Communication on November 26
* Bishops Issue a Joint Pastoral Letter for the Family
Beginning the season of Advent from November 28, 2004, made public was a Pastoral Letter for the Family by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea, titled "Family, Place of Love and Life," in which the bishops pointed out the crisis of family in Korean society and urged the faithful to make efforts for the evangelization and sanctification of the family.
Composed of 83 paragraphs in three chapters, the 33-page Letter was first planned at the 2004 Spring General Assembly of the CBCK and also inspired by the Eighth Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences held in Korea in August 2004.
In the Letter, bishops expressed deep concern over the family crisis, saying, "Today our families face serious problems, such as lost meaning of marriage itself, trend of open sexuality, preference to single lifestyle, increasing live-in couples, domestic violence and juvenile delinquents." Thus, they emphasized that every family should positively participate in the work to recover the injured and broken families.
"Based on the awareness that the agent of sanctification and evangelization of the family is family itself, all families should struggle to become the community of communion and love," the Letter said.
It also made practical suggestions, including to develop and operate family programs by establishing institutes or facilities for family ministry in the Church, to promote Small Christian Communities focused on the family, to train pastoral worker for the family ministry, to offer special pastoral care to the divorced, remarried, and single-parent families and families afflicted with domestic violence.
The CBCK will publish the Letter in the form of booklet and distribute to parishes, asking parishes to be dedicated to family ministry for the sanctification of family, especially the Catholic families.
* The "Eucharist" Emphasized in 2005 Pastoral Letters of Diocesan Bishops
As the First Sunday of the Advent season comes near, each diocesan bishop issued pastoral letters for the year of 2005. The Eucharist, evangelization of the family and activation of the Small Christian Communities are the themes highlighted in the letters of the diocesan bishops this year.
In particular, related to the "Year of the Eucharist" proclaimed by the Holy Father, the diocesan bishops expressed strong will to make the Eucharist the basis of pastoral projects, with deep awareness of the centrality of the Eucharist in the Christian life.
The Most Rev. Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, Archbishop of Seoul, said, "The renewal of the Church depends on the renewal of individuals who must live an evangelical life, along with external changes," and asked the faithful to actively take part in building beautiful families, saying that "ministry for family community is the first step for realizing the evangelization of the world."
The Most Rev. Paul Ri Moun-hi, Archbishop of Daegu, also issued a pastoral letter, titled "Let Us Make Unity in the Word and the Eucharist," and invited the faithful to the life centered on the Eucharist, saying, "The Eucharist leads us to living with the Gospel, living conformed to Christ and living in a community of love."
The Most Rev. Andreas Choi Chang-mou, Archbishop of Kwangju, stressed in his letter, "Small Christian Communities are basic communities where families can experience the life in the Church," and also added, "preparing the 70th anniversary of the institution of our diocese, let's reflect on ourselves, both personally and communally, in the light of Christ present in the Eucharist."
Other diocesan bishops also reaffirmed the value of life and love and recommended participation in Mass, visit to the Blessed Sacrament, transcribing of the Sacred Scriptures and enhancement of prayer, Bible reading and dialogue in the family.
* Campaign for the Abolition of the Death Penalty Gets Momentum with an Interreligious Effort
Seven religions, including Catholic Church, Protestant Church, Buddhism and Won Buddhism, held a congress at National Assembly building and published a statement on November 22, 2004, to urge the abolition of death penalty and its replacement with lifetime sentence. Some 1,000 people, including religious leaders, politicians, university students and lay Catholics, participated in the congress.
The Most Rev. Boniface Choi Ki-san, Bishop of Incheon and President of the CBCK Committee for Abolishing the Capital Punishment, addressed to the participants, "The master of human life is God and the God-given life cannot be dependent on the human decision. Hopefully, the 'death penalty abolition bill' can pass at this 17th session of National Assembly."
At the congress, the leaders from different religions urged in one voice to the legislators to abolish death penalty or the "institutional murder" by state, to join in the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, and to replace the death penalty with the lifetime sentence.
As a symbolic gesture, the religious leaders made a performance cutting off ropes for execution in hanging. Then Sr. Claudia Lee Hae-in, a renowned poet, read her poem addressed to an executed inmate, and Olivetan Benedictine Sisters of Busan presented a performance with singing.
