Communication on Dec. 12
* Caritas Coreana Calls for Charity and Aid to Bangladesh
On the occasion of the 20th Caritas Sunday on December 14, the Most Rev. Gabriel Chang Pong-hun, President of the Committee for Caritas Coreana of the CBCK issued a Message and said, "The practice of love and charity is the heart of Jesus' teaching and Gospel."
In the Message titled "Blessed Are the Merciful."(Matt. 5,7), he said, "Caritas Sunday was instituted to make all Christians aware of the need to render charity to the suffering, following the mercy of God," and urged Catholics to make efforts to "Be 'the merciful' in every circumstance they find themselves."
"Charity arisen from love is the desirable mode of life required for Christians and the essence of Christian mission," he said. He especially reminded the fact that Jesus rendered mercy to "the sick, poor and marginalized," and asked Catholics "to practice preferential love for the poor and render practical and real charity to them, taking the example of Christ."
He continued to emphasize, "Church professes and proclaims the mercy of God by witnessing the love of God for the poor," and highlighted the meaning of charity, saying, "Through the act of charity, Christians incarnate the love and mercy of God and furthermore attain the love and mercy themselves and reach the beatitudes."
In the meanwhile, the Caritas Coreana decided at its general meeting on December 5 that its foreign aid next year would be concentrated on Bangladesh and the social projects of Caritas Bangladesh.
In the second half of this year it supported US$ 470,000 to foreign countries including North Korea, Afghanistan, Liberia, India and Pakistan.
With regard to the overseas aid, it decided to widely publicize the change of "Caritas Coreana Sunday" to "Overseas Aid Sunday," which was decided at the 2003 Autumn General Assembly of the CBCK, to make people positively participate in the globalization of sharing.
Besides, Caritas Coreana delivered some US$9,460 to Caritas International for the reconstruction of Iraq and distributed the contributions by Korean Catholics residing in the U.S.A. to Korean dioceses damaged by typhoon Maemi, which blew across the Korean peninsula in early September.
* Over 2500 People Participated in Marrow Donation Campaign
The One Heart One Body Movement of the Archdiocese of Seoul said that over 2,500 people have registered for marrow donation as of the beginning of December.
The One Heart One Body Movement was designated last May by the Department of Welfare and Health as the marrow donation office with goal to recruit 2000 donators.
The Movement has carried out blood-collecting activities since then in public places, schools, parishes and events' places, and received registration of marrow donaton from over 2500 people far exceeding the number proposed by the government office.
During last one month campaign to help Boreumi, a 2-month-old Korean-American baby suffering from rare leukemia, over 700 people responded to the appeal by registering for marrow donation.
"Still now there are many people making inquiries about marrow donation however we are worried that the project loses its vitality because the government is reluctant to support the project beyond 2000 cases.
On the occasion of the 20th Caritas Sunday on December 14, the Most Rev. Gabriel Chang Pong-hun, President of the Committee for Caritas Coreana of the CBCK issued a Message and said, "The practice of love and charity is the heart of Jesus' teaching and Gospel."
In the Message titled "Blessed Are the Merciful."(Matt. 5,7), he said, "Caritas Sunday was instituted to make all Christians aware of the need to render charity to the suffering, following the mercy of God," and urged Catholics to make efforts to "Be 'the merciful' in every circumstance they find themselves."
"Charity arisen from love is the desirable mode of life required for Christians and the essence of Christian mission," he said. He especially reminded the fact that Jesus rendered mercy to "the sick, poor and marginalized," and asked Catholics "to practice preferential love for the poor and render practical and real charity to them, taking the example of Christ."
He continued to emphasize, "Church professes and proclaims the mercy of God by witnessing the love of God for the poor," and highlighted the meaning of charity, saying, "Through the act of charity, Christians incarnate the love and mercy of God and furthermore attain the love and mercy themselves and reach the beatitudes."
In the meanwhile, the Caritas Coreana decided at its general meeting on December 5 that its foreign aid next year would be concentrated on Bangladesh and the social projects of Caritas Bangladesh.
In the second half of this year it supported US$ 470,000 to foreign countries including North Korea, Afghanistan, Liberia, India and Pakistan.
With regard to the overseas aid, it decided to widely publicize the change of "Caritas Coreana Sunday" to "Overseas Aid Sunday," which was decided at the 2003 Autumn General Assembly of the CBCK, to make people positively participate in the globalization of sharing.
Besides, Caritas Coreana delivered some US$9,460 to Caritas International for the reconstruction of Iraq and distributed the contributions by Korean Catholics residing in the U.S.A. to Korean dioceses damaged by typhoon Maemi, which blew across the Korean peninsula in early September.
* Over 2500 People Participated in Marrow Donation Campaign
The One Heart One Body Movement of the Archdiocese of Seoul said that over 2,500 people have registered for marrow donation as of the beginning of December.
The One Heart One Body Movement was designated last May by the Department of Welfare and Health as the marrow donation office with goal to recruit 2000 donators.
The Movement has carried out blood-collecting activities since then in public places, schools, parishes and events' places, and received registration of marrow donaton from over 2500 people far exceeding the number proposed by the government office.
During last one month campaign to help Boreumi, a 2-month-old Korean-American baby suffering from rare leukemia, over 700 people responded to the appeal by registering for marrow donation.
"Still now there are many people making inquiries about marrow donation however we are worried that the project loses its vitality because the government is reluctant to support the project beyond 2000 cases.