DPN 379 Missionary Benedictine Sisters of Tutzing, Daegu Priory, KOREA October 2014

Transcription

1 DAEGU PRIORY NEWSLETTER DPN 379 Missionary Benedictine Sisters of Tutzing, Daegu Priory, KOREA October 2014 From presentation of the Direction II New Evangelization prepared by Pioresses Meeting Participants on the occasion of General Mother Angela Strobel s Feastday Celebration Daegu Priory, Korea October 10,

2 Sisters in Harmony Saturday - Friday, Oct. 4-24: Mo. General Angela shares a laugh with Mo. Prioress Lumen while presenting her gift of gratitude for the community (an envelope to buy ice cream) Prioress Mo. General Angela Strobel along with Generalate Sisters from Rome, all Prioresses and Regional District Superiors around the world as well as new General Mission Procurator total number of 25 Sisters arrived at Daegu Priory House on Saturday noon Oct.4 for the 2014 Prioresses Meeting. In fact, they had arrived one by one according to each Sister s flight schedule at Incheon Airport couple of days ago and were welcomed by Sisters of Seoul Priory. The 25 participants were accommodated at Seoul Priory House and spent the first days visiting apostolate places and cultural highlights nearby Seoul. Saturday, Oct. 4: On the first day of arrival, the participants were welcomed by Daegu Priory House community and proceeded to the chapel of Daegu Priory House where together we prayed and sang the TE DEUM. The meetings, divine office prayers, meals and accommodations were all provided by Benedict Spirituality Center except for Mass celebration, Mother Angela s Feast day celebration, welcoming and farewell program which took place at Priory House. Sunday, Oct. 5: Priory House Outdoor Route: Up to the hills following the Station of the Cross to the farm of vegetables, potatoes, trees of persimmons and dates to the cemetery Herb Garden farm to New construction of 3 buildings: Nursing Care Center, Elderly Sisters House and our Kindergarten and Education Center. Sr. Madeleine leads outdoor tour 2

3 Priory House Indoor tour led by Sr. Jean Marie Chang. ROUTE: 1 st Floor: Parlor Procurator Office Kitchen Refectory Recreation Ondol Rooms Chapter room Library Chapel 2 nd Floor: Juniorate Classroom Infirmary Sewing Room Vestment Making Room Sisters bedrooms 3 rd Floor: Offices Novitiate Area Basement. Monday, Oct. 6: The 2014 Prioresses Meeting began with an opening ceremony liturgy by Daegu Prioress Lumen Choi - the hostess of the meeting - followed by an address by General Prioress Angela Strobel at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 6, at the Conference Room of the Benedict Spirituality Center. The meetings were held from from 9:00 a.m. to noon, and from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Oct, 6-20) and powerpoint presentation of significant events from Region/Priories were given during evening recreation time. The meeting focused on Four Directions, which are Conversatio Morum, New Evangelization, Inter-Priory Sharing and Care for God s Creation based on the Message of the 12 th General Chapter held from Sept. 20 to Oct. 25, 2012 in Rome. We committed ourselves to deepening our biblical roots and to live authentically our missionary Benedictine charism. Each Priory presented their achievements accomplished so far for the past 2 years. Since the commitment is still ongoing process, the meeting had its purpose to assist each Priory in the spirit of international solidarity. Rev. Thomas Timpte OSB was invited to give a lecture entitled Dialog among religious through community, obedience and authority, values of St. Benedict on Thursday, Oct. 9. The day was useful for prayer, reflection and discussion. 1 Prioresses Meeting takes place every 6 years. Former X General Prioress Edeltrud Weist was the initiator of this meeting decision of 1982 General Chapter which was held for the first time in Tutzing and Rome in The 2 nd Meeting was Baguio, the Philippines The 3 rd Meeting in Sorocaba, Olinda, Brazil The 4 th Meeting in Nairobi, Kenya The 5 th Meeting in Ndanda, Tanzania

