'I May Be Wrong'

 

A recent article by a Korean novelist in the Catholic Times on what she has learned in her quest for a mature spirituality was of great interest.

'I May Be Wrong'.This sentence is the title of a book written by a young Swedish executive named Lindeblad, who recalls his experience when he abandoned everything and entered a temple in the forests of Thailand. Lindeblad hears the words of a wise man. “When you are faced with a crisis in life and don’t know where to go or do, remember these three things, and everything will work out. First, think, ‘I could be wrong.’ Second, think, ‘I could be wrong.’ Third, think, 'I could be wrong'.”

The book she mentions speaks on how to relate to your thoughts and emotions in a way that makes you wiser.

Sometimes there are shocking incidents that make you think about what it means to be human, and one of these is the A6 murders that occurred in England in 1961. A man and a woman were dating, and the man was murdered, and the woman was raped and shot. The woman, Valerie, who was shot seven times, survived with her lower body paralyzed, and she pointed out James Hanratty from a list of suspicious persons as the culprit. He was an ordinary young man who denied the crime. The prosecution had no circumstantial evidence. However, the jury sentenced him to death.

Even in prison, Hanratty insisted on his innocence. Numerous media outlets participated in this war over his guilt or innocence, and human rights activists joined to support Hanratty. Beatles member John Lennon and his wife were among them. Circumstantial evidence that he was not the culprit was continuously reported. The police's poor investigation at a time when forensic science had not yet been developed was also brought to light.

British society was divided into two groups and continued to fight. The victim, Valerie, was accused of being an adulteress (they had an inappropriate relationship) who had pointed out an innocent person as the culprit. She was still paralyzed from the waist down and suffered injuries that made it nearly impossible for her to go out. Soon after, the British Ministry of Justice executed Hanratty. The day before his execution, he told his family his last words during a family visit. "My only wish is that my innocence be proven even after I die." Those who heard this were even more furious. The criticism of the victim, Valerie, grew stronger.

Due to the persistent demands of human rights activists and her family, the British court finally ordered a re-examination of the rapist’s DNA, which had been stored for 40 years, in 2001. The test results confirmed that the semen found in Valerie was Hanratty’s. The odds of it being wrong were 1 in 19 million. As we expected, some could not accept this result. It is not surprising when looking at today’s Korean society.

She used to think: ‘Can a person lie right before they die?’ After this incident, she knows that people can lie and pretend not to know anything, even right before they die. If all intellectuals come forward and deny it, will that make what is true become false? 

When countless people were massacred in Russia, China, and North Korea in the 20th century, the communist praise songs sung by many Western intellectuals never formally apologized for what they said. She also never heard an apology from the intellectuals who remained silent about the massacres of people by dictators in South America supported by the United States.

What is humility? How is Christian humility understood among us? Knowing that we do not know all there is to know— one may be wrong. Only God is perfect. In this chaotic era, she fears those who read only one book, listen to only one type of broadcast, and think they know it all. She also concludes by acknowledging her own failures in this area of life.

Beginning of Catholicism in East Asia

When the Catholic Church entered Korea from China in the 18th century, the 'Lord of Heaven Church' used in China was translated into 'Cheonjugyo', now used in present-day Korea. A name for God that was easily deduced from the teaching of Confucius, but now, with contact with the larger Catholic world, the word Catholic or Catholicism is popular to describe the 'Lord of Heaven Church'.

From a survey of Chinese Christianity, the first known presence was Nestorianism, which emphasized the two personhoods of Christ, the human and divine.  

Nestorianism entered China in 635 AD, coming from  Persia. The Tang dynasty tolerated the Nestorians for over 200 years, but they were banned in 845 and disappeared in the 10th century.

The first missionary to China from the West was John Montecorvino (1271-1368) Italian Franciscan missionary and first bishop of what is now Beijing. He arrived a little after Marco Polo. With the fall of the Mongol Empire during the 14th  century, the mission ceased. Another attempt was made by the Jesuits in the 16th century, which continued and was the reason for Catholicism's entrance to Korea in the 18th century.

The word Catholic was first used in the first century of Christianity by the  Christians in Antioch around 110 AD. It was in a letter by St. Ignatius of Antioch to the Smyrnaeans, in chapter 8, where he wrote: "Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop or by one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."

