The Christmas Messages of Diocesan Bishops

All Diocesan Bishops issued Christmas Messages celebrating the nativity of Child Jesus on December 25, 2009, and urged the faithful to overcome the reality surrounded by the culture of death by the power of Jesus Christ, and change ourselves and our neighbors for the building of the culture of life.

Through the Christmas Messages, the Bishops pointed out especially the bad effect of our society marked by materialism and social conflicts, and stressed that the practice of love is living a sharing of life.

His Eminence Nicholas Cardinal Cheong Jinsuk, Archbishop of Seoul, said, "The most grave problem in our society is a material-centered life which impoverishes all other values." and he added, "As long as human beings esteem the money and the properties as the highest value, they cannot but live in isolation from each other, and the human community can become a ground of conflict and division. In this situation, a tendency toward the neglect of life will prevail throughout our society".

He also stressed, "The most important thing for the culture of life in our society is the restoration of the proper values", and urged the leaders of the society to take the initiative in this way.

In his message, the Most Rev. Andreas Choi Chang-mou, Archbishop of Kwangju, said, "In this situation where the culture of death dominates the world, in order to live as the children of light, we have to walk under the light of truth." He stressed especially, "We have to have an eye to see the darkness, that is to say, a conscience and a discernment before blaming on the dark world, and meditate on the way walked by our Savior".

The Most Rev. Thaddeus Cho Hwan-gil, Archdiocesan Administrator of Deagu, imparted the blessing of Christmas to the faithful, saying, "Sharing all goods with the poor and rejoicing over it is a true delight of God and of Christmas".