"The society has existed for a little less than 40 years," the superior general told AsiaNews, "but has a great desire to do things, and give back to the universal Church the many gifts it received during the evangelisation of Korea. We need more time to stabilise the missionary concept in our community, but we are on the right track." Lepers in China are one example of what the missionary school does: prepare lay and consecrated people for the world.

Seoul (AsiaNews) - The Korean Catholic Church "does not yet have a significant missionary experience to allow it to go into the world to proclaim the Word of God in a structured way. Yet we are certain that this is what we need as much as we still need the time to see the fruit of our labour ripen. Nonetheless, we are on the right track. The purpose of the Korean Missionary Society is just that: walk together with our Church to help it go beyond its boundaries, growing together," said Fr Andrew Kim Young-jae, superior general of the Korean Missionary Society.

He spoke to AsiaNews about the challenges that the concept of mission entail and the joy of being able to contribute to the evangelisation of the world, "a way to show our gratitude to those who gave so much for the Korean Church."

Founded in 1975, the Korean Missionary Society was the brainchild of Mgr John Choi Jae-seon, then bishop emeritus of Busan.

"Struck by the sudden drop in vocations he saw when he was in Germany, Mgr Choi decided to make a great effort to keep alive the priestly vocations in Korea. At the same tie, he also had in mind the great debt of gratitude the Korean Church had and still has towards the universal Church. In view of this, he submitted a proposal to the Bishops' Conference to create a missionary institute that would contribute to world evangelisation from our country."

The proposal "was adopted by Korea's bishops, who the same year created the 'Catholic Society of Korea for foreign missions', which was later changed to the 'Korean Missionary Society' during the 2005 Chapter.

 "The Society had to wait until 1981 to get its first missionary. In March of that year, Fr Michael Kim Dong-gi was ordained. On 3 November, three diocesan priests joined him and together they were sent to Madang, Papua New Guinea."

Since then, growth has been slow but steady. At present, the Korean Missionary Society has 95 members. Of these, 26 are seminarians who live and study in the country; the other 69 are active in different parts of the world, eight different countries to be precise: ten priests in Papua New Guinea; seven in Taiwan; six in China, two in Hong Kong and four in the mainland (Beijing, Shanghai and Sichuan Province); eight in Cambodia; seven in Mozambique; four in the Philippines; six in Mexico and four in the United States.

The rest are in the central office where they contribute to the training of seminarians and the organisational work of the Society.

In addition to pastoral work, especially in the parishes, Korean missionaries are involved in social assistance and health care. In mainland China for example, some members work with people who suffer from Hansen's disease (leprosy).

"It 'a terrible disease that still generates social exclusion for those affected," Fr Kim said. "For this reason, I find the attitude of the Chinese government, which grants permanent visas with difficulty and mistrust, hard to understand. Our priests are trying to do good and help those society rejects with revulsion. Why all these obstacles?"

The missionary school is also an interesting reality, a tool that the society makes available to all those in Korea who are interested in missionary work.

"We have few people so far, but we have noticed growth in those who come to us to learn about the concept of mission and apostolate. Basically, it is a structure that prepares diocesan priests, religious men and laity for pastoral work abroad. It ranges from the study of languages to ​​spiritual support to faraway and different peoples. We hope it gains a bigger foothold."

In concluding, the society "is open to the entire world, wherever there is a need for missionaries," Fr Kim said. "But we feel a special concern and responsibility for Asia, in particular China, where it is difficult for Westerners to enter as missionaries. We have received so much from the universal Church and we want to give back, with all of our heart, as much as we can, what we received."

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