The word Catholic comes from the Greek word katholikos, which means "universal".  It combines the Greek words kata- meaning "according to" and "whole". The synonyms for the small letter word catholic are universal, magnanimous, broad-minded, and whole.  

Christians have not been kind to those who are separated brothers and sisters, joined together in the beginning to the community that Jesus formed, and for various reasons, have separated from the initial community. True also within Catholicism in its relations with those who have left the community; it is an easily understood result of unwanted separation. 

The word Catholic was given the qualifier Roman by those who didn't care to have the beautiful word catholic monopolized by only one community of Christians.

Attempts have been made to improve the situation with movements like the Unity Octave and similar efforts which continue. Gaudium et Spes Document from the Second Vatican Council are indications of this hope:  

"Pressing upon the Christian to be sure is the need and the duty to battle against evil through manifold tribulations and even to suffer death. But, linked with the paschal mystery and patterned on the dying Christ, he will hasten forward to resurrection in the strength that comes from hope.

All this holds true not only for Christians but for all men of goodwill whose hearts' grace works in an unseen way. For, since Christ died for all men, and since the ultimate vocation of man is, in fact, one and divine, we ought to believe that the Holy Spirit, in a manner known only to God, offers to every man the possibility of being associated with this paschal mystery.

Such is the mystery of man, and it is a great one, as seen by believers in the light of Christian revelation. Through Christ and in Christ, the riddles of sorrow and death grow meaningful. Apart from His Gospel, they overwhelm us. Christ has risen, destroying death by His death; He has lavished life upon us(33) so that, as sons in the Son, we can cry out in the Spirit; Abba, Father."

Dualistic Thinking

 

Dualistic Thinking is a way of dealing with life. In the Catholic Times, a Professor of Philosophy gives the readers an understanding of dualistic thinking and some of the problems that arise. 

The Bible contains an integrated view of humanity… Examining the body, soul, and spirit as a combined whole

St. Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica may seem filled only with stories about God. Still, it is full of amazing reflections on humanity. One will seek completely different forms of happiness depending on our view of human beings.

Historically, famous expressions such as 'rational animal' or 'thinking reed' implicitly reflect the relationship between body and soul. The duality and unity of body and soul have been discussed for a long time. However, this issue is being raised more urgently today due to the various side effects caused by Dualistic Thinking.

Dualism, which divides humans into body and soul, strongly influenced human history before modern times. Plato (428-348 BC) theoretically systematized the distinction between the soul and the body, which appeared in myths and other places. He believed the soul belongs not to the mortal body but to a qualitatively different world. According to him, the soul that recognizes eternity existed before the real world on earth and belongs to the world of eternal ideas. However, the soul descends to the earthly physical world and is "confined in the body, as if in a prison or a tomb."

In this way, Plato thought of the body as hindering and restricting the soul's contact with the truth. Therefore, he argued that the union of the soul and the body is not essential and must be overcome. 

This Platonic dualism continued to influence Western thought from Plotinus to Augustine, and in the modern era, it acquired a new perspective in the philosophy of Descartes (1596-1650). Descartes, the father of modern philosophy, arrived at the famous proposition, "I think, therefore I am" (Cogito ergo sum). After continuously exploring what this self (自我) that is conscious of itself is, he defined the self as a "thinking thing."

The body, which cannot think for him and is merely an object in space and time, was treated like a machine. In this way, the 'self that lives purely in consciousness' discovered by Descartes was cut off from the physical and the world. Despite his many attempts, Descartes and others could not solve the riddle of how the union of body and soul is possible.

However, idealism, which emphasizes only the functions of the soul and mind, can easily ignore the physical elements, leading to contempt for physical labor and even labor exploitation by capital.

In addition, if idealism develops into extreme idealism, it carries the risk of degenerating into totalitarianism like Nazism in Germany, which mercilessly destroys the individuality of human existence. On the other hand, materialism, which reduces both the human soul and mental functions of the body, can easily damage the spiritual nobility inherent in humans. If only the body is emphasized, it will follow the logic of the capitalism of the ordinary people and a distorted form of body-centrism, such as the commercialization of the body and sex. 

Then how can we acknowledge the nobility of the body and soul and seek harmony between them? Surprisingly, many theologians try to find the answer to this question in the integrated view of man contained in the Bible. The Bible's integrated way of Thinking examines man as a whole, combining body, soul, and spirit. Although the Bible had a tradition of integrated Thinking rooted in Hebrew thought, it gradually became strongly influenced by Greek Thinking throughout Christian history, resulting in the unfortunate result of many Christians despising the body.

