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News Archive
SEOUL, South Korea, DEC. 10, 2003 (Zenit.org).- The Holy See has approved the opening of the beatification process for Paul Yun Ji-Chung and 123 companions, tortured and killed for the faith in 1791, when Christianity had just reached Korea. The missionary agency Fides was informed of the decision by the Korean Bishops' Commission for Beatifications and Canonizations. Last year the Church in Korea sent all the relative documentation to the Vatican Congregation for Sainthood Causes. The commission formed a panel of history experts to act as consultors for the Vatican congregation, presided over by Andrea Kim Jin-so director of Honam History Center. In 1791, Paul Yun Ji-Chung, a noble who had become a Christian, decided not to bury his mother according to traditional Confucian customs widespread in Korea. The incident was reported to the local authorities and ferocious persecution of Christians began. Yun Ji-Chung was the first of many noble Korean Christians to be exiled or killed for their faith in Christ. Christianity, introduced in Korea in 1784, was officially banned as an "evil cult that destroyed human relations and traditional moral order." Catholics in Korea went underground until 1895, when they obtained freedom of worship but in a century they experienced four major persecutions: Shinyu in 1801; Gyhae in 1839; Byung-o in 1846; and Byung-In in 1866. The local Church estimates that no fewer than 16,000 Korean Catholics were martyred during this period. Domenico Youn Minku, of Suwon Catholic University, who is a postulator of the beatification cause, told Fides: "Unique in the history of the Church, it was lay people who introduced the faith in Korea. Korean scholars discovered the faith by reading books in Chinese carried by European missionaries to China. After the first baptism in 1784, the young Church was soon afflicted by fierce persecution." Pope, South Korean ambassador discuss hopes for Korean unity VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II and South Korea's new ambassador to the Vatican shared their hopes for peace and unity on the Korean peninsula -- and did so in Latin. Youm Seong, the new ambassador, has been director of the Korean Institute for Greco-Roman Studies since 1996. Both his July 5 speech to the pope and the pope's remarks to him were written in Latin, an unusual choice for the ceremonial welcoming of a modern representative to the Vatican. The new ambassador has a degree in theology from the Catholic University of Gwangju, South Korea, and a doctorate in classical literature from Rome's Salesian University. Chinese Nuns Visit Korean Sisters: An Enriching Experience of Sharing Seoul (Fides Service) - A visit to South Korea to meet other Catholic nuns, to learn from spirituality and their way of convent life: this was the experience lived by 13 Superiors of diocesan female religious communities in mainland China, who spent the month of April visiting various convents in Korea, including the Sisters of Charity of the Most Holy Sacrament at Jeonji, and the Little Handmaids of the Holy Family in Seoul. The visit was enriching also for the Korean sisters who said “it is very useful for two neighbour Churches to share their experience”. Mother Superior Maria Li Yushang of the Saint Joseph Sisters in Beijing diocese said they had no difficulty in obtaining government permission to undertake this strictly religious journey. She also said it was clear from the visit that the structure of female religious congregations in both countries are very similar “but Korean nuns have greater responsibility in administration and formation” she noted. Mother Superior Matthia She Liying of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Fushan, in Liaoning diocese, north east China told UCA News that "because the Church in China was isolated between the 1950s and the 1980s many of the rules observed in religious Congregations in China are still pre-Council. Women religious in Korea are more open because they received and assumed the spirit of Vatican II." The Mother Superior said that her congregation has 74 nuns and that some of them are presently studying abroad. The month long visit to Korea was approved and organised by the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association. The nuns also met with some of the Korean Bishops including Archbishop Nicholas Cheong of Seoul who assured the nuns that his diocese was willing to support the formation and instruction of Chinese religious and seminarians. The Chinese nuns travel expenses were in fact paid by a Fund named after Saint Andrew Kim Taegon, martyr, Korea's first Catholic priest who was ordained in China in 1845. The precise aim of the fund, set up by the Korean Martyrs Commission, is to support the formation of priests and religious in mainland China. It was thanks to this fund that the priest who accompanied the Chinese sisters on their journey acting also as interpreter, Father Li Dong from the mainland diocese of Tainkin, was able to complete his studies in theology at Seoul seminary. PA (Fides Service 12/5/2003) First Catholic Korean-language translation of Bible completed SEOUL, South Korea (CNS) -- The Catholic Church in Korea is in the process of publishing the first Catholic Korean-language translation of the Bible. The new translation, begun in 1989 and completed in late 2002, will replace the existing