Church's Desire to Get Closer to the People

Pastoral work, if it is to be effective, often demands the 'moving of feet' and 'having the smell of sheep.' The priests of the Seoul diocese have heard these phrases and have decided to make them a part of their lives. This new approach to pastoral work by the Seoul diocese was written up in both Catholic papers; the Peace Weekly devoted an editorial to the new approach.

The diocese made some changes after their synod in 2000-2003. And before that, changes were made in the operation of the deaneries, with the goal of making them the center of diocesan pastoral work. The Seoul diocese has close to a million and half Catholics, and 775 priests in 229 parishes. One-third of the country's Catholics and one-fourth of the priests are in the Seoul diocese, which is a continuing incentive for the diocese to simplify the ministry and to make it more efficient. They will be an example on how to move closer to the people.

The reason for the reorganization is the archbishop's desire for more open communication with his priests, and the priests with their congregations.  Communication is "what it's all about," the archbishop has stressed on many occasions. The central administration has also been reorganized to be simpler and more efficient.

One of the more noteworthy changes proposed is to make the position of the dean a full time responsibility, with no parish obligations but working together with the priests in the deanery in efforts to be closer to the people, and help them in their pastoral work. He will be living in the deanery, and be given the authority to function as a bridge with the Ordinary and to make changes in the personnel of the deanery.

The deans will meet once a month to talk about the progress being made, and the results of this interchange will be shared with the members of each deanery. This decentralizing of the work of the diocese should help the deaneries bring the message of Jesus to more people and in a deeper way.

The efforts to improve the pastoral structures have been going on for many years, and with these recent changes the place of the deaneries in the pastoral work of the Church has now entered another stage. The rest of the country will be watching to see the results. The Korean Church has been blessed with many vocations to the priesthood, which allows a country like Korea to dream big and attempt changes other local churches have no possibility of imitating because of a lack of clergy. That the Church is wise enough to take advantage of the blessings they have received to be creative and more pastoral is something that should be applauded.

Preparations for the Eventual South and North Unification

The current thinking within the Catholic Church concerning unification of the country is to promote efforts that will ultimately achieve unification. Among many citizens, however, both Catholic and non-Catholic, there is little interest, and perhaps even apathy on the part of those who remember the past and have suffered due to the policies of the North. The Catholic Church, in order to influence the thinking of Catholics, will have to enlist the help of the parishes, say those who know the situation the best, and without this help, they say little can be accomplished.

The Catholic Times introduces us to some of the efforts being made today. The Church sees a serious need to make Christians, because of their lack of interest, aware of the importance of changing the way they think about the North-South problem. Protestants have been much more concerned for unification, according to the Times, and early on have taken significant steps to achieve unification, while Catholics have done little. The director of the Bishops Committee for Reconciliation is quoted as saying, "One of the Protestant denominations, it was disclosed, has anywhere from 300 to 400 missioners formed, who are now in China waiting. Before we criticize, we have to be involved in the recruiting and training of  missioners for the North."

Fortunately, many young people have shown a willingness, the director went on to say, to go to the North to do missionary work, once freedom of religion is declared.  Young Catholics, ages 20 to 30, have shown a great interest in this area, he said.

Those who have left North Korea and are now in the South will help us reach a better understanding of the North, and they will be the medium, said the Times, needed to provide for future preparations. This is one of the reasons the diocesan committees for reconciliation will be working to support the resettlement of the refugees from the North.
 

The efforts we are making at present in teaching those interested in Catholicism to enter the Catholic Church is already the beginning of evangelization of the North. The head of the Reconciliation Committee of the Suwon Diocese mentions there are a good number leaving the North who, while in China, were baptized, some coming to Korea and others returning to North Korea. The Church should consider connecting in some way, he suggested, with the dioceses of Jilin and Yanji, in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Province of China.

One university professor stresses the need for education, both in the North and South, that will focus on the importance of working for peace. The Suwon Diocese has started to work on this recommendation with a Pastoral Research Center for Unification that will open on September 8th. The dream is to stir up interest on just what will be required to achieve unification.