Gnosticism, which spread throughout the Hellenistic cultural sphere, downplayed the physical body and the creation of the world expressed in material terms and virtually denied the resurrection of the body by emphasizing only the ascension of the soul. This was judged heresy by the church, but Christianity's view of humanity was strongly dualistic due to the influence of Hellenistic culture.

Origen (185–254), who viewed only the rational soul as the essence of human beings, thought that the human soul belonged to the upper world of light but fell through free will.

In addition, Augustine (354–430) opposed Manichaeism, which strongly advocated dualism, but understood the unity of the soul and body as functional and secondary. In this way, his view of the body and soul was strongly influenced by Neoplatonism, which downplayed the physicality of human beings.

As monastic life, which emphasizes asceticism and ascetic practices, spread in the West, the tendency to despise the body became even more emphasized. The body is considered inferior, a prison for the human spirit, and the body's pleasure shallow. When the despising and abuse of the body were influenced by this dualistic view of humanity, St. Thomas tried restoring the integrated view of humanity. 

New Wineskins for New Wine

A science teacher in the Catholic Peace Weekly gives the readers a lesson on turning grape juice into wine.

The first official work of the great Renaissance artist Michelangelo was the Drunken Bacchus (1497), commissioned by his patron, Cardinal Riario. This marble sculpture depicts the Roman god of wine, Bacchus, holding a goblet while intoxicated. The Romans called wine a blessing of the gods. This alcoholic beverage has accompanied us throughout human history. However, what makes wine is not the blessing of the gods' but microorganisms invisible to the human eye. 

This fantastic role of microorganisms was not discovered until 1864 by the French chemist and biologist Louis Pasteur. While he was a chemistry professor at the University of Lille in northeastern France, Pasteur was asked by a local winemaker to investigate the phenomenon of wine not fermenting properly and turning sour. He devoted himself to finding a solution. 

Pasteur discovered that alcoholic fermentation did not occur when lactic acid bacteria, not yeast, were contained in the crucible used for winemaking. That wine turned sour due to acetic acid bacteria. Pasteur's shining achievement in science's history was the discovery of microorganisms that cause fermentation, spoilage, and disease.

When one molecule of glucose in grapes, the main ingredient of wine, is broken down by yeast, two molecules of ethanol and two molecules of carbon dioxide are ultimately created, and this process is ethanol fermentation. The biochemical action of single-celled organisms such as yeast creates ethanol in alcohol. If wine is exposed to oxygen, acetic acid fermentation occurs, and the wine turns into vinegar. This is why leftover wine turns sour if the cork is improperly sealed.

2,000 years ago, when making wine, grapes were crushed and placed in a leather bag made of sheep or goat leather to ferment. The carbon dioxide gas produced along with ethanol during this process causes the leather bag to swell. Old leather bags lose elasticity and become stiff; eventually, the leather bag bursts and wine is lost. Even if it does not burst, if oxygen in the air enters the cracks in the swollen bag, the wine undergoes acetic acid fermentation and turns sour, making it undrinkable. Therefore, new wines must be put into new, flexible wineskins.

The Bible also says this. "New wine must be put into new wineskins." (Luke 5:38). This word also applies to our lives. It has been almost a month since the new wine of 2025 was given to us. Our society is the wineskins that hold that wine. In all fields, including politics, economy, culture, art, education, and religion, 2025 is a time to start over again, not forgetting our original intentions and seeking development and advancement. 

Not forgetting our original intentions means returning to the basics and pursuing what is important. Politicians should not forget the essence of politics, educators the essence of education, medical professionals the essence of medicine, and believers the essence of faith, and they should return to the basics.

A new wineskin does not become one by changing people, roles, and systems. It must be accompanied by a sound philosophy, determination to make correct value judgments, and a change in behavior to break old habits. When we restore our original intentions, return to the basics, and strive to regain our essence, we can truly become new wineskins that hold new wine. The columnist prays that in all areas of our society and as individuals, all members will be reborn with new determination and become new vessels that can hold new wine. 

Women Power

In the Catholic Peace Weekly Diagnosis of the Times column, a college professor emeritus reminds the readers of the issue citizens had to face.

