FRATRUM MINORUM - OFM

1. X International Council for Formation
and Studies
1. Chronicle
E SECRETARIATU
PRO FORMATIONE ET STUDIIS
On 15 th February 2005, the International
Council for Formation and Studies gathered
in the chapel of St Francis Friary in
Seoul and began with the Eucharist celebrated
by the Provincial Minister of Korea,
Paolo Oh ofm. He extended a welcome
from the Province of the Korean Martyrs.
The group then met at the Franciscan
Education Centre, is in the same compound,
where the rest of the meeting was held.
At this opening session, Br. Massimo
Fusarelli, ofm, Secretary General for Formation
and Studies, welcomed us and read
the greetings and letter of the Minister General,
Br. José Carballo, ofm.
The first presentation was by Nichoals
Shin, ofm, on the situation and evangelization
of the Church and the Franciscan Order
in Asia. He also presented statistics comparing
the different religions in the different
parts of Asia.
The second presentation of the day was
by Dr Hwang Jong Yeul, who spoke about
the “Spirituality of Difference.” In illustrating
this through the use of instruments in a
musical group, he spoke about the concept
of harmony, which presupposes differences.
Harmony does not mean conformity,
rather do the different sounds combine to
produce a harmony of music.
The second day was dedicated to dialogue
with Buddhism.
The first presentation was by the Venerable
Misan, who spoke about meditation.
Buddhism is seen as a path of practice
and spiritual development leading to true
happiness.
Meditation is a means of changing oneself
and of developing awareness, compas-
sion and wisdom. Mindfulness is the eventual
goal of Buddhist meditation.
In the late morning, a local Friar,
Sylvester Shim, shared his experience of
living in a Buddhist environment in Korea
with us. He had invited the Zen monks to
give lessons on meditation to the students.
He is presently living in the prayer house of
the Province.
The afternoon was spent visiting a Buddhist
temple. A lively and animated exchange
took place between the group and
an American Buddhist monk who had converted
from Catholicism.
Day three began with a sharing by Br.
John of God, ofm, from the Vietnamese
Province, who spoke about how the friars
responded to the reality of the communist
regime in the life of the Friars. Both the
communists and the Friars celebrated their
75 th anniversary within the last year. Since
the fall of Saigon, in 1975, the Friars have
been challenged to live the Franciscan spirituality
in an authentic way within the context
of a communist society without losing
their identity. He described this period as
the encounter of St Francis with the crucified
Christ.
Over the last decades, the Friars of Vietnam,
in responding to their present situation,
have worked on adapting their religious
life.
While society was moving towards centralization,
the Friars were moving towards
small communities in response to the need
to share the life of the new society: living
with the poor around them.
In the afternoon of the third day we had
a presentation by a Confucian scholar,
Wonsuk Chang, who gave us an introduction
to the thoughts and concepts of Confucianism.
He spoke of the principle of mutuality,
co-dependence and communal interactivity.
Harmony does not mean