In the second part, a seminar was arranged by inviting Mr. Renny Cushing, Executive Director of Murder Victims' Families for Human Rights in the U.S.A., and Mr. Yasuda Yoshihiro, well-known human rights lawyer and campaigner against the death penalty in Japan. During the seminar, Mr. Cushing stressed the importance of giving support to the victims and their families and Mr. Yoshihiro made a proposal for the replacement of death penalty with lifetime sentence.
Mr. Yu In-tae, legislator from Woori Party, who recently presented to the National Assembly a special bill for the abolition of death penalty, was also present at the function and revealed that 150 legislators participated in the presentation of the bill.
* Korean-Japanese Bishops to Continue Their Exchange Meeting Based on the Common Awareness on History
From November 16 to 18, 2004, Korean and Japanese Bishops met in Cheju, Korea, for the Korea-Japan Bishops' Exchange Meeting, the tenth this year, and agreed to expand this meeting in the following years.
Eighteen Korean bishops, including His Eminence Stephen Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan and the Most Rev. Andreas Choi Chang-mou, President of the CBCK, and 13 Japanese bishops, including the Most Rev. Most Augustine Nomura Junichi, President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan, and the Most Rev. Peter Okada Takeo, Archbishop of Tokyo, participated in the meeting, making it the biggest meeting ever.
During this meeting, the bishops deepened mutual understanding in history and pastoral ministry in two countries through presentations by a Korean scholar and the Most Rev. Paul Otsuka Yoshinao, Bishop of Kyoto and the Most Rev. Peter Kang U-il, Bishop of Cheju, on such themes as: Korean Culture in Japan and the History of Cheju; Pastoral Paths of Common Mission in the Diocese of Kyoto; Evangelization in the Diocese of Cheju. They also visited places of historical or religious interests in Cheju, including the martyrdom site of Catholics, graveyard and other shrines.
During the meeting, bishops of two countries agreed that "this exchange meeting, which was originally started in prospect of ten years, has greatly contributed to improving friendly relations and exchanges of our two countries; therefore, it is deemed desirable to continue and develop this meeting." Thus, they decided to promote this meeting as a place to exchange pastoral information and programs and build solidarity and cooperation of the two countries. Bishops also will look for ways to arrange meetings of chairmen or personnel of related committees from two episcopal conferences. They also suggested expanding this kind of meeting to priests and lay faithful.
Beginning the season of Advent from November 28, 2004, made public was a Pastoral Letter for the Family by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea, titled "Family, Place of Love and Life," in which the bishops pointed out the crisis of family in Korean society and urged the faithful to make efforts for the evangelization and sanctification of the family.
Composed of 83 paragraphs in three chapters, the 33-page Letter was first planned at the 2004 Spring General Assembly of the CBCK and also inspired by the Eighth Plenary Assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences held in Korea in August 2004.
In the Letter, bishops expressed deep concern over the family crisis, saying, "Today our families face serious problems, such as lost meaning of marriage itself, trend of open sexuality, preference to single lifestyle, increasing live-in couples, domestic violence and juvenile delinquents." Thus, they emphasized that every family should positively participate in the work to recover the injured and broken families.
"Based on the awareness that the agent of sanctification and evangelization of the family is family itself, all families should struggle to become the community of communion and love," the Letter said.
It also made practical suggestions, including to develop and operate family programs by establishing institutes or facilities for family ministry in the Church, to promote Small Christian Communities focused on the family, to train pastoral worker for the family ministry, to offer special pastoral care to the divorced, remarried, and single-parent families and families afflicted with domestic violence.
The CBCK will publish the Letter in the form of booklet and distribute to parishes, asking parishes to be dedicated to family ministry for the sanctification of family, especially the Catholic families.
* The "Eucharist" Emphasized in 2005 Pastoral Letters of Diocesan Bishops
As the First Sunday of the Advent season comes near, each diocesan bishop issued pastoral letters for the year of 2005. The Eucharist, evangelization of the family and activation of the Small Christian Communities are the themes highlighted in the letters of the diocesan bishops this year.
In particular, related to the "Year of the Eucharist" proclaimed by the Holy Father, the diocesan bishops expressed strong will to make the Eucharist the basis of pastoral projects, with deep awareness of the centrality of the Eucharist in the Christian life.
The Most Rev. Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, Archbishop of Seoul, said, "The renewal of the Church depends on the renewal of individuals who must live an evangelical life, along with external changes," and asked the faithful to actively take part in building beautiful families, saying that "ministry for family community is the first step for realizing the evangelization of the world."