December 3, 2024, South Korea has been caught up in martial law and impeachment talks. She was so shocked by the unexpected martial law announcement that she participated twice in one of the protest rallies. Many friendly figures were difficult to see as protesters: a grandmother knitting, an elementary school child holding her mother’s hand, and young students worrying about their final exams.

The most noticeable among them were young women in their 20s and 30s. Unlike her, ready to leave after seeing the impeachment results, they were ready to sit down and stay for a long time. The media paid attention to them. They published articles about how they became the collective subject of the rally and how they stood tall as proud political subjects.

During the last presidential election, the young leader of the People Power Party was at the forefront of ‘gender division’. He did not stop there but also divided minorities such as the disabled and ordinary citizens. In a situation where gender conflict and human rights violations against minorities were already surfacing, this strategy exploded gender conflict. It was a trigger for spreading discrimination and exclusion against minorities. 

Paradoxically, ‘gender division’ must have acted as a trigger that aroused the collective consciousness of young women. In addition, the ability to quickly respond to issues requiring action and unite while utilizing the Internet community as a forum for discussion and public opinion and empathizing with minorities must have made the young women stand as a strong collective subject in the impeachment situation.

However, what is more noteworthy is where their actions are headed. What is clear is their firm will to protect democracy and the democratic republic. They are actively demonstrating their strong will to live in the democratic republic. This was unimaginable in the past. They are coming together and raising their voices, regardless of the cold and expenditure of time, to confront the situation where democracy, which we have taken for granted, is undermined. 

When she sees them, she feels relieved that Korean democracy will be preserved no matter what difficulties we face in the future. I am sorry and grateful. I am glad that a ‘new’ collective entity that will protect the democratic republic has been born. It gives me hope that Korean society will be okay in the future.

Another place where the actions of young women are headed is solidarity with minorities and the socially disadvantaged. They empathize with and act in solidarity with various minorities, such as the disabled, farmers, immigrants, sexual minorities, and animals. They stand up against political power that discriminates against and excludes the socially disadvantaged and minorities. Social welfare researchers like me have many opportunities to encounter the socially needy, and we analyze and criticize policies and systems related to them and suggest alternatives.

However, these alternatives are weak in the face of the decisions of government officials and politicians. The socially disadvantaged and minorities, when they organize and raise their voices, they are equally powerless. However, if a civic group entity sympathizes with the needs of the socially disadvantaged and minorities and works with them, the story is different. It is the basis for young women to become a source of hope for the socially disadvantaged and minorities.

Living Fully In Old Age

The Korean website Catholic News Now/Here has an article by a religious sister, a Professor Emeritus, of the Holy Names University. She gives the readers some important areas to review in life.

They say it snows a lot in Korea, but in Alameda, California, where she lives, it has been raining hard for several days. Sitting in the corner of her cozy attic and feeling the wind blowing hard makes her happy but also guilty. She thinks of the people who are homeless and the many undocumented immigrants who are hiding in fear of being deported. She feels sorry and wonders how to protect their humanity and dignity.

There is a sense of anxiety in the hearts of many due to the current chaotic and worrying behavior of President Trump. In this context, Spiritual Directors International held a special meeting on what we should do for those angry and afraid in the face of recent executive orders. In particular, how we should respond to the reality that our purpose of embracing diversity and difference may be threatened (in fact, one of the Trump administration’s executive orders was to cut off federal support for DEI programs, which stands for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and many who want a just society by embracing diversity have been hurt). 

We gathered on Zoom to share our feelings and listen to each other.  We talked about how we cannot give up our values ​​no matter the situation and how we should create as many situations as possible to embrace and listen to people's anger and fears. 

While talking about this, we felt some new energy. Someone said that the message that this series of violent situations is forcing on us is that we feel powerless, so it seems important to continue to make small gestures that we can do as resistance, like a flying bird flapping its wings. I nodded strongly, and the other people in the meeting did the same. Then, we started to break free from the tense atmosphere and laugh a little.

The daytime moon in the blue sky comes to mind. Sometimes, God’s calling is so unnoticeable, so gentle, and it seems like he’s by my side, so I feel even more grateful and thankful. 

Thinking about it, even though we have difficult times, in the end, a spiritual person, and therefore a person who pursues a human life can continue to laugh. In fact, we see an abundance of humor in many saints. On a cold winter night when her whole body felt frozen, Saint Teresa of Avila, struggling to pull up a carriage stuck in a puddle, said that God doesn’t have many friends because he treats his friends so badly. We are also familiar with the stories of saints who, seeing themselves as old and infirm and unable to move well, called themselves old donkeys and laughed at themselves.