4 A special side event was the celebration of Mother Angela s feast day on Friday evening, Oct. 10 in the basement hall of Priory House. Around 230 Sisters from far and nearby communities gathered for this special unique celebration. Each community brought its gifts and a song to be presented during the congratulatory celebration. Various performances such as choir singing, piano & flute recitals, Korean drums, Korean traditional dances, a play entitled What men live by, based on the novel of Tolstoy adapted to Korean environment - presented by the novices and even 2 plays, a dance & song from Prioresses were presented. Included in the agenda were visits of apostolate places of Daegu Priory such as Kyeongsan Bible School, Daegu Fatima Hospital and new Gongpyeongdong Station held on Friday, Oct. 10; and Yeonhwari Retreat Center and Waegwan Monastery Abbey on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 12. Doctor Sr. Immaculata Lee talks with Prioress Sisters at DFH Sisters at Yeonhwari 4

5 THREE outings were scheduled in the agenda which were on Saturday, Oct. 11 to Kyeongju, Shilla city (top left picture); Friday, Oct. 17 to An-dong Hahoe Folk Village (top right picture), Tuesday, Oct. 21 to Haemi Martyrs Shrine. Wednesday, Oct. 22: The closing meeting was held on Monday afternoon, Oct. 20 with resolutions and synthesis conducted by General Prioress Angela Strobel with some personal remarks. A farewell program took place in the refectory after supper on Oct. 22. Thankfulness and Gratitude to the Lord and to each other were the spirit of all Sisters! How blessed it is to be a Missionary Benedictine Sister!! May the flower vase be a reminder that though we are on different continents we are ONE in Christ and in sisterhood. -Gift from Nairobi Prioress Michael Marie Rottinghuas- 5

6 Back row (L R): Sr. Carmel. Sr. Vania, Sr. M.Ignatius, Sr. Chantal, Sr. Pia, Sr. Salete, Sr. Lumen Gloria, Mo. Angela, Sr. Caridad, Sr. Rosa Maria, Sr. Eva-Maria, Sr. Terese, Sr. Adelaida, Sr. Timotea Front row (L R): Sr. Rosann, Sr. Michael Marie, Sr. Mary Thomas, Sr. Alice, Sr. Lumen, Sr. Ruth, Sr. Hildegard, Sr. Ursula, Sr. Ambrosia, Sr. Adriana, Sr. Rose Marie Wednesday, Oct. 8: Rev. Dionysius Park, the chaplain of Daegu Priory House was invited for a supper in the Sisters refectory on his feast day Wednesday, Oct. 8. A congratulatory program was followed with cake cutting ceremony and with songs and dance performance. Saturday Sunday, Oct : Faithful friends are life-saving medicine; and those who fear the Lord will find them. (Sirach 6:16) The Sisters in charge of vocation promotion and 10 young men and women participants of the weekend Koinonia Retreat know well the truth of these words. They spent the weekend at Jesuit Apostolic Center Building in Sogang University, Seoul from Saturday, Oct. 25 to Sunday, Oct. 26 exposing, sharing and developing their dreams in a spirit of Koinonia. Listening and blessing each other s dreams in Christ!! How fruitful can this be! I feel like I found lifelong friends in Christ! said one of the participants of the retreat. 6

7 Fifty years ago, in September of 1964, as a young sister, I landed in my mission-country Korea, and I set foot on Korean ground at Kimpo- Airport. Later on, I always proudly declared Kimpo as my birthplace in Korea. The land of the morning-calm was my first love. Unfortunately, it remained my home for only 10 years. These were years full of good memories. I learned to stay and to love my Korean fellow-sisters, friendships developed, and with the assistance of the sisters, I was able to learn the Korean language and to be useful for the up building of the priory of Daegu. Living together with the Korean Sisters, who had fled from North Korea and meeting the German Sisters, who had returned to South Korea after their sufferings in prison and in the north-korean labor camp, was a special experience for me, which I can never forget. At that time, Korea was not yet so well developed as I found it during my present visit. Wounds and scars of the Korean War were still visible, and near our house was even a refugee camp. Later, when our Congregation made a new foundation in Kenya/East-Africa, I was sent there, and it became my joy, to live together with our Korean Missionary- Sisters, and even to start the pastoral apostolate with Korean Catholics, living and working in Kenya. Now, after many years away from Korea, I had the joy of being invited to participate in the prioresses and regional superiors meeting in Daegu/Korea. I really was delighted to visit once more Korea, just 50 years after I had first arrived there. It was like a miracle for me. Of course, I never could have imagined the development that during these last 50 years had taken place in Korea. Forests of high-rise buildings are just an external sign for this. Beautiful Highways make traveling easy; the countryside with Rice fields ready for harvest and everywhere trees and even forests on the hills and mountains are so beautiful! I was especially impressed by so many sisters, by the communities, and all the apostolates our sisters are engaged in. God has accompanied the sisters in their missionary work and has showered on them his special blessings. I am so grateful for all that I have seen and experienced, and especially also for the love I received. My prayer is now, that our dear Lord may continue to guide the sisters in their efforts to bring his love to all the people they are serving! Tutzing, October 30, 2014 Sr. Chantal Gerster OSB Haus St. Benedikt, Tutzing/Germany 7