joint Catholic-Protestant Korean translation, and will be released to the public in 2005 after being examined by the Korean bishops, reported UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand. Since 1977, the Korean Catholic Church has used a version of the Bible that it co-produced with Protestant churches. Father Callistus Jung Tae-hyun, one of the translators, said that the joint Catholic-Protestant Korean translation "was not faithful to the original (Greek) text, and reflected too much the taste of the Korean language." Father Jung said most Protestant churches have stopped using that version of the Bible, published by the Korean Bible Society. Nonetheless, it is still being used by the Anglican and Catholic Churches. Korean bishop says priests should not be timid in opposing abortion INCHON, South Korea (CNS) -- Priests should not be timid in opposing abortion and must educate Catholics on the church's teaching on the issue, a Korean bishop said. "If pastors keep silent on the problem (of abortion), the culture of death will harden more and more the conscience of Catholics," said Bishop Boniface Choi Ki-san of Inchon in a pastoral letter released in late October, as reported by UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand. Bishop Choi said that he deplores that priests are timid when it comes to making "their parishioners feel guilty (after) having had an abortion." The bishop recommended that priests educate Catholics about "the church's teaching on abortion," study measures to prevent abortion and learn how to give pastoral care to people who have already had an abortion. KOREAN DOCTORS ARE NEXT TO PUSH FOR EUTHANASIA LEGALIZATION Seoul, South Korea, April 13, 2001-- On the heels of the approval of assisted suicide and euthanasia in The Netherlands, South Korea's sole medical group is pushing to give doctors the right to terminate treatment on incurable patients. So-called mercy killings are illegal in South Korea but the Korean Medical Association, a lobby for 70,000 doctors, has drafted a new ethics code that would give doctors great latitude to deny lifesaving medical treatment. The ethics code, the first of its kind in South Korea, will become formal when approved by the association's annual general meeting later this month. ``Even if the ethics code is adopted, it will still entail legal problems,'' said Choi Won-jun, an official at the Ministry of Health and Welfare. ``Whether it will be in conflict with the criminal law will have to be closely checked.'' In a widely publicized case in 1998, a doctor in Seoul was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison for allowing a terminally ill patient to go home and die without further treatment at the request of his wife. If adopted, the new ethics code would allow doctors to discontinue treatment on terminally ill patients on their own judgment or when they are asked to do so in writing by the patients' families. It would also enable doctors to refuse demands for treatment by patients' families if they believe it's medically needless. Local media said the new code may cause legal disputes when doctors refuse treatment desired by the patients' families. The euthanasia dispute drew wide media attention in South Korea after the Netherlands this week became the first country to legalize it and assisted suicides. The Pro-Life Infonet.
SOUTH
KOREANS: ASIA'S NEW MISSIONARIES ROME, MAR. 22, 2001 (ZENIT.org-FIDES).- South Korea is fast becoming a missionary powerhouse, Archbishop Nicholas Cheong of Seoul said. On Friday, in fact, John Paul II will inaugurate, along with 20 visiting Korean bishops and apostolic administrators, a new college for Korean seminarians and priests who are studying in pontifical universities here. The event marks a milestone for the Korean Church. In the following interview with the international agency Fides, Archbishop Cheong, who is also apostolic administrator of Pyongyang, North Korea, addresses some of the current issues of the Church's life in the two Koreas. --Q: What do you hope to take away from this "ad limina" visit? --Archbishop Cheong: Above all, strength and encouragement for our mission to North Korea. We know there are Catholics in the North, but exactly how many we are not sure -- 3,000 perhaps. In my diocese we have 60 priests ready to set out for the North as soon as the Pyongyang government gives the word. --Q: We have heard there are young men in the North who want to be Catholic priests. --Archbishop Cheong: Yes, this is true. However, for the moment it is impossible. There are no seminaries or other structures. They are not allowed to come to study in the South or in a Chinese seminary. We will see in the future. --Q: Which countries are the main mission fields for the Church in South Korea? --Archbishop Cheong: Mainly China, North Korea and Mongolia: These countries have cultures similar to ours. The Mongol culture, in particular, has much in common with Korean culture. With the Chinese, we share the alphabet, and this simplifies communication. --Q: Do you already have missions in China? --Archbishop Cheong: Not many, about 10. I know at least two of my young priests are eager to go to work in China, but if I were to make a public appeal, I am certain hundreds would come forward. --Q: Will the policies of new U.S. President Bush hamper North/South contact? --Archbishop
Cheong: The American president's policies do not affect our work.
