Digesting the Word

A Faith That "Digests" the Word was an article in the Catholic Times by a professor emeritus in the Sunday Reflection Column.

These days, we sometimes find ourselves searching for "spiritual hotspots" even within our faith. We travel to attend lectures that explain the Word well, and we listen to recordings and videos, receiving deep inspiration. These are undoubtedly moments of grace. Our hearts are warmed, and we feel a renewal of faith. I, too, cherish such experiences.

However, at some point, a question lingers in my mind: Am I only listening to the Word, or am I living it? I may have been moved, but it's hard to say whether that Word is actually changing my daily choices and attitudes.

The Word is similar to food. No matter how good the food is, if you don't chew and swallow, it won't be absorbed into your body. Words heard only with the ears and forgotten provide only temporary satisfaction. They won't remain within us for long because it hasn't been properly digested. 

So, what does it mean to digest the Word? It means taking the time to reflect on the Word. Keeping a sentence heard during Mass or a sermon in your heart and recalling it throughout the day.

"What does this Word demand of me today?", "What would the Lord do in this situation?" When these questions are repeated, the Word begins to slowly break down within us. Words whose meaning wasn't initially clear reveal a new face as they encounter the scenes of our lives. At that moment, the Word of God becomes not just knowledge, but a standard.

Jesus' parables were not given to be understood all at once. Rather, the more we ponder them, the more they touch our hearts, and the more we live, the more different meanings they reveal. That's how the Word of God is digested.

When the Word is digested and absorbed, transformation occurs. The Word begins to take root beyond our emotions and judgments. It stops us when we are angry and points us to a different path when we feel wronged.

"Forgive seventy times seven times."

This saying is easy to understand, but difficult to live.  However, when the Word begins to permeate us, we make slightly different choices than before. Instead of an immediate reaction, we pause, and instead of a firm judgment, we leave room for possibility.

The absorbed Word changes the tone of our speech, the direction of our relationships, and the rhythm of our day. At some point, we realize the Word is no longer just sentences in a book, but an inner compass guiding our lives.

Just as a blockage in the body leads to illness, so too does a failure to let go in faith lead to spiritual sickness. If we hear the Word, are moved by it, and understand it, but all of that ends with us, then our faith easily remains self-satisfied. It can become hardened into a mere personal spiritual experience.

The release in faith is the practice of love towards our neighbors. Small acts of attention, small acts of consideration, and small acts of sharing are enough. Swallowing a harsh word, extending a helping hand one more time—these are actions that may go unnoticed, but have results in God's time.

Jesus clearly said: "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." (Matthew 25:40)

Faith flows and circulates without obstruction when it doesn't remain merely in hearing the Word, but is digested and becomes a part of life, and then flows out again as love. From a faith that listens well to the Word, to a faith that lives according to the Word. Perhaps the "delicious meal" we should be seeking today is not in a lecture hall, but in our daily lives. 

Why Theology?

A diocesan priest in the Catholic Peace Weekly gives readers some thoughts on entering the world of theology and the possible results. 

Without Jesus' words, life, death, and resurrection, there is no Christian theology. God did not reveal Himself through dreams or visions, but fully revealed Himself in history, in a concrete, flesh-and-blood human being: Jesus of Nazareth. Therefore, theology is grounded in God's historical self-revelation, decisively revealed in Jesus of Nazareth.

Moses did not encounter God through contemplation; he encountered God while living his life, while tending sheep. Jesus' disciples did not encounter God through contemplation; they did not encounter God while sitting in meditation. They encountered God while living their lives, while fishing on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, while responding to Jesus' call and following him.

The disciples experienced Jesus, who died on the cross and rose again after three days, within concrete time and space, and encountered God. Theology seeks to know the God whom Moses encountered, the God whom Jesus' disciples encountered. It seeks to speak of that God.

Yet that God is invisible. Nevertheless, theology seeks to know the invisible God, the God who transcends human reason. It seeks to comprehend. It seeks to understand the unknowable God. Herein lies both contradiction and breakthrough. For while God is invisible to the eyes of reason, God is visible to the eyes of faith.

