We are living in an industrial age, says the priest columnist in the Peace Weekly, and can look back on the infant, child and adolescent stages of growth. In this last stage, many show an interest in our natural environment and are attracted, but the opposing voices minimize and ignore the issue. Balance was lost, and we have regression in the adolescent state and the appearance of pathological aspects of growth: materialism, greed, hostility, extreme competition, spotted with violence: followed with racial, gender and elderly prejudice, giving birth to many aberrations.
We see the development of this industrialism throughout the world and the growth of morbid symptoms of self-aggrandizement. And yet with millions living in dire poverty, we still put those with these aspirations in places to run our government. Any alternative proposals are shot down; programs for growth in maturity are difficult to implement. Many who have been promoting the interest in ecology have stopped their efforts. Industrialization restrains the ecological dimension, and extends consumerism, and puts controls on the spirit; which gives rise to more immature citizens.
When our social attitude is
such that we disregard a person's true nature this is an obstacle to our human growth, and we approach tragedy. We need to realize what living with nature will do
for us in comparison to what industrialization has given us.
Two authors and authorities in this field have given us three steps to follow to achieve this change within our society. Joanna Macy and Molly Young Brown have listed the three steps as follows: First, actions that will slow down the
damage being done to the earth and humans. Participating in
blockades, boycotts, civil legal suits, and refusal to go along with
proposals that are harmful to nature and our environment, and work to
change laws, work politically, and work in campaigns.
Secondly: analyze the structural causes and create alternatives. We have to make a change and free ourselves from the damage being inflicted on us by the industrial society in which we live. We have to see what the industrial society is doing to us and society; see the way it tempts us and prevents us from progressing. We have to prepare alternatives to the way things are done.
Thirdly: we need a shift on the way we see society and values. We have to understand what we want and how to get it. It is not demanding that we become supermen, but people with vision.
We have to see ourselves as mature citizens of the world. Our identity, the columnist concludes, and our central values have to correspond to this reality. If we are to be persons of the future we need to start now.
The recent squabble between the North and South Korea has
disappeared from the news, and we are waiting for the full moon that
will usher in the Harvest Moon Festival (Chuseok) a cherished holiday
in which Koreans give thanks for their crops, pay homage to their
ancestors, and celebrate family ties. The
three day holiday, for family members who have moved away, means for many a visit to the homestead.
A columnist in the Peace Weekly
wants us to reflect on the holiday, and our life as travelers. In a recent survey made
by one of the papers, they reported that of 1000 citizens over
19 years old: 36.9% had plans to visit with family, 18.1 % would be
working, 7.2% would be traveling, 37.8 had no plans or had other choices.
More would not be going to the homestead than would, and many of these
would not be going for reasons out of their control.
Separated
families in the South because of the war or refugees from the North
will be grieving for the conditions that prevent contact with family.
Also we have the 'losers' in society, those without a job who find going
back to the homestead difficult. On this holiday they feel very small
and seek to hide.
Hugh of Saint Victor (c. 1096-1141) a monk who left us some memorable words on one's home town."The
man who finds his homeland sweet is
still a tender beginner; he to whom every soil is as his
native one
is already strong; but he is perfect to whom the entire world
is as
a foreign land." Those who consider every place they find themselves as home is a victor according to the monk.
These words can be applied to a person or society.
Love for family and friends is very natural, those who extend that love
to the unknown are strong and admirable, making for a mature, firm
society. We go beyond the relational family and friend connection with
solidarity with all, and overcome the win/lose of the market thinking
with the making of friends: "whenever you did this to one of the least you did it to me." The words of Jesus in Matthew 25:40.
If we think deeply we realize that
no one returns to his hometown. Everything is always changing. What we
thought was our homestead is no longer what it was but something
foreign, the whole world becomes a foreign land it is then we
become a mature world citizen. We are on pilgrimage and when we make others feel comfortable we are true pilgrims.
Chuseok
whether we go to our homesteads or not, when I look up at the full
moon I realize that we are all pilgrim wanderers, and when we go out
to those without a home we are going back to our place of birth. Isn't this a good way to spend our Chuseok?
A Korean celebrity at a Talk Concert for about 400 young people in the
Seoul Diocese, spent over two hours in a witty dialog with them on
their religious beliefs and studies. He took questions asked by the
group in handwritten messages to the speaker. Both Catholic papers
wrote an article on the gathering.
