The Korean Province of the Society of Jesus celebrated the ordination to the priesthood of five of her men on 6 July at the Myeong-dong Cathedral in Seoul. With their ordination, the Korean Province now has 141 priests out of a total of 165 Jesuits.
The new priests, Roh Hyun-woo Augustine, Lee In-je Paulus, Kim Jung-hyun Joseph, Hwang Dae-ki Andrea, and Ji Hyeong-gyu John, were ordained by Most Rev Benedict Son Hee-song, Bishop of the Archdiocese of Seoul.
In his homily, the Bishop gave thanks for the gift of new Jesuit priests and hoped they would become like the Jesuits he had learned about during his studies in Innsbruck, Austria. “I hope you will be like Fr Alfred Delp SJ who offered unwavering worship to God with unbreakable faith. Also, like Blessed Rupert Mayer SJ, who showed devotion to his neighbours with determination and humility. Lastly, I hope that you will become a priest who loves the Church and will always be faithful like Fr Karl Rahner SJ,” he said.
About 800 people were able to attend the ordination ceremony after the country relaxed some of its Covid-19 restrictions. At the Laying on of Hands, the church resounded with the beautiful voice of St Kim Dae-gun’s Choir with their performance of “Receive, Lord”, a hymn composed by one of the ordinands, John Hyeong-gyu Ji.
Fr Ji, in an interview before his ordination, said: “Like Jesus, who shares in my weakness and pain, I want to become a priest who lives life discovering the beauty of everyone I meet.”
Fr Dae-ki Andrea Hwang, who is currently studying biblical theology in Rome, said: “I want to become a priest who comforts the abandoned and sick people, like Jesus who looks at my small pain more than his own great pain.”
Fr In-je Paulo Lee said: “I want to become a priest who forgives people and myself, just as Jesus forgave me, and called me even though I am a sinner.”
Fr Jung-hyun Kim said: “I want to become a gentle priest who looks at people with God’s eyes, patiently waiting for them.”
At the end of the ceremony, Korean Provincial, Fr Kim Yong-su Pascal SJ, expressed his gratitude to the many benefactors and the newly ordained priests’ families and relatives who came to the Mass. In his message, he quoted pianist Yun-chan Lim, who recently won the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition: “Winning the big contest doesn’t make any difference. Just because you win doesn’t mean you get better. I just keep practising all the time.” Likewise, Fr Kim told the new priests: “This is the beginning. Live the spiritual training of St Ignatius, follow the poor and humble Jesus deeply, and serve the people of God.” [Dawoon Angela Chung/Korean Province Communication Team]