Communication on August 12, 2005
* Three Priests in Suwon Diocese Appointed as Chaplains of Honour of His Holiness
The Diocese of Suwon announced on August 4, 2005 that His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI appointed three priests in the Diocese as Chaplains of Honour of His Holiness as of June 23.
The appointees are the Rev. John the Baptist Shim Sang-tae, Director of Korean Christian Thought Institute and Professor at Catholic University of Suwon, the Rev. Peter Byeon Gi-young, Pastor of Cheonjinam Parish and Chairman of the Shrine Committee of the Diocese, and the Rev. Peter Lee Jeong-un, Episcopal Vicar for Religious of the Diocese and Professor at Catholic University of Suwon.
The Most Rev. Paul Choi Duk-ki, Bishop of Suwon, said, "These priests all made great contribution to the Church. The Rev. Shim has been dedicated to the education of younger scholars and inculturation of theology while the Rev. Byeon has strived for the development of shrines and the study of history of early Church in Korea. The Rev. Lee has played an important role in the education and the development of religious institutes."
With this appointment, the Catholic Church in Korea came to have 24 monsignors, including four in Suwon Diocese. The Diocese will have the congratulatory ceremony and Mass on September 1, 2005 at Jeongja-dong Cathedral of Suwon, with Bishop Choi presiding.
* Newly Ordained Priests Go to the Street for Mission
On August 2 in the Archdiocese of Daegu, 26 new priests went to the street for mission, as a part of the formation programs for newly ordained priests. The Rev. Joseph Lee Pan-seok, the Spiritual Director of the Catholic Street Mission of Korea, guided and accompanied them.
After three hours of instruction by the Rev. Lee, the new priests went to main streets downtown in Daegu and distributed missionary booklets and audio tapes to people. They first introduced themselves to people as new Catholic priests and invited them to come to churches to encounter God and other Christian neighbors.
Generally, the passers-by showed good responses to them and 179 people filled in the forms of personal information and promised to come to nearby churches.
The Rev. Matthew Ji Yong-sik, a new priest who participated in the program that day, said, "I was very happy to meet people on the spot and to introduce the Gospel to them. I think today's missionary experience will be very helpful for me when I serve the faithful in a parish in near future."
* Bishops Issue Messages for the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary
On the occasion of the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary and the National Liberation Day of Korea on August 15, 2005, the Most Rev. Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, Archbishop of Seoul, the Most Rev. John Chrysostom Kwon Hyok-ju, Bishop of Andong, and the Most Rev. Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Bishop of Daejeon, issued messages. They called on the faithful to pray for the unification of Korea, to make efforts for the pro-life campaign, and to live Christian life following the examples of Mary.
Archbishop Cheong said in the message titled "For a New Start of Korean People - Peace Be with You!", "On the occasion of the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary and the 60th anniversary of national liberation, today, we sincerely hope for the genuine liberation of people and true peace. We should pray to God that we may overcome the wounds of division with the grace of God and advance towards reconciliation and unification."
Bishop Kwon, in his message titled "St. Mary, the Woman of Grace," thanked God for his grace to protect and guide our Korean people and hoped that we could be born anew in God. He also said, "If we totally entrust our daily life to God, following the examples of St. Mary, the woman of grace, we can anticipate the joy of blessed salvation even in this world."
Bishop You also issued a message titled "For the Community of Communion" and called on the faithful to pray for the right to life and religious freedom of the North Korean brethren and for the evangelization in Asia. He also stressed that as the Church explicitly opposes the embryonic stem cell research, the faithful must support the adult stem cell research as a safer alternative.
The Diocese of Suwon announced on August 4, 2005 that His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI appointed three priests in the Diocese as Chaplains of Honour of His Holiness as of June 23.
The appointees are the Rev. John the Baptist Shim Sang-tae, Director of Korean Christian Thought Institute and Professor at Catholic University of Suwon, the Rev. Peter Byeon Gi-young, Pastor of Cheonjinam Parish and Chairman of the Shrine Committee of the Diocese, and the Rev. Peter Lee Jeong-un, Episcopal Vicar for Religious of the Diocese and Professor at Catholic University of Suwon.
The Most Rev. Paul Choi Duk-ki, Bishop of Suwon, said, "These priests all made great contribution to the Church. The Rev. Shim has been dedicated to the education of younger scholars and inculturation of theology while the Rev. Byeon has strived for the development of shrines and the study of history of early Church in Korea. The Rev. Lee has played an important role in the education and the development of religious institutes."
With this appointment, the Catholic Church in Korea came to have 24 monsignors, including four in Suwon Diocese. The Diocese will have the congratulatory ceremony and Mass on September 1, 2005 at Jeongja-dong Cathedral of Suwon, with Bishop Choi presiding.
* Newly Ordained Priests Go to the Street for Mission
On August 2 in the Archdiocese of Daegu, 26 new priests went to the street for mission, as a part of the formation programs for newly ordained priests. The Rev. Joseph Lee Pan-seok, the Spiritual Director of the Catholic Street Mission of Korea, guided and accompanied them.
After three hours of instruction by the Rev. Lee, the new priests went to main streets downtown in Daegu and distributed missionary booklets and audio tapes to people. They first introduced themselves to people as new Catholic priests and invited them to come to churches to encounter God and other Christian neighbors.
Generally, the passers-by showed good responses to them and 179 people filled in the forms of personal information and promised to come to nearby churches.
The Rev. Matthew Ji Yong-sik, a new priest who participated in the program that day, said, "I was very happy to meet people on the spot and to introduce the Gospel to them. I think today's missionary experience will be very helpful for me when I serve the faithful in a parish in near future."
* Bishops Issue Messages for the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary
On the occasion of the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary and the National Liberation Day of Korea on August 15, 2005, the Most Rev. Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, Archbishop of Seoul, the Most Rev. John Chrysostom Kwon Hyok-ju, Bishop of Andong, and the Most Rev. Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Bishop of Daejeon, issued messages. They called on the faithful to pray for the unification of Korea, to make efforts for the pro-life campaign, and to live Christian life following the examples of Mary.
Archbishop Cheong said in the message titled "For a New Start of Korean People - Peace Be with You!", "On the occasion of the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary and the 60th anniversary of national liberation, today, we sincerely hope for the genuine liberation of people and true peace. We should pray to God that we may overcome the wounds of division with the grace of God and advance towards reconciliation and unification."
Bishop Kwon, in his message titled "St. Mary, the Woman of Grace," thanked God for his grace to protect and guide our Korean people and hoped that we could be born anew in God. He also said, "If we totally entrust our daily life to God, following the examples of St. Mary, the woman of grace, we can anticipate the joy of blessed salvation even in this world."
Bishop You also issued a message titled "For the Community of Communion" and called on the faithful to pray for the right to life and religious freedom of the North Korean brethren and for the evangelization in Asia. He also stressed that as the Church explicitly opposes the embryonic stem cell research, the faithful must support the adult stem cell research as a safer alternative.