Ultimately, theology is not blind, but faith born of understanding. Understanding fosters greater faith. A more certain faith is born. Believing without knowing leads to blindness, but believing with knowledge brings certainty, greater obedience, and the ability to advance with even greater faith.

Ultimately, theology is about seeking to know God. It is about seeking to know this faith that has accepted God. Therefore, theology operates on an epistemological horizon. Believing with proper knowledge gained through theology is different from believing without such knowledge.

Those who believe without knowing, when trials and suffering come in life, abandon their faith, saying, 'This isn't the God I believed in. But those who know and properly believe in faith through theology gain greater faith during times of suffering and trial and mature more profoundly.

Since we have entered the world of knowledge, the world of theology, knowing properly leads to believing properly. This is precisely why we study theology. Through theology, we come to know the experience of God as it is expressed by the Apostles, the Church Fathers, the saints, the clergy and religious, and the people of God. Through this knowledge, we walk the path of true faith. Faith grows when we know and believe.

Overcoming Distortions in our World

In his armchair column in the Catholic Times, the philosophy professor reflects on how philosophical counseling helps us transcend the self-imposed boundaries of thought that confine, limit, and can distort our understanding of the world.

The expansion of thought is closely related to existential philosophy, as it pursues true "selfhood". According to existential philosophy, the true meaning of a human being is revealed not in "essence" but in "existence". Unlike essence, human existence can only be attained through free and responsible self-determination at every moment. 

So, what exactly do we aim to transcend through the transcendence technique? It is the fixed ideas, concepts, and ideologies that constitute the boundaries of our thinking when we encounter limiting situations, and the attitudes, patterns, and strong forces that emerge from them, which strive to maintain the self. 

These elements determine our lives, cause tension, and create problems. In reality, a person's thought system is like a "vessel" accumulated over many years of life. This is specifically shaped by factors such as culture, personality, psychology, and education, forming our unique world. 

However, problems arise when the framework of thought that has sustained us no longer functions effectively. This not only causes tension and bewilderment but also pain and suffering. While we may try to resolve this tension and pain by carefully examining the situation or communicating through dialogue, we often encounter insurmountable limitations. At this point, the only path available to us for problem-solving is self-transcendence, which involves moving beyond the boundaries of thought—the dimension of spiritual inquiry.

Just as Jaspers connects true existence to an unconditioned, transcendent being in existential philosophy, the technique of transcendence is based on the experience of self-transcendence through an encounter with that being.

Humans are creative beings who embody freedom and are constantly transcending themselves. The technique of transcendence, rather than relying on the laws of cause and effect in the unconscious or removing external obstacles to solve problems, instead seeks—as the Stoic philosophers did long ago—an "inner freedom" that is not bound by limitations.

Of course, crossing these boundaries is by no means easy. It requires considerable philosophical insight, patience, and courage, and especially the help of a counselor. 

The boundaries of thought are the mental dwelling place of our lives, so crossing that threshold is a challenge and a source of fear, a journey into the unknown. Transcending the boundaries of thought is inevitably accompanied by the pain of breaking out of the framework that has protected us until now, much like a bird breaking out of its egg. Without breaking out of this framework, we cannot embrace a new world. In Hermann Hesse's novel "Demian", Sinclair, with Demian's help, finally breaks free from his limitations and enters a new world. The relationship between the searcher and the counselor in philosophical counseling is similar.

Using Solar Power in Parishes

Solar power is a relatively accessible energy source for private individuals compared to other renewable energy sources. The Catholic Peace Weekly has an article about the growing number of churches achieving energy independence through solar power.

One parish in a Korean Diocese has one self-consumption solar power plant and two commercial solar power plants installed. The two commercial solar power plants can produce over 79 kilowatts of electricity. Last year, the parish's annual electricity consumption was 34,000 kilowatt-hours. The electricity produced by the two commercial solar power plants alone was 88,000 kilowatt-hours, far exceeding the parish's annual electricity consumption. The surplus electricity from the parish is sold to Korea Electric Power Corporation and flows back into the regional power grid.

