The Gospel of Joy
Bishop Toso helps Korean Church prepare for
Papal visit
SEOUL June 28, 2014 --“I was deeply impressed by the
Korean Church's interest in and love for the poor and those
who suffer. I was particularly impressed with priests who
are standing up for the weak and sharing the pain in various
social cases and this shows that you are a good example of
what the Pope has said, ‘The priest should go to the
outskirts and be the shepherd living with the smell of the
sheep’” This was said by Bishop Mario Toso SDB during his
fraternal sharing in the Provincial House in Seoul.
Bishop Mario Toso, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for
Justice and Peace at the Vatican is from Veneto, Italy. As a
Salesian, he was most recently Rector Magnificus at the UPS
(Università Pontificia Salesiana) and in 2009 and was
appointed as Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice
and Peace and ordained Bishop on December 12 that year.
His visit to Korea was at the invitation of the Bishop’s
conference, Korea, to explain the Apostolic Exhortation,
‘Evangelii Gaudium’ in preparation for the Pope’s upcoming
visit in August. Bishop Toso arrived on June 21 and toured the
Archdiocese of Gwangju (24th), Archdiocese of Daegu(25th) and
Archdiocese of Seoul(26th), giving lectures in all three. He
stayed overnight at nearby Salesian Communities and had
fraternal sharing in each. He stayed at the Seoul Provincial
House and listened to the people who suffer in our society.
“The Church has a mission to proclaim and witness to the
Gospel of Christ. Therefore the Church must take a prophetic
stance with regard to obstacles of social and political
injustice to proclaiming the Good News." As he put it, "The
nation cannot stop the Church from saying this and that” where
justice and peace are concerned. In particular, he said, all
of us make up the church as priests, religious clergy and
believers and we must come together for the benefit of the
common good.
“I have heard from the disadvantaged during this visit in
Korea; they have consistently said that they are deeply
impressed with the dedication of priests and religious and
their interest in sharing their pain. Through this, they have
begun to believe in God." Bishop Toso commented that this
shows evidence of a healthy church in Korea. I believe the
view of Church in sharing the pain of those citizens of
Mirayng who suffer from the building of a Transmission Tower
and the residents in Gangjeong Village who are in pain because
of the construction of a naval base, is indeed what Jesus has
taught us about the practice of the fundamental love of the
Good Samaritan. "I think there’s a difference between
perception and reality,” he said, in reference to the Church
in Korea being seen (by some) as tilted towards the rich and
the privileged. "In particular it is not right to define
Church people who strive for justice and peace as Communist or
Left-wing and persecute them. We must make sure we overcome
this challenge. He also said it is unfortunate that in reality
even the Pope is often treated this way."
Bishop Toso emphasized that it is necessary to properly
establish a system in order to practice the teaching of the
Gospel to consolidate justice and peace. The members of the
Church must suggest to the State that it enact the right laws
and help to ensure they are carried out fairly by citizens. He
saw that even in highly developed democratic countries it is
common to see a gap between politics and citizens and based on
economic understanding where 'the system' is applied
unilaterally to benefit the 'haves'. "Therefore," he said,
"people of the Church must consciously come together to make
an effort to promote the values of kingdom of God on this
earth."
Bishop Toso said: “Pope Francis’s visit is intended, as the
title of the visit indicates, to make South Korea’s churches
rise and shine on the world”. he is coming especially to meet
young people whose peace in East Asia is under threat, and to
recommend that they be apostles of peace. Bishop Toso
requested the Korean Salesian Family to deepen the joy of the
Gospel with young people as preparation for greeting the Pope.
The Bishop delivered a keynote address at Myeong-dong
Cathedral at 2 pm on June 26, at a gathering of priests,
religious and members of the Church. He left for Rome on the
27th.