Our president, Kim Dae-jung, is, perhaps, a little over enthusiastic.
--Q: There are rumors that you may soon visit Pyongyang to prepare for a papal visit. --Archbishop Cheong: Yes, I have been invited, only verbally though, not on paper. ZE01032204 SOUTH
KOREAN CONVERSION LEADS WORLD SEOUL, South Korea, MAR. 22, 2001 (ZENIT.org-FIDES).- South Korea is Asia's third most Catholic country, after the Philippines and India, and has the highest annual adult baptism rate in the world. Some 150,000 adults are received into the Church every year. There was a boom of new Catholics, following John Paul II's first visit in 1984. Catholics comprise 3.95 million, or 8.3%, of the country's 46 million people. This local Church has a strong missionary spirit, and sends missionaries to the former Soviet republics, other Asian countries (including China), Africa and South America. There are even Korean priests manning parishes in France. The South Korean Church is a catalyst in the reconciliation with North Korea. President Kim Dae-jung, one of last year's Nobel Peace Prize recipients, and a noted defender of democracy in the country, is the first Catholic to hold this office. He is responsible for the first peace talks with Kim Jong II, leader of the Communist regime, which took place in Pyongyang last June. Evangelization began in Korea at the end of the 18th century when, after reading Christian writings brought by Catholics from Beijing, Confucian scholars decided to follow Christ. Pope Gregory XVI created the Apostolic Vicariate of Korea in 1831. Catholics were granted freedom of worship in 1884, after a period of intense persecution during which half the Catholics were killed. Missionaries were allowed to return to the country in 1875. Another period of persecution followed from 1973-1979. The Church in South Korea has 2,927 priests, 1,715 major seminarians, 1,170 religious brothers, 8,551 religious sisters, 1,092 parishes, 12,243 catechists, and 420 foreign missionaries. ZE01032205 KOREAN
BISHOPS VISIT ROME VATICAN CITY, MAR. 22, 2001 (Zenit.org).- John Paul II today received a group of Korean bishops, who have come for their once-every-five-year visit to Rome, an event that could prove important for the reunification of the two Koreas. Last June in Pyongyang, South Korean President Kim Dae-jung proposed to Kim Jong II, his North Korean counterpart, to invite the Pope to visit the country, as the sign of reconciliation between the two Koreas. At the meeting, the Communist leader accepted the proposal. If the visit is to take place, however, North Korea must establish diplomatic relations with the Vatican and recognize religious liberty. These steps have not yet been taken. The visiting bishops include Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, archbishop emeritus of Seoul, and the present archbishop, Nicholas Cheong, who is also apostolic administrator of Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. Archbishop Cheong has received a verbal invitation to travel to North Korea to begin to study the possibility of a papal visit. Since 1945, Catholics in North Korea have not seen a single priest ordained. The community of faithful numbers about 3,000. A layman directs prayers on Sunday in a church in Pyongyang. There is no news on the whereabouts of 50 priests who were in the country in the 1940s. ZE01032210
THE BISHOPS OF KOREA ASK FORGIVENESS SEOUL: Dec 3, 2000-- The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea has sought forgiveness from the Korean people for the Church's past faults during its 200 years of history. Following is the full English text of the original document "Renewal and Reconciliation," issued by the Catholic bishops Dec. 3 as the Church entered a new liturgical year. Reformation And Reconciliation We entered a new millennium with the Great Jubilee. In order that the Church will open a new era in fidelity to the mission entrusted to her, it is necessary, first of all, to have an attitude of repentance for her past faults and purify herself. His Holiness Pope John Paul II reminded that "acknowledging the weaknesses of the past is an act of honesty and courage which helps us strengthen our faith" ("Tertio Millennio Adveniente," no. 33) and showed us an example of the Church making penance for her faults. The Church is called to impart to people the grace of salvation that Christ has achieved. However, we confess straightforwardly that we, as disciples of Christ, have not carried out the mission fully. It is just and right that we, brothers and sisters in the mystical Body of Christ, should make penance for our faults in the past. Based on this penance, we want to renew ourselves and reconcile with our Korean people, and march together with those who strive to make new history. 1. We, during the period of persecution against the Catholic Church in Korea when people knew very little of the world situation, sometimes tried to obtain freedom of religion and protect the Church by depending on foreign powers, and experienced some cultural conflicts in the process of the introduction of Western culture. As it was shown in the events that caused sufferings and hurt to our people, we sometimes took part in unjust pressures of foreign countries. 