8 October 2014: In August 2003, for the first time the Daegu Newsletter Editor Team came up with an idea to create a website publicly accessible via internet. Sr. Bonaventura Lee was the first creator of the Daegu Priory Website which was launched in December At the same period of time, the Missionary Benedictine Sisters of Tutzing Website was also opened by Sr. Edith Fasel. With the request of many visitors and sisters, the website was under reconstruction in August 2008 and developed with new interior pages in The Website won great popularity among young adults as well as teenagers and elderly, making the Daegu Priory Website one of the top if not the second in number of visitors among the Religious Congregation Websites in Korea. As a way to evangelize our visitors with all the richness of Benedictine Spiritual life, the Daegu Priory Website launched the newly designed Website this October with a proper adaptation for Smartphones. The first page was designed in such a way that one can have a preview of the entire Website and go straight to the page of interest. Besides the existing pages, we added a History of the Church page which includes information about the in-prospect canonization of the 38 Martyrs of North Korea, Stories of our Mission Abroad page (Sr. Columba Park has placed a post), BeneWood page for the development of Creation-Spirituality by the Priory JPIC (Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation) Committee, BeneCounseling page for counseling, the Lectio Divina page has meditation and drawing, GodofMountainWind page has photography with short reflection, the Liturgy Room with the Sunday and Feast Gregorian Chant Introitus sung by the community of Daegu Priory House, with respective lyrics and much more. Above all, it was developed in the spirit of togetherness. Visitors and Sisters together are able to study and learn, share their thoughts and opinions via INTERNET as a way of GRACE where together we grow in the spirit of love and communion, and bear fruit for justice and peace in the world. Monday s evening lectures Monday, Oct.13: On Monday afternoon, Oct. 13 a lecture was given on Social Doctrine of Catholic Church by former Embassador of the Republic of Korea to the Holy See HanHongSung at the chapter room. Later on, he was invited for Vespers and supper at Benedict Spirituality Center with Prioresses. 8

9 Apostolate News Tuesday Saturday, Oct. 7-11: 20 employees from various departments such as Hospital HouseKeeping, the Information Desk, the Parking departments and 2 Sisters as well were appointed as the best staff members of Daegu Fatima Hospital in They received a 5-day package trip to Thailand as a reward for their strength and being good examples of professional life. They left on Tuesday, Oct. 7 for Thailand and were welcomed by Yanhee Hospital members. They visited the Hospital and of course, the time for leisure, historical and cultural sightseeing tours were not skipped. Saturday, Oct. 18: For many employees at Daegu Fatima Hospital, Hiking Day is one of most exciting event of the year, in which employees can spend time with their co-workers in a non-work environment. This year, Fall Hiking Day brought 700 participants to Palgongsan Mountain from 2 p.m. to late afternoon. The group was divided into four groups to facilitate locomotion. The route was from Historical Monument ShinsungGeom all the way down to WangGeon Road. The marvelous weather helped to make the day very pleasant. Friday, Oct. 24: A memorial Mass for bereaved family members was held on the West Wing of fifth floor presided over by Chaplain of Pastoral Care Service Department, Rev. Gabriel Heo. Around 70 attendees, including doctors, nurses, social workers and volunteers were present to remember and pray for the deceased. Friday - Saturday, Oct : A Seminar on an Ideal Changwon Fatima Hospital was held at Sancheong Hanwoori Center from Friday Oct. 17 to Saturday Oct. 18. Sixty employees involved in middle executive management in different departments of the Hospital participated in the seminar. The speaker for the first day was Mr. Cho HyeonSung, Korea Center CEO, who gave a lecture entitled leadership in communication with a program for understanding of oneself. 9