There is a growing trend of using empty spaces to build solar power plants to generate and consume electricity. In one Korean diocese, more than 30 churches have installed solar power plants. The head of the Social Evangelization Committee said, "We thought this would be a way to address the problems caused by high-voltage transmission towers by demonstrating to the local community that we are using the electricity we produce ourselves."

Behind the active movement in the diocese is the "Sunlight Power Cooperative," established in 2019. Three years after the cooperative was established, the  Diocese officially declared "carbon neutrality by 2040," expanding the energy transition as a task for the entire diocese. 

"Now, the number of priests who want to install solar power plants in their parishes is increasing, and if we combine all the parishes that have requested it, there are at least 10 parishes applying (currently), and if we calculate that in kilowatts, it's over 1,000 kilowatts."

The number of cooperative members is also increasing each year, reaching over 2,600 as of the end of last year, with capital contributions totaling 4.1 billion won. Members also received dividends of around 3% last year.

The Seoul Archdiocese is relatively slow in installing solar power plants. This is due to significant physical constraints, such as land availability, inherent in Seoul's geographical characteristics.

The Chairman of the Seoul Archdiocese's Ecology and Environment Committee stated that they are considering installing solar power plants near Seoul to supplement the archdiocese's electricity consumption with renewable energy produced there. They got the idea from the agricultural-type solar power plant created by the Vatican near Rome.

"The Seoul Archdiocese is also considering installing solar power plants in other regions of Korea under the name of the Seoul Archdiocese, and if renewable energy is produced through solar power there, we think it might be possible to supplement the electricity used by the Seoul Archdiocese with that."

The movement for energy self-reliance within the church is starting from the parishes.

Bereavement from Suicide

In the Catholic Times 'Opinion of a Cleric column', we hear some thoughts on a serious issue, not limited to Korea.

Families who have lost someone to suicide live as if they are criminals. The moment they tell neighbors that a family member or acquaintance has committed suicide, people start whispering. Instead of offering comfort, people looked for reasons for the suicide in the bereaved families, saying things like 'the family devoured its own' or 'there were always problems in that family.' This inflicts secondary trauma upon the families. Burdened with self-blame for not preventing the suicide and the criticism from neighbors, the bereaved carry the cross of guilt in their hearts for the rest of their lives.

Even in their own parish, they were uncomfortable. Suicide was a major event in the neighborhood, spreading gossip instantly. Families stayed quietly at their local parish, only consulting with priests or religious members. That is why Masses, where only families who lost someone to suicide could gather, became a sanctuary where they could reveal their true feelings.

Seeing volunteers who persevere through deep sorrow and live their lives offers comfort to the bereaved. Even before Mass began, the church was already a sea of tears. Families participating in the Mass cried as they looked at the crucifix, sang hymns, called out 'Lamb of God,' and received the Eucharist. The priest leading the Mass could not hold back his tears and cried with the bereaved.

Although the bereaved participating in the Mass were strangers to each other, they wept comfortably during the service, as if it was okay to cry here. Families who have lost someone to suicide are classified as a high-risk group from the moment after the loss. Since most suicides occur suddenly and unexpectedly, the psychological pain for those bereaved by suicide is greater than that of ordinary bereaved families.

According to the '2023 Suicide Prevention White Paper,' 83.3% of suicide-bereaved families experienced 'depressive symptoms after losing a loved one.' Nearly 60% thought about suicide themselves, with the highest risk occurring 'within 3 months after the loss'.

Masses for suicide-bereaved families save lives. In this way, although the bereaved are exposed to the risk of suicide, they receive spiritual comfort.

It is not easy for bereaved families to obtain information or find institutions to receive spiritual comfort. Even in Korean churches, the only Mass for the families of suicide victims is held at the Suicide Prevention Center of the One Heart One Body Movement Headquarters.

It's been almost a month since we started 2026. I hope that by the end of 2026, the 'Mass for the families of suicides' will disappear.

Can Humans Be Happy Without Virtue?