They will consider the following areas of study: Prepare a catechism for the refugees from the North; establish an academy to make Christians aware of the need for unification and to prepare programs for the different parishes; establish a Catholic  Research Center open to all for the study of problems with unification; train priests to respond knowledgeably for eventual unification; and to study what will be necessary after unification for the rebuilding of the new society. Prayer is necessary but also well thought-out efforts to carry out these proposals.

Maryknoll Senior Priest Looks at North Korea

July 27 marks the 60th anniversary of the armistice at the end of the Korean War.  The Peace Weekly commemorates the event by interviewing Fr. Gerard Hammond, local superior of the Maryknoll Fathers in Korea. Called 'grandfather' by the North Koreans (he's 80), he goes to the North frequently to give aid, as one of the representatives of the Eugene Bell Foundation, an international  foundation providing assistance to North Korea, mainly for the treatment of tuberculosis.
 
 Knowing the long presence of Maryknoll in the North, the interviewer asked Fr. Hammond for his feelings on this 60th anniversary of the cease fire. Fr. Hammond said that having hostilities begin again would be a tragedy; dialogue is necessary to maintain the peace and work for unification. Since the South is the stronger, it is the right thing for us to be concerned for the weaker people of the North. Our history of war is a sad one, he said. At present the feeling of sadness and regret is overwhelming, but after unification the sadness will be turned into affection. Considering the  future, it is right for the South to help the North. We should all be concerned, he said, on finding the appropriate means to facilitate the reconciliation.

The interviewer wanted to know what Fr. Hammond felt  about the recent deteriorating situation with the North, particularly those events related to the Kaesong Industrial Complex--a collaborative economic arrangement with South Korea very close to the demilitarized zone, only one hour by car from Seoul. The complex allows South Korean companies to employ cheap skilled North Korean labor, which provides the North with important foreign currency. This arrangement was discontinued by the North and completely shut down in May of this year; recently they have decided to begin again.

Fr. Hammond lamented the lack of trust that both the North and the South have shown. This has to be overcome, he said, by instituting cooperative ventures, such as humanitarian exchanges, including educational, cultural and sports endeavors, as well as family visitation rights. This will open the way to  unification, he said.

Concerning the conditions in the North, Father said he has gone to the North, under the hospices of the Eugene Bell Foundation, over 50 times with the blessing of the government.  He recently went to eight centers where they are taking care of people with tuberculosis. The overall conditions in the North are  improving, he said, but the numbers of those with TB are increasing. Every time he goes, he remembers the many martyrs of the Pyongyang diocese.  As a missioner and priest, he mentioned that he wants to be always, as the Church is, on the side of the poor.
 
His desire  is that the Koreans in the South will pray for the North, and pointed out that there is a church, the Church of Repentance  and Atonement, built after the manner of the two cathedrals in the North, located in Paju, bordering the North, which would be a good place for South Koreans to visit and pray. He would also like to see greater interest in the refugees from the North. They will be the first to return to their hometowns after unification, and their help will be needed, he said, to heal the scars from the many years of conflict. He hopes we will continue to be interested in the education, support and care of these refugees now in the South. He added that after retirement he hopes to go again to the North to continue his work with the sick.

Happiness House

Alcoholism, prevalent and a problem in most societies of the world, is also rampant here in Korea with over a million and half alcoholics and, in recent years, an increasing number of women alcoholics, according to a recent article in the Kyeongyang Magazine. It raises the question: Is Korea a country where alcohol consumption is encouraged? 

Though alcoholism is a chronic and disabling disease, there are therapies that have been successful in treating the problem. In Korea, of those who have tried to overcome the drinking habit with a hospital stay, more than 80 percent return to drinking within six months. And only 12.4 percent are able to stay away from alcohol for more than two years. 13 small groups are currently devoted to helping alcoholics, two of them specifically for women. The article introduces us to one of these groups, which is registered with the Seoul city government and affiliated with the Catholic Women's Welfare Association of the Seoul diocese.

