothing wrong. The  doctor mentions that when a pregnant woman comes to him for consultation, he tells her that her womb will be the room for the baby for ten months, (Korean calculation)  and he will be trying to make it a place the baby will find congenial and will enjoy. 
 

This is the strong point of oriental medicine: it does not rely on the artificial means of fertilization in vitro to correct the problem, but is interested in using natural means to get the body to a condition where conception occurs naturally. Recently, even those who are following the Western procedures often come for natural medicines prescribed by the herb doctors.  

He ends the article by saying it is not only the women who may have the problem but the men may also share the responsibility for the 'difficulty in conceiving.' 

The TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) approach to restoring health is more philosophical and holistic than the scientific and logical approach of the West. The two approaches, when working together, will have a great deal to add to the world of medicine.

Spirituality According to St. Francis de Sales

How is your spirit? Asks a nun in the first sentence of the  book review on  Spirituality Speaks to Women,  in the  Catholic Times.  Diet for the spirit is the first step, she says. We have to get rid of the waste and gradually fill it with the good. When we starve  the body we don't automatically  get rid of  the fat and waste; the same  with the spirit by only suppressing our negative feelings, reproving and  condemning they don't just disappear. 

The nun strives to show how love  is shown in our daily life. The book  attempts to understand the internal life and the awakening to this life of the spirit.  Awakening  is the strength of spirituality. Accepting correctly the  strength of spirituality and putting it into practice, we rid ourselves of worries and  uneasiness and begin using time well, better our relations with others,  and improve our prayer life. She works with the spirituality of St. Francis de Sales.


To live daily with joy and happiness it is necessary to look at our internal life. It seems like a big order and fills one with anxiety. But she says that working on spiritually does not mean asceticism, becoming a saint, and transcendent experiences, but rather taking concern for our inner life.


The  sister tells us not to confuse feelings with the spirit.  Many can't keep feelings separated from personality. There are persons that are rough in their  manner who once known are virtuous and those who are gentle but once known  are not so good.
 
 How do we distinguish between spirit and  feelings? When we are moved by our feelings  and act on them; it may seem that we feel relieved, but  the spirit is uncomfortable. When we do what the spirit wants it may at first seem difficult,  but at the end we are at peace. This will take energetic effort  on our part.

When despondent and  anxious the sister wants us to ask ourselves why? Not to judge or give blame but rather  to acknowledge what is bothering us. It is this light that comes from reflection that  tells us  in what  direction  we are to go and the sign of growth in the spiritual life.

Epics and the Culture of Life

Epics appeared late in the maturation of culture, allowing us to appreciate the progressive  unfolding  of humanity in  narrative, poetry, and  myths, which gradually developed into the literature of the country.

Writing in the Peace Weekly a professor, in the Culture of Life Research Institute, reflects on epics and what they can tell us about humanity, about the meaning of life, our relationship with nature and, ultimately, about human desires. Reading the classics, the professor says, opens us to another way of seeing our world, and coming to a new understanding of  the conditions and meaning of life. The tragedies of life make us think deeply of their meaning. We ask ourselves, what are our tragedies and how can we best face them.

The legend of Tangun, for example, familiar to all Koreans, tells us about a particular image of humanity and its character by recounting the tale of Hwanin (God of Heaven) and his love for the earth and humanity. Hwanung, the son of Hwanin, wanted to live on the earth to provide humans with great happiness. When he learned that in a cave lived a bear and a tiger praying to become human, Hwanung gave them garlic and some mug wort. They were to eat this food and stay out of the sunlight for 100 days. The tiger gave up but the bear remained and was transformed into a woman. The woman prayed to be blessed with a child. Moved by  her prayer Hwanug took her for his wife, and she gave birth to a handsome son named Tangun--the beginning of the Korean people.
 
This legend tells us much about how we see ourselves. The temptation to get out in the sunlight was too great for the tiger and he failed the test of endurance. It is when we are suffering the greatest ordeal that we show our humanity. Truth, even when not acknowledged, makes itself known. 
 
Human life here on earth is temporary, but our life narrative does not disappear. With the passage of time this narrative continually changes, but remaining ever new, and the value of life and its mystery becoming clearer. We are the writers of this epic. We are the ones searching for this exalted life: the epic of our one, beautiful, and sacred life.