10 Friday, Oct. 24: In order to assist the child s development of the internal and external world, Fatima Childcare Center hosted an educational conference based on Dr. Donald Winnicott s theory entitled The Good-Enough Mother in the conference room on Friday, Oct. 24. Parents Educational Center CEO Kim SongHye was the keynote speaker who talked about transition stages of the baby from relative dependence to the mother to autonomous position. In the environment of child s development, it s important to the mother to introduce the world through 3 key aspects, which are holding, handling and object- presenting. The mother may hold the child, handle it and present objects. By doing so, the child learns to make a forecast or predict, and hence allows him to retain a sense of control. The mother s role should be first to create illusion that gives comfort and then to create disillusion. This will assist the child to introduce gradually into the social world. summarized Mrs. Kim. Sunday, Oct. 26: The announcement of the year of the Consecrated Life by Pope Francis from November 21, 2014 to February 2, 2016, 50 years after the Conciliar Decree Perfectae Caritatis, brought Korean Benedictine Oblates of Waegwan Abbey, Missionary Benedictine Sisters of Tutzing Seoul and Daegu Priory gather for a Consecrated Life Day event hosted by Waegwan Abbey on Sunday, Oct. 26. The meeting began with a High Mass celebration at 10:30 a.m. at the main chapel followed by a delicious lunch and a conference in the afternoon. The keynote speaker of the conference was Rev. Romualdo Heo OSB who talked about the Identity of Consecrated Men and Women in Society. Around 500 Oblates attended the meeting. Father Arch Abbot, Dom Jeremias Schröder from St. Ottilien Archabbey was also present in this meeting. Comings & Goings Monday, Oct. 6: Departure of Sister Marie Tae-gon Kim to Los Angeles, California, USA. She is assigned to work at the St. Gabriel Parish. Wednesday, Oct. 15: Arrival of Sr. Pachomia Park from Los Angeles for home leave vacation and one year ongoing formation period. 10

11 A little bit of knowledge from one of our pioneers (continued from DPN 378) In May 1949 when the Wonsan Priory Community was disbanded by the communist regime, she was sent to her home with her second aunt, Sr. Oliva Park since she and her aunt were just Junior Sisters. Because of the tightly guarded surveillance of the communists, the whole Korean community couldn t move around all together. Therefore, it was felt wise that the younger ones were sent home and waited news or orders from the older Sisters or Superiors. At their home in SoonAhn, Sr. Oliva stayed home quietly. She didn t care to go out since her hearing was not good. But Sr. Lucia, evading the communists tight surveillances, taught the town children some Church Hymns and catechized some willing adults whenever she had time. Her home town population was composed mostly of her relatives who were Catholics but her poor relatives didn t agree with her ways. They didn t like her haughty mannerism, either. But this didn t bother Sr. Lucia who trusted her Catholic relatives and so she continued her activities as a Sister of Missionary Benedictine Congregation. Meanwhile, Sr. Columba Park, who was responsible for the Korean Sisters as their Subprioress, contacted Sr. Lucia to flee to the South. But Sr. Lucia thought that fleeing to the South with her aunt, Sr. Oliva who was half deaf, was dangerous. She rather thought that she would stay home and continue her activities till the Sisters could come back to the Wonsan Convent. Then, she thought she would return to Wonsan Convent. Her strong sense of justice, straight forward character, and handsome appearances made her very noticeable to all and especially to the communists. When the UN army joined the Korean army and pushed up toward PyungYang, she was imprisoned by her own relatives who turned to be communists. Then, in October 11, 1950, one communist police took her to the mountainside and shot her to death. It was seven years since her first profession. She was 31 years old. Thus, she was martyred while proclaiming God s Word despite all the dangers around her. She was too trusting. She trusted her relatives but they were not worthy to be trusted even though they were Catholics themselves. Her older aunt, Sr. Columba who came to the South with the other Sisters, tried to find further details about her death but she couldn t, because the iron curtain was very tightly closed after the Korean War. Sr. Columba waited the unification of this divided country, but she couldn t wait any longer and so she died, too, in July And for sure, now they are together in heaven. -Sr. Veronica Lee- Responsible for the Chroniches of Daegu Priory (Translated by Sr. Maria Paul Sung) that in all things God may be glorified (Pt 4,11) Newsletter: osb_news@hanmail.net Homepage: 11