2. We regret that there were sometimes misunderstandings, and what is more, restrictions imposed on the faithful who took the lead in the independence movement of Korean people during the dark period when Korean people were invaded by World Powers and Japanese colonial rule, even if that was for the purpose of securing peace and stability of the Church, in the name of the separation of Church and State. 3. We express regret for not being positively involved in making efforts to overcome the division of Korean people that was made in the process of the reorganization of the world order after national independence and to make unity and reconciliation, and feel sorry for sacrifices many people experienced in that process. 4. We make a self-examination of the insufficient efforts to solve conflicts between regions, classes and generations and to promote the human rights of those who are alienated and discriminated in our society like the disabled and foreign workers. 5. We did not make efforts enough to lead people so that all human beings created in the image of God can live in harmony and cooperation grounded on authentic moral values in a society where collective selfishness, moral hazard, irregularities and corruption are widespread. Especially, we did not give enough leadership to the youth so that they can grow in love for God and neighbor with upright conscience. 6. We did not follow always the example of Jesus who "came not to be served but to serve" (Mark 10:45). Sometimes, our clergy did not give a moral and ethical example to the society and fell into authoritarianism or ran after secular trends like excessive interest in the external growth of the Church. 7. We confess that we did not understand fully spiritual and cultural values, social and moral virtues within other religions in Korea, which is multireligious. We confess that we did not implement our duties to be the salt and the light to the world as Jesus recommended to us. On this occasion, we ask forgiveness of all people who have been hurt by our indifference, onlooking and faults. Renewing ourselves in penance, we promise to do our best to build a better world of justice and peace in unity with all people of good will according to the teaching of Christ. We pray God grant His abundant grace to all of you. END SOUTH
KOREA BOOMING IN CONVERSIONS AND VOCATIONS ROME, DEC. 6, 2000 (ZENIT.org).- South Korea is one of the Catholic Church greatest hopes in the world: It has one of the highest rates of conversions and vocations to the priesthood and religious life. What is happening there? Father Domenico Youn Minku, professor of the Catholic University of Suwon and postulator of the cause of beatification of the first Korean martyrs, answered this question Tuesday when he addressed the congress on "The Martyrs of African and Asia," held in the new premises of the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome. This was the last in a series of meetings on martyrdom, organized by the athenaeum for the Jubilee Year. There are some 150,000 baptisms a year in South Korea, the majority being that of adults. Seminaries are full, and this year Korea became the second Asian country, after the Philippines, to open a seminary in Rome. Father Minku explained that Korea's case is "unique in history," because "the Catholic Church was born spontaneously" in this country. "Some Korean literati read the books of European missionaries in Chinese. Thus, among these scholars, a community was born made up only of laymen. The faith was born from that reading; it became concrete with the baptism of the first Korean in 1784." "The decisive step came later, when Yi Sung-hun [1756-1801] was able to travel to Beijing to meet the missionaries," Father Minku continued. "After receiving instruction in the faith, he was baptized with the name Peter. He then returned to Korea to teach and baptize his friends and relatives, thus founding a very fervent community. Since then Christians have suffered persecutions." Father Minku stressed that "this Christian community, although founded and supported by the laity, has never stopped witnessing to an ardent desire of real union with the universal Church. It received its first priest in 1795. In fact, Chinese Father Chou Wenmou [1751-1801] entered the country clandestinely from Beijing, to care for a Korean community, which at that time had 4,000 faithful. "Following the great persecution of 1801 that decimated the community, which already numbered 10,000 faithful, and despite suffering new persecutions between 1811 and 1819 and in 1827, the development of the Korean Church increasingly intensified." The wave of persecutions was caused by a sect called Tonghak -- "Religion of the East" -- that unleashed hatred against what it called "Western religion," namely, Christianity. Tonghak's avowed objective was to crush and expel foreigners from the country. In 1864, the Korean Christian community had 23,000 faithful. Between 1866 and 1871, some 8,000 Christians were