Regina Lee, along with members of the Alcoholics Anonymous group they belonged to, decided to start a home for women, and were fortunate to receive help from many sources. With women, Regina says, the progress of the disease is quicker and more difficult to see; the harm done, the stress involved, and the prejudice against women is greater, which makes efforts to help more difficult. Before the alcoholism can be treated, says Regina, there is the environment, the pain, and the sad history that has to be considered and resolved.

At Happiness House, the name they have given their home, they are all dealing with the same problem: the worry, the grievances and the pain; each of them trying to help each other to return to society. Over 90 persons have passed through the house, with some meeting once a a month to share stories  about their new life. This is a great help to the group, she says. The aim of Happiness House is to encourage those who have overcome their problem to help others do the same, as one such person did by becoming a social worker.

The House now has a project to help those leaving the House to find gainful employment. They are selling quilts and environmentally friendly soap to finance the project.  They know that those who have left the House after successfully overcoming the drinking habit must have the support of their families if they are to continue a life of sobriety. Alcoholism can't be overcome by oneself. There is a need to hear words of affection and concern to replace the emptiness and suffering they feel, and from which they want to be free.

Regina concludes the article with an invitation  to those who have tried many ways to overcome their dependence on alcohol and failed. She invites them to come and knock on the door of Happiness House.

Catholic Missions of Korea

In 1975, the Korean Foreign Missionary Society received approval for its mission from the Korean bishops. This was the first public step for  evangelization in foreign countries from Korea, and from that time on the Society developed with great expectations. The superior of the Society, in the Kyeongyang Magazine, discusses the foreign mission developments of the Korean Church.

He says there are now about 900 Koreans who are working as missioners in foreign countries. Each diocese, religious order and apostolic group has  foreign missions as one of their aims. We will soon see, he says, the fruits of these endeavors.

The founding bishop of the Korean Foreign Mission Society had great expectations for the Missionary Society. He wanted to change the image of the Korean Church, from one that receives to one that gives, and in the article, he introduces us to about 20 foreign mission societies now working in foreign lands. They are officially called, according to Church Law, Missionary Societies of Apostolic Life.

Many Catholics wrongly consider missioners to be members of a religious order, he says. But there must be present three elements which constitute the apostolic life. Missioners do not take the vows of a religious in order to carry out their duties and mission, but do so by living the life of the early Christians in community and with brotherly love; their goal is to extend the kingdom of God in the world; and to bring all to Christ in the fulfillment of love. Each society would have their own particular ways of achieving these three elements.

He then goes on to introduce us to the male missionary societies of the apostolic life working  in Korea: the Paris Foreign Mission Society (M.E.P.), the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America (M.M), the Missionary Society of St. Columban (S.S.C.), the Guadalupe Missioners (M.G.), the Mission Society of the Philippines (M.S.P.), and the Korean Missionary Society (K.M.S.).

The Korean Missionary Society has for its motto: gratitude and repayment of favors received from others in Korean Church history. Their 51 members on the missions,  work in 8 different countries, and in 15 dioceses. The society has a total of 66 members,  and 26 seminarians. In 2012 they started a school for the training of missioners, not of their society, for overseas mission.
 

Korea is now among the very active missionary-sending countries of the world, showing great zeal for the missions, and also a Church that is helping with finances to accomplish this task. He quotes from Romans 10:15: "How beautiful are the feet of those who announce good news!" He  concludes with the hope and prayer that there will continue to be an increase in the number of those contributing to the work of mission.

Searching For Meaning

Four generations living together in the same house is no longer a common occurrence today. A professor of philosophy reminisces, in the Peace Weekly, on growing up in such a home where every morning and evening meal was a banquet. The grandmother liked to say that a house should be seething with relatives and friends coming and going, a house full of warmth and laughter. She also took care of the flower and vegetable gardens, which added to the friendly environment. The professor remembers those years as happy ones because of her healthy and wise grandmother.

To live a long life is considered one of five blessings, a traditional belief with a long history in Korean thinking: in addition to long life, having wealth, bodily health, virtue, and a peaceful death. Long life was the more important of the five, for without it the others would be difficult to attain. Recently, there have been news reports of the elderly who live alone and die alone without others knowing of their death until much later; in one incident, the body wasn't discovered for six years.
 