The Most Rev. Paul Ri Moun-hi, Archbishop of Daegu, also issued a pastoral letter, titled "Let Us Make Unity in the Word and the Eucharist," and invited the faithful to the life centered on the Eucharist, saying, "The Eucharist leads us to living with the Gospel, living conformed to Christ and living in a community of love."
The Most Rev. Andreas Choi Chang-mou, Archbishop of Kwangju, stressed in his letter, "Small Christian Communities are basic communities where families can experience the life in the Church," and also added, "preparing the 70th anniversary of the institution of our diocese, let's reflect on ourselves, both personally and communally, in the light of Christ present in the Eucharist."
Other diocesan bishops also reaffirmed the value of life and love and recommended participation in Mass, visit to the Blessed Sacrament, transcribing of the Sacred Scriptures and enhancement of prayer, Bible reading and dialogue in the family.
* Campaign for the Abolition of the Death Penalty Gets Momentum with an Interreligious Effort
Seven religions, including Catholic Church, Protestant Church, Buddhism and Won Buddhism, held a congress at National Assembly building and published a statement on November 22, 2004, to urge the abolition of death penalty and its replacement with lifetime sentence. Some 1,000 people, including religious leaders, politicians, university students and lay Catholics, participated in the congress.
The Most Rev. Boniface Choi Ki-san, Bishop of Incheon and President of the CBCK Committee for Abolishing the Capital Punishment, addressed to the participants, "The master of human life is God and the God-given life cannot be dependent on the human decision. Hopefully, the 'death penalty abolition bill' can pass at this 17th session of National Assembly."
At the congress, the leaders from different religions urged in one voice to the legislators to abolish death penalty or the "institutional murder" by state, to join in the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, and to replace the death penalty with the lifetime sentence.
As a symbolic gesture, the religious leaders made a performance cutting off ropes for execution in hanging. Then Sr. Claudia Lee Hae-in, a renowned poet, read her poem addressed to an executed inmate, and Olivetan Benedictine Sisters of Busan presented a performance with singing.
In the second part, a seminar was arranged by inviting Mr. Renny Cushing, Executive Director of Murder Victims' Families for Human Rights in the U.S.A., and Mr. Yasuda Yoshihiro, well-known human rights lawyer and campaigner against the death penalty in Japan. During the seminar, Mr. Cushing stressed the importance of giving support to the victims and their families and Mr. Yoshihiro made a proposal for the replacement of death penalty with lifetime sentence.
Mr. Yu In-tae, legislator from Woori Party, who recently presented to the National Assembly a special bill for the abolition of death penalty, was also present at the function and revealed that 150 legislators participated in the presentation of the bill.
* Korean-Japanese Bishops to Continue Their Exchange Meeting Based on the Common Awareness on History
From November 16 to 18, 2004, Korean and Japanese Bishops met in Cheju, Korea, for the Korea-Japan Bishops' Exchange Meeting, the tenth this year, and agreed to expand this meeting in the following years.
Eighteen Korean bishops, including His Eminence Stephen Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan and the Most Rev. Andreas Choi Chang-mou, President of the CBCK, and 13 Japanese bishops, including the Most Rev. Most Augustine Nomura Junichi, President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan, and the Most Rev. Peter Okada Takeo, Archbishop of Tokyo, participated in the meeting, making it the biggest meeting ever.
During this meeting, the bishops deepened mutual understanding in history and pastoral ministry in two countries through presentations by a Korean scholar and the Most Rev. Paul Otsuka Yoshinao, Bishop of Kyoto and the Most Rev. Peter Kang U-il, Bishop of Cheju, on such themes as: Korean Culture in Japan and the History of Cheju; Pastoral Paths of Common Mission in the Diocese of Kyoto; Evangelization in the Diocese of Cheju. They also visited places of historical or religious interests in Cheju, including the martyrdom site of Catholics, graveyard and other shrines.
During the meeting, bishops of two countries agreed that "this exchange meeting, which was originally started in prospect of ten years, has greatly contributed to improving friendly relations and exchanges of our two countries; therefore, it is deemed desirable to continue and develop this meeting." Thus, they decided to promote this meeting as a place to exchange pastoral information and programs and build solidarity and cooperation of the two countries. Bishops also will look for ways to arrange meetings of chairmen or personnel of related committees from two episcopal conferences. They also suggested expanding this kind of meeting to priests and lay faithful.