Top Stories 23/10/22 Korean nuns in Rome hailed for services to global Church

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Korean nuns in Rome hailed for services to global Church

Korean nuns in Rome play key roles within the Holy See, religious congregations, parishes, and social welfare institutions

(From left-right) Sister Beatrice Hye-yoon Kim, Hyun-joo Oh, South Korea’s ambassador to the Holy See, Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-Taick of Seoul, Father Timothy Yeon-jung Jung, rector of the Pontifical Korean College cut a cake to mark the 20th founding anniversary of the Association of Korean Nuns in Rome on Oct. 22. (Photo: Seoul Archdiocese)

By UCA News reporter

Published: October 23, 2023 11:12 AM GMT

A Korean archbishop has applauded an association of Korean nuns in Rome for their two decades of hard work to the service of the global Church.

“I have been hearing for over a decade that Korean nuns in various Roman communities work three to five times harder than others,” Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-taick of Seoul said on Oct. 22, according to an archdiocesan press release.

Chung made the remarks during the 20th anniversary of the Association of Korean Nuns in Rome, while he was there to attend the ongoing Synod on Synodality.

The anniversary program included a commemorative Mass and the cutting of a cake.  

Chung also highlighted the significance of the presence and roles of Korean nuns in Rome as “a service and dedication to the entire global Church.”

“The essence of a Religious person is to bear witness to the Kingdom of God,” he said.

Founded in 2003 in Rome, the association has 99 members from 29 congregations. It is now led by Sister Beatrice Kim Hye-yoon of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Mirinae congregation.

In the early years, most of the association’s members were students.

However,  a significant number of nuns work within the Holy See, religious congregations, parishes, and social welfare institutions, the press release noted.

“Korean women religious who received their formation twenty years ago are now actively serving as leaders and educators within their congregations,” Sister Kim said referring to the remarkable changes.

She emphasized that this transformation represents a significant milestone in the history of the Korean Church and communities of its religious women.

During the homily in the Mass, Chung encouraged the nuns to deepen their spiritual experience and bring it back to Korea to share and bear witness to the faith.

Hyun-joo Oh, South Korea’s ambassador to the Holy See, attended the mass noting that 2023 marks the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and the Holy See.

She also mentioned the recent installation of a statue of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gonoutside St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican’s decision to host the World Youth Day in the South Korean capital Seoul in 2027.

Oh pledged continued cooperation and support for the Association of Korean Nuns in Rome in the years to come.