Our life span continues to increase, we are told, and reaching the age of 100 will be a common occurrence, but for those who are retiring at an earlier age this is not all good news, the professor says. We are likely to have more not less persons living alone, which will create serious problems for many municipalities. She says we can't put all the responsibility on the government or municipalities; we have to prepare for old age ourselves.

The professor mentions that prior to a lecture she was about to give, during the introductions, a woman in her late 70s entered the lecture hall. By her appearance and behavior, it didn't seem she was in the right place. She introduced herself as a person who could read, but since she never had the chance to go to school, she thirsted for the opportunity to study. She was told the lecture hall would be a good place to start, and so she decided, she said with a laugh, to come in.

For a while the professor was in doubt on who she should consider the right audience for her talk, but hearing the words of the elderly woman, she said her decision became easy. She was going to speak in a way that all would understand, including the woman in her 70s. She knew the way it was presented would be especially important when speaking about a philosophical understanding of life and how to make our lives meaningful and happy.
 
In one of his writings Mencius says that a king of China considered those most deserving of government assistance to be grandfathers without wives, old women without husbands, the elderly living alone without children, and children without parents. These four groups of people should be helped before all others.

The elderly woman who entered the lecture hall that evening, the professor said, had a desire to satisfy her thirst for learning before she died. She wanted to do something about the regret and sadness for not having had the opportunity to study. She had to overcome many obstacles to come to that lecture hall that evening, and the professor said, in acknowledging that desire, she bowed her head in respect.   

She concludes with the words of Victor Frankel, who said that humans are people in search of meaning. By coming to the lecture hall that evening, that elderly woman  was living proof of Frankel's remark. When we have many more like her searching for meaning, the professor says, a question will come to mind: won't   society be a securer and happier one with more people doing the same thing?

A Strange Religion

"I Hear Your Voice," a popular Korean drama, explores an important Christian theme and value. A columnist in the  Peace Weekly uses the theme to bring our attention to a Christian value that we tend to forget. The women in his family, he says, enjoy watching the drama, especially because the young hero has the uncanny power of reading the hearts of those he meets, though not unconditionally. He succeeds only when gazing into their eyes. And it doesn't matter if the person is a friend, a stranger or an enemy. As long as he is gazing into their eyes, he hears the silent voice coming from their heart.

If the creators of this drama intended to tell us of the need to bring us closer together so we can understand each other better, then he wants to applaud their efforts. How interested are we, he asks, in our disordered society, to take a closer look at the people we meet and be open to what they have to say?

The Church began, he reminds us, when the apostles began to speak to the world. With the help of the Holy Spirit, in a very short period of time, these apostles were able to inspire many to follow them and accept the message they were preaching.

The columnist is curious to know whether there were other gifts given to the apostles besides overcoming prejudice, speaking foreign languages, and healing the sick. He wants to let his mind wander and think of other possibilities: Was it not the example of our Lord they were following? Did he not come to this lowly earth to speak to us, person to person, heart to heart? Wasn't Jesus, who was without sin, willing to be baptized as though he too needed to receive forgiveness for sin? Did he not associate with beggars, the disabled, tax collectors, prostitutes, talking with them and listening to what they had to say?  By witnessing these examples, the columnist believes the apostles were given another charisma: the desire to match their life to his. 

The apostles went out to the streets and byways of the world; they did not stay in their "exalted  seats." They went to the people, looked into their eyes, listened and spoke to them-- just like our Lord did. This was something you would not see in any gathering of religious people.
 
Christianity, he says, has to be seen as a strange religion when we ponder its core message: that the creator came to live among his creatures. As scripture has put it: "I have come to serve and share life with you." It was then that communication between heaven and earth began, he says. This is the road map we have written in our hearts. We should be going out to those who are wandering. It's the first step, he says, in evangelization, Our attitude could be summed up"We want to  hear what you have to say. And then we will tell you what the person we love said to us." 

Evangelization is, first of all, a sympathetic response when we listen closely enough to another person to hear the "voice of the heart." We can then expect that everyone will then reap the fruit of that sharing.