Japan, Korea bishops transcend troubled history to declare brotherhood

Annual conference focuses on overcoming nationalism and building bridges for evangelization.

Korean and Japanese bishops pose for a photograph at the Catholic Church of Repentance and Atonement, near the Korean Demilitarized Zone, last week

Tokyo:  The bishops of Korea and Japan last week convened a three-day cultural exchange conference in Seoul aimed at addressing political tensions in East Asia and ongoing efforts to bring their two nations closer together in the wake of a much-troubled history.

The meeting, which has become an annual tradition for Church leaders from both countries, adopted the theme “An evangelical life that transcends nationalism” and was headed by Archbishop Kim Hee-geun of Gwanju and Archbishop Takeo Okada of Tokyo, presidents of their respective bishops’ conferences.

Prior to the start of the conference, 10 bishops from each nation visited a group home for ‘comfort women’ who had been used by the Japanese military as sex slaves.

“As people who must bear responsibility for our nation’s history, for what Japan has done to you, I offer our most heartfelt apology,” said Auxiliary Bishop Goro Matsuura of the Archdiocese of Osaka during the meeting at the group home.

He added that the Church in Japan seeks to own up to its history and teach it to future generations.

The bishops also paid a visit to a memorial for An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who assassinated Hirobumi Ito, a former prime minister of Japan, in China in 1909.

“It is said that Korea and Japan are near each other but very far apart; but we, the bishops of our two nations, are brothers and always have been so,” said Archbishop Kim on the final day of the meeting in Seoul.

“Through these exchange meetings, we will strive to become bridges for the peace of northeast Asia and for the peace of the world.”

Archbishop Okada expressed his gratefulness for the fact that the two countries are coming up on the twentieth of “these meetings, which were brought into being to help overcome the sad history of our two countries and fill in the gap of historical consciousness that separates us”.

He added, “Our two nations still face shared challenges” such as income inequality, discrimination, and suicide, “and against such a backdrop we will work together to bring about the Kingdom of God”.

Source: ucanews.com