The celebrity
in his presentation was greeted with interest, seriousness, laughter,
hope and consolation. He treated many kind's of questions: becoming
Catholic, difficulties they meet, problems when their religious
beliefs clash with the values of society, meaning of a faith life, dealing with Protestant friends who look down on their religious
beliefs etc..
One young man baptized last year was asked
why he became a Catholic. He gave three reasons for entering the
Church: greatly impressed by Pope Francis in his trip to Korea, felt
the motherliness of the Blessed Mother and wanted to imitate, even in a
little way, the spirit of Jesus.
To
the question what is a Christian faith life: believing in Jesus, daily
present to us, and continually asking him questions was his answer. In
the way that God's creation gives witness to God we are to give witness
to our Creator.
He told the young people our 60-70 year old
citizens feel great pride in giving the country the economic growth. The
40-50 age group are proud of the work for Korean democratization but
the 10-30 group have nothing in which they can take credit.
He wants them to be the generation who helped bring about the
unification of the country. Not having any overall blueprint for life
is a reason for some of the young people's unrest, he reminds them.
Many
questions we have in life, said the entertainer, are the ones that
leave us breathless, frustrated. He has no answers, but wants his
listeners to keep on asking Jesus until he comes down from his cross.
'Young people enjoy life and remember your Creator' was the theme of the
gathering. "Rejoice, young man, in your youth and may your heart give
you joy when you are young, follow your desires and achieve your
ambitions but recall that God will take account of all you do. Drive
sorrow from your heart and pain from your flesh, for youth and dark hair
will not last. Be mindful of your Creator...." (Ecclesiastes 11: 9-)
We hear a lot about religious and clerics and their love for others but last year in August, we had the beatification of 124, and only one was a priest; the rest were lay people--Paul Yun Ji-chung and 123 companions. A Catholic Times' column recounts the lessons we learn from those early martyrs.
Our times are different; these martyrs practiced their faith in their society and gave witness to Jesus' love. We have many examples of how they lived the social Gospel. Hwang Il kwang (1757-1802) was one of those martyrs from the lowest class within the Joseon society who was moved greatly by the social equality and freedom in the new community he joined. He could sit in the same group of Christians and talk about Jesus at a time in which this was not cultural habit. Simon was moved by the noble class's treatment of him and is quoted as saying: "There is not only a heaven after this earthly life but we have heaven here and now."
Blessed Son Kyung-yeun, Gervasio, Korean martyr, in order to help the Christians bought a large house; in the front of the house, he made it into a tavern; inside was a gathering place for the Christians. Gervasio knew the reason for the use of money. The inside and outside were different; our exterior and interior are not as altruistic.
Blessed Chon Suk and Kwan Chon-rye knew the preciousness of life, and in the world of today where the meaning of sex has disappeared, they as a virgin married couple showed the Christians the deep meaning of love. People of faith know that without our giving of ourselves, all our actions become lifeless, self-centered.
September is the month of the martyrs. A month in which we realize there is something more important than life. They fought against what they found in society that was not just, with their lives. They fought against a way of thinking with another, armed only with the teachings of Jesus.
"The example of the martyrs also teaches us the importance of charity in
the life of faith. It was the purity of their witness to Christ,
expressed in an acceptance of the equal dignity of all the baptized,
which led them to a form of fraternal life that challenged the rigid
social structures of their day. It was their refusal to separate the
twin commandment of love of God and love of neighbor, which impelled
them to such great solicitude for the needs of the brethren. Their
example has much to say to us who live in societies where, alongside
immense wealth, dire poverty is silently growing; where the cry of the
poor is seldom heeded; and where Christ continues to call out to us,
asking us to love and serve him by tending to our brothers and sisters
in need." These words are from the sermon of Pope Francis at the Beatification on August 16, 2014.
On the
spiritual page of the Catholic Times, the columnist tells us about a
professor, he and many others admired. He was a respected teacher
within the church who was fighting a number of diseases; one of the
them was diabetes and was doing it for thirty years and joyfully.
Exercise,
and control over his eating, was always done carefully; on a work trip,
he would check his blood sugar. On trips with the columnist, he would
come to his room and ask to check the columnist's blood sugar.
He
would habitually check the amount of food he ate: the calories in
each meal. If you were beside him, you would hear him give each food the
number of calories. On one occasion the columnist hearing the
counting of the calories and the number given to one particular food,
said to the professor: "Hey, that couldn't have that many calories!" He
was right on; out of curiosity, the columnist did his checking, and his
count was accurate.
