Memorial of Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn, Priest, and Paul Chŏng Ha-sang, and Companions, Martyrs

Today's Mass Readings

Conviction

On a day like this, I must admit. In private moments and in various circumstances, I have waffled and waned in my ten-plus years as a monk. The romantic feelings have certainly faded, and the honeymoon phase is but a fond memory. My monastic life in Northwest Missouri has been relatively calm and ordinary. I haven’t had to stand up for or defend the Catholic faith in big ways. I have not been personally under threat of persecution (I try not to take religious freedom for granted). I am not tempted by any major vice or sin—except perhaps complacency and mediocrity.

If you made casual mention of the Korean martyrs of the 19^th century in your workplace, you may turn some heads. Today, the Church’s ritual memorial of hundreds of them is meant to turn our hearts—and to shake us from complacency and mediocrity.

The Korean martyrs look at us today and say: Christ, the Son of God, eternal life in His Kingdom—it’s all worth dying for. Yet, it was not by their strength of will alone. It was their hearts, open to the grace of God and the love of Jesus Christ, that enabled them to endure so much and come out of it victorious.

“Conviction” is a funny word. It can mean two different things: “I have a conviction” could mean I am an offender of some social system that is bigger than me; or it could mean I am a believer in some transcendent value that is beyond me.

I mean it both ways: I convict myself of complacency and mediocrity. Yet, it is my conviction, deep down, that God exists, that He came in the flesh, taught us how to live and die, and that this is the way to eternal life—that He is the Way to have abundant life, both now and forever.

For the Journey:

Find an image of St. Andrew Kim Taegon or of St. Paul Chong Ha-sang, or of all the Korean martyrs. Turn on some meditative music and have a spirit-filled, imaginative conversation. I’ll do it, too. Peace.

Reflection by Br. Luke Kral, OSB