Founded among those who came to work in the factories, today it also takes care of the many Vietnamese students – often non-believers – who attend Korean universities. Monsignor Chung at the anniversary mass: “I carry in my heart the great faith that I have seen in your country. As the disciples of the Risen One, you bear witness to the Gospel despite the difficulties.”
Seoul () – The Vietnamese Catholic community of the Archdiocese of Seoul celebrated the 20th anniversary of its founding on April 23 with a Mass presided over by Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-Taick at the Archdiocese’s Pastoral Work Center.
Monsignor Chung, who also chairs the Committee of the Korean Catholic Church for Migrants, expressed his gratitude to the many Catholic priests and lay people who have made possible the development of this community, which today is one of the most significant in Seoul. It began in April 2003 at the hands of the Salesian Father Pham Thanh Bin, who began to celebrate Sunday Mass at the Work Pastoral Center, and is currently made up of six local communities.
“It started as a small group of factory workers and women who came to Korea for marriage,” explained Father Yoo Sang Hyeok, director of the Seoul Archdiocese Committee for Migrant Ministry. “Today, the Vietnamese Catholic community it has the largest number of faithful among the ethnic communities in the archdiocese. In the Vietnamese community in Seoul alone, we have between 500 and 600 people participating in Sunday Mass, and the reality is that we need space for them.” The profile of those who arrive today in South Korea from Vietnam has also changed: “Now they are more students than migrant workers,” continues Fr. Yoo, and among them “there are many more non-believers.”
Nguyen Chi Hung, a 27-year-old computer engineering student who attended Mass with the archbishop, said he joined the Vietnamese community “with the desire to go to the house of the Lord” and that the community helped him settle in Korea. He said that he would like to continue living in Seoul after graduation: “I want to get closer to more Koreans in the future and get to know them well.”
In his homily, Mons. Chung recalled a visit he had made to Vietnam in the past as a priest of the Carmelite Order. “Around five in the morning,” he recounted, “I saw the faithful from different neighborhoods who went to the great church of the Carmelite convent to attend mass, singing hymns and praying with all their hearts. It was a scene that moved me deeply and that still I keep in my heart.”
“Living in an unknown foreign country, far from family and home, is a difficult task that requires great sacrifices,” he added, “and you all endure various adversities because of work or studies. The resurrection of Jesus is a event that gives strength, grace and blessings to all of us who are going through difficult times. And just as the disciples were sent to various parts of the world after the resurrection of Jesus Christ, you also sacrifice and endure hardships for your beloved families and your future, offering the love of Jesus. Try to live with determination as apostles who practice the Gospel”.
In addition to the Vietnamese community, the Seoul Archdiocesan Center also serves immigrant communities from the Philippines, South America, Mongolia, Thailand, China, and Indonesia. “I want us all to remember,” commented Fr. Yoo, “that before being migrants, they are people loved by God. The difference in lifestyles in different cultures can give rise to conflicts. But if we respect their cultures and share ours with them, our society will integrate naturally ‘.