On
one occasion at a meeting with the professor, there was a table set up
for snacks. As in the past each plate was given the amount of calories,
and he ate accordingly. One of the dishes was cups of noodles. This
would have exceeded his caloric intake on that day, and he passed it up.
After the snack and a period of rest, they headed for the area for the
liturgy of the Mass. One of the study group members asked the professor
how many calories in the Eucharist.
The question came from one who hadn't been baptized very long and left
the columnist with a strange feeling. He must have heard all the talk
of bread from heaven, and the bread of life and wanted to satisfy his
curiosity.
The
professor answered: "Eucharist has zero calories." These words were
greeted with a period of silence and the nodding of heads in agreement.
The columnist found the answer ripe for meditative reflection. A young
scholar asking a vivid, graphic question, the professor without thought:
zero calories, and the columnist tongue tied but with many thoughts
running through his head.
That
night the professor and the study team at the Mass each would have
different responses to the 'o' calories of the professor. The columnist
was at the back of the church and at the elevation of the Eucharist, the
meaning of 'flesh and bread' came to him with more force than in the
past.
View from the Ark in the Catholic Times has a meditation on driving,
by a pastor who was assigned to a busy area in his rural diocese and one with many accidents. According to OECD statistics, Korea continues
to be in the number one or two spot. Speed of life may be one of the
hidden reasons for the large number.
The columnist says that although in the country, he feels there are more accidents than in Seoul and believes the few cars on the road, speed, and a relaxed understanding of traffic regulations may be the problem.
In front of the church, he mentions the large number of illegal left turns that are made. He has reported the problem to the authorities on many occasions, but they seem to be more interested in aesthetics than preventing accidents. Pedestrians with their jaywalking are at fault, but he puts more of the responsibility on the drivers who are in the possession of a very heavy machine, with speed. They are very efficient, and we find it difficult to resist the dangers that are present.
On
long trips he finds himself asking: Am I driving safely? What does it
mean to drive well? What does it mean to drive? Seeing the other cars
he asks himself why are they driving so dangerously? Why don't they
use the signal light? Why is the driver going so slow in the first
lane?
One day suddenly, this thought came to him: we are all traveling on the same road shouldn't we be cooperating? Others also have a destination, and we should be helping each other. Like in life, we should have trust and love, and concern for those who are using the roads with us. We should be looking on them as cooperators, neighbors, associates, but often we see them as competitors, obstacles and even enemies. He wants to see them as the Samaritan saw the poor man on the side of the road.
Driving, we can be concerned only with our situation: we are in a hurry, tired; the traffic is backed up for miles; other drivers are breaking the rules. However, when I am in the driver's seat and my hands are on the steering wheel I am in a position to practice graceful living: concern for the other, trust and love, for we are traveling together to our respective destination. If we saw the other driver as an associate, cooperator and brother/sister traveler, wouldn't this kind of attitude make life more enjoyable?
Korea has for the last ten years, as a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, placed first in the number of suicides: recorded was 29.1 persons for every hundred thousand, which was twice the average. Peace Weekly News gives the readers an understanding of the situation within the church.
From 1985, most of the countries which are members of the OECD have decreased in the number of suicides but Korea continues to increase, which makes for a gloomy future. Efforts are made to throw off the stigma by programs and seeking to understand those who are contemplating suicide. They have hope to decrease the numbers. Finland and Japan did succeed, and are good examples for Korea to follow.
The international Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) with the World Health Organization (WHO) has established the World Suicide Prevention Day which we remember today. The day alerts us to the ways we can prevent suicidal behavior, lessen the effects and educate those working to prevent suicides.
Preparing
for the day were many events, educational programs and campaigns in
society and churches. The Catholic Church also has programs for the
prevention and to spread the culture of life movement.
One Heart One Body Center of Seoul in preparation for September 10, conducted a survey and published their results. This is the first survey made dealing only with suicide. They wanted to determine the attitude and understanding of suicide within the church in order to establish programs in the future.
81% of those that responded felt that the problem was more with society than with the individual. With a change in society 84 % thought we would see a change in the number of suicides. 86,38 % had never had contact with those who were contemplating suicide. The majority have never attended any programs in the prevention of suicides. 78 % thought there was a need for such programs.
Respondents to the survey 88.54 % never had any suicidal thoughts-- reasons given: religious convictions 19.18 %, children 16.2 %, spouse/sweetheart 13.2%, parents 12.4%. The longer they lived and deeper the religious life, less thoughts of suicide. This coming December there will be a symposium with a Japanese counterpart in which the Center wants to conclude with a strategy for the future in suicide prevention.
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