Can Humans Be Happy Without Virtue? With these words, a university priest-philosophy professor, teaching the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas, gives us his answer from the Philosopher's chair of the Korea Times.

Nietzsche declared, “Virtue is a word people can no longer conceive of, an antiquated term that provokes laughter.” Indeed, since the modern era, discussions of virtue—once the most crucial ethical standard in traditional philosophy—have vanished, replaced by utilitarianism and sentimentalism. 

Enlightenment thought and modern natural science excluded the concept of purpose from nature and humanity, relegating associated virtues to mere incidental or personal inclinations. Consequently, while language related to morality persisted in modern life, the common foundation for ethical judgment collapsed.

The situation began to change after the mid-20th century, with scholars like E. Anscombe and A. MacIntyre emphasizing the importance of studying virtue for moral living. Alongside this, the theories of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas, representing virtue ethics, gained renewed attention. However, despite this shift, unlike the era when the classical virtue tradition functioned as a moral standard encompassing actual life, in modern society, virtue ethics itself is treated merely as one ‘competing theory’.

Modern people, as Nietzsche put it, view virtue like forced domestication or an athlete's excessive training, treating it as something suitable only for monasteries. According to G. Achenbach, the founder of philosophical counseling, where virtue disappears today, vices grow rampant like weeds. Yet virtue is neither special nor mysterious; it is ordinary. Without virtue, we might not even be able to live our ordinary daily lives.

So what does Thomas Aquinas, who discusses virtue in greater detail than anyone else in the Summa Theologica, explain virtue? Before delving into a thorough reflection, let us first sketch the broad outline of how theories of virtue developed within the history of philosophy and how Thomas assimilated them. 

Saint Thomas Aquinas embraces the tradition of the cardinal virtues in the Summa Theologica, stating, “Human virtue, as an active habit, is a good habit that produces good.” The concept of virtue developed over the course of history. Socrates already emphasized that virtuous habits aid in consistently performing actions aimed at achieving the right purpose. However, he did not arrive at a precise definition of what virtue is and how its elements relate to each other. Plato famously asserts that virtue is knowledge  suggesting that what is good, once known, one will  naturally act accordingly.

Korean Catholic Holy Sites

 

The Catholic Times editorial offers some interesting insights into foreigners visiting the Holy Sites.

Korea has a long history of contact with the West. The Spanish Jesuit priest Gregorio Cespedes was the first priest in Korea who came with the Japanese troops in 1593. However, Catholicism is considered to have started in1784 when Yi Seung-hun (Peter) was baptized in China and returned to Korea to baptize his fellow Koreans.

The number of foreigners visiting the holy sites of the Korean Church is increasing. In 2025, the number of foreign pilgrims visiting holy sites in the Archdiocese of Seoul exceeded 380,000, and attendance at holy mass also increased by 11% compared to the previous year.

It is timely that holy sites across the country are preparing to welcome foreign pilgrims by organizing multilingual guides and expanding digital content. However, the essential question is how to elevate the martyrdom spirituality of the Korean Church into universal values that people around the world can relate to.

Content such as 'K-pop ' has garnered enthusiastic responses worldwide by combining traditional Korean elements. This is an example of how uniquely Korean characteristics can be highly persuasive.
 

Pilgrimages to holy sites can follow a similar dynamic flow as this 'K-Culture.' When a holy site, which preserves the dramatic lives of martyrs and their journeys of faith, is connected to the vibrant presence of the Korean Church, it can become a more attractive and profound spiritual experience for foreign pilgrims.

During his 2014 visit to Korea, Pope Francis emphasized, “The legacy of the Korean martyrs provides hope and unity not only to the faithful here but to everyone.” As the Pope remarked, the devotion and spirituality of the Korean martyrs are not relics of the past, but embody essential values of equality, sacrifice, and human dignity that are deeply relevant to our society today.

The lives of our forebears who testified to their faith just over 200 years ago can approach pilgrims from around the world not as 'stories of a distant land,' but as 'living models of faith.' It is time to carefully prepare a welcoming environment where every pilgrim can experience Christ’s love through the spirit of the Korean martyrs.