In fact, living as a person of the Lord in today’s secularized world, one has to be cautious when dealing with many difficult and disturbing things. Perhaps that is why Isaiah’s confession, in which he groaned, “Oh, I am ruined!” when he saw his unholy and sinful existence while facing God, lingers in her mind. If God came to her and called her as he did  with Isaiah, she would respond like the prophet:  “Oh, I am ruined!”

Thinking about it, she confesses having caught many fish because she cast her net where she was told to, just like Peter in Luke 5. All her work, teaching students, writing books, and providing spiritual guidance, was nothing more than casting her net where she was told. 

Today, she returned after a meeting with a desire to live a deeper community life with her community of nuns. Many nuns are now going to nursing homes, and we have promised to work hard to build a smaller but deeper community of love.  She hopes to live anew with a humble heart and focus more on God.

The sight of the nuns who will soon be scattered and leaving the Bay Area, to which they have grown accustomed, is sad and beautiful. We are people destined to sing about how we have always lacked love and our desperate hopes to become fishers of men from now on. So today, as we finished our meeting, we shared a delicious chocolate cake. And we whispered blessings for each other’s old age. Ah! Until yesterday, we were ruined. So, from now on, let’s fish for people and love.

Living The Contemplative Life

Some years ago, the Catholic Peace Weekly had an article on "New Seeds of Contemplation," a book that deals with ‘contemplation’ and in which the reporter summarizes chapter 1: ‘What is contemplation?’  Those who have read the book will agree that its contents are difficult. The reason for this is that contemplation is not something that can be taught to anyone, and it cannot be fully expressed in human language. However, it is something we should all try to attain.

Christians hope to see God and enjoy eternal happiness with Him. Merton’s contemplation is to taste true happiness with God in advance in paradise, the original place of mankind where Adam was. Merton viewed contemplation as God’s grace that mercifully completes the mysterious work of creation hidden within us.

“Contemplation is the reason God created us. Through contemplation, we know and love Him as the ‘God who is", and we come to know Him through a deep and vivid experience that our nature cannot comprehend… All who have reached the purpose of creation will become contemplatives in heaven. However, God has made it possible for many to enter this supernatural realm and experience a new environment while they are still in the world.”

To understand Merton’s words, we must realize the purpose of creation and its completion. As we can see in Genesis, God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day, and the completion of creation is precisely this ‘rest’. Eternal rest and peace with God is the ultimate purpose of our human creation. To put it another way, this is heaven, the kingdom of God. “All who have reached the purpose of creation will become contemplatives in heaven.”  Heaven has already come among us through Jesus. When Jesus proclaimed, “Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand,” he taught that “the kingdom of God is already among us.” And he accomplished this kingdom of God through his death on the cross and resurrection. In other words, Jesus himself is the kingdom of God and heaven. When we unite with Jesus, we live in heaven here and now.

In this context, Merton teaches us that contemplation is precisely the ‘restoration of the original life of man’, the ‘restoration of life in paradise.’ “Amid the anxiety that arises when we stand alone before God in our own nothingness, we must stand naked, without any explanation, without any theoretical system, and we must entrust ourselves completely to his providence, and we must earnestly seek his grace, mercy, and the light of faith. Because true contemplation is not a psychological technique but a theological grace.” 

Adam was naked before God in the Garden of Eden, but he felt no shame. However, after committing a sin against God’s will, he felt shame and hid from God. Jesus Christ, the new Adam, was crucified naked on the cross. He forgave Adam’s sin and all of our sins and restored paradise. Merton saw contemplation as becoming one with Jesus’ nakedness. He describes contemplation as entering paradise, the original place of human beings, where there is no longer any need for shame, even if naked before God.

Merton wrote in a letter to a friend in 1963: “For me, the contemplative life is a search for truth and God. This is discovering what is truly important in my life and finding my rightful place in God’s creation.” 

Living with God in paradise is our original place as humans. And contemplation is restoring that original place. However, we often fail to respond to His invitation of love and hide. It may be because we lack the courage to show our shameful selves as they are.  However, just as Jesus hung naked on the cross, let us entrust ourselves to Him as we are and enter His paradise. And let us remember this. Restoring life in this paradise is not a completion but a new beginning.