killed. Among the martyrs during another persecution, between 1839 and 1846, 79 were beatified in July 1925; among those martyred in 1866, 24 were beatified in October 1968. These 103 blessed were canonized May 6, 1984, in Seoul by John Paul II. In the 1886 treaty between Korea and France, the Korean Catholic Church obtained religious liberty, although not a total liberty. Yet, Catholicism was allowed to spread. Terror returned with the advent of the Communists. "Between the years 1945 and 1948, the Soviet troops imposed on all citizens of North Korea the public denial of their faith," Father Minku said. "The imposition was transcribed on the identity card, which was given to children beginning at 6 years of age. Those who did not deny the faith were treated as second-class citizens. "In 1945, before the Russians' arrival, there were 50,000 Catholics in three dioceses of North Korea. Now it would be a miracle if there are Catholics hidden in the catacombs." With the birth of the National Communist regime (1948-1950), dictator Kim II Sung unleashed fierce repression against religions, especially against the Catholic Church and its clergy. "The war between the two Koreas [1950-1953], offered the Communist military a new pretext to arrest and kill representatives of the clergy and religious in Korea," Father Minku recalled. "Archbishop Patrick James Byrne, the apostolic nuncio, of U.S. origin, was arrested on July 11, 1950, along with 41 priests and foreign religious. All the prisoners were treated like criminals and were taken to Chungganggin, the coldest place in Korea. It was a 'death march,' in which only eight people survived." So far, the New Martyrs Commission of the Vatican Jubilee Committee has indicated 183 martyrs killed under the Communist regime. Among them are three bishops, including one Korean; 31 diocesan priests, all Koreans; 20 foreign missionaries; and 83 Korean laymen. According to
the Statistical Yearbook of the Church 1998, South Korea had 2,500
priests (vs. 1,500 in 1990), 8,000 nuns (vs. 5,336 in 1990). There
were 12,243 catechists (vs. 7,817 ten years earlier). Among the
country's 46 million people there were 3.76 million Catholics, up
from 2.73 million in 1990. For the first time, South Korea has a
Catholic president, Kim Dae-Jung, who won the Nobel Peace Prize
for efforts at reconciliation with the North. SOUTH
KOREANS' POSSIBLE VISIT TO NORTH MAY PREPARE THE WAY FOR POPE
SEOUL, South Korea, NOV. 15, 2000 (ZENIT.org).- In preparation for a possible papal visit to North Korea, Cardinal Stephen Kim and Archbishop Nicholas Cheong of Seoul, might soon visit that Communist country. "Longing for that day, I try to keep calm and pray for the unity of our people," Cardinal Kim told the Vatican agency Fides. In August, North Korean President Kim Jong-Il said he hoped to invite representatives of the seven religions in South Korea to the North. These would mean Catholics, Protestants, Buddhists, Won Buddhists, Confucians, Chondokyo and followers of traditional Koranic religions. "I see the visit of religious leaders to the North as a first step toward religious exchange between the two Koreas," Archbishop Cheong told Fides. The archbishop was appointed apostolic administrator of Pyongyang by John Paul II in 1998. Explaining his urge to cross the border, Archbishop Cheong said: "My greatest desire is to confirm the remaining lay Catholics and clergy in the faith. If there are any left, I would like to meet them. If they are dead, I would like to pray at their graves. I am also anxious to know how North Korean Catholics live their faith." There are about
2,000 Catholics in the North. Official sources state that there
are no clergy or religious. Nothing is known of Bishop Francis Hong
Yong-ho, born in 1906, and appointed bishop of Pyongyang in 1962.
PAPAL
VISIT TO NORTH KOREA "WOULD FAVOR RECONCILIATION" ROME, SEPT. 26, 2000 (ZENIT.org).- A visit by John Paul II to North Korea would "favor the process of reconciliation that is taking place between the two Koreas," the South Korean ambassador to the Vatican said. News broke last June that North Korea had extended an official invitation to the Pope to visit the communist nation. The South Korean ambassador, Bae Yang-il, told the Italian agency Adnkronos that a papal visit "would lessen tension in the peninsula and in the whole of the Southeast Asian region." The ambassador made the statements on the eve of North Korean Foreign Minister, Nam Paek Sun's, visit to Rome. Bae Yang-il said that if the minister requests an audience in the Vatican within the next few days, he will find the doors open. "There is no reason for him not to be received," the ambassador said. It is estimated that there are 3,000 to 4,000 Catholics in communist North Korea, compared with more than 100,000 before the 1950-1953 Korean War. If John Paul II is to visit North Korea, Bae Yang-il said certain conditions would have to be satisfied: for example, the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Vatican and Pyongyang, and the possibility of entry for bishops and priests to serve the Catholic population. ZE00092607 |