Andrew Yeom Soo-jung
His Excellency Andrew Yeom Soo-Jung | |
|---|---|
| Cardinal Archbishop of Seoul Apostolic Administrator sede plena of Pyongyang | |
| Diocese | Archdiocese of Seoul |
| See | Seoul |
| Elected | 10 May 2012 |
| Installed | 25 June 2012 |
| Predecessor | Cardinal Nicolas Cheong Jin-suk |
| Successor | Incumbent |
| Other post(s) |
|
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 8 December 1973 |
| Consecration | 1 December 2001 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 염수정 Yeom Soo-Jung 5 December 1943 |
| Nationality |  South Korean |
| Residence | Seoul |
| Motto | Amen. Veni, Domine Jesu!("Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!")[1] |
Template:Contains Korean text Template:Korean name
| Andrew Yeom Soo-jung | |
| Hangul | 염수정 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Yeom Soo-Jung |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yŏm Soo-Chŏng |
Andrew Yeom Soo-Jung (Hangul: 염수정; Hanja: 廉洙政; born 5 December 1943) is the Korean Roman Catholic Archbishop of Seoul, Cardinal and de facto Primate of Korea since his appointment was announced on 10 May 2012 by Pope Benedict XVI.[2] Yeom succeeded the Archbishop Emeritus Cardinal Nicolas Cheong Jin-suk and the fifth native Korean Archbishop of Seoul. In January 2014 it was announced that he will be elevated to the cardinalate at the next consistory on 22 February 2014.[3] The Metropolitan Archbishop of Seoul also serves as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Pyongyang in North Korea. Aside from Archbishop, he was also the Chairman of Peace Broadcasting Corporation (Korean: 평화방송 or PBC) a Catholic Television Channel and Radio in South Korea, founded in 1990.
Biography
Yeom Soo-jung was born in Ansong, Gyeonggi Province, to a devout Catholic family, descendants of Peter Yeom Seok-tae and his wife Kim Maria who were arrested and executed in 1850 for their Catholic faith. The Yeom family has kept their religious belief for generations through persecution, leading Archbishop Yeom, the fifth generation Catholic, to enter the priesthood. His two younger brothers Yeom Soo-wan and Yeom Soo-eui have also followed him, currently leading two dioceses in Seoul. At the age of 15, Yeom decided to become a priest and entered the seminary. He graduated from the Catholic University of Korea in 1970[4] before being ordained a priest by Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan on 8 December 1973 for the diocese of Seoul. Yeom Soo-jung went on to obtain a Master of Education in Counseling Psychology from Korea University. He has also studied at the East Asian Pastoral Institute in the Philippines.[5]
After his ordaination, he served as a Pastoral Vicar from 1971–1973, then as President of the Minor Seminary, Songshin High School, from 1973–1977, and then served as Pastor from 1977 until 1978. From 1987 until 1992, he was the Rector of the Major Seminary, thereafter he was appointed Chancellor of the diocesan curia serving in that role until 1998.
After the future Archbishop left his post as Chancellor, he was appointed as one of the Seoul Archdiocese's Vicar Foranes, and at the same time, as a Pastor, serving in these two roles until 2001. He also served as a member of the Presbyteral Council.
| Styles of Andrew Yeom Soo-jung | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reference style | The Most Reverend |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
| Religious style | Archbishop |
On 1 December 2001 it was announced that Pope John Paul II had appointed him, at the age of 58, as an Auxiliary Bishop of Seoul and at the same time Titular Bishop of Thibiuca. He was ordained a Bishop on 25 January 2002. After his episcopal ordination, he became the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Seoul. He retained these roles until 10 May 2012, when Pope Benedict XVI appointed him as the next Metropolitan Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul. He succeeded his former superior, Cardinal Nicholas Cheong Jin-suk, 80, who had surpassed the canonical retirement age after offering his resignation back in 2006. Because the Archdiocese of Seoul is the most important diocese in the Koreas and has been headed by a Cardinal in the past, it is likely that, since his predecessor is over the voting age for a Papal Conclave, he will be named a Cardinal himself in a Consistory in the near future.[4]
He was installed and took possession of the see on 25 June. At the installation ceremony he said “We need to keep the dignity of human life in a society that takes life lightly. The church will fight for that,” said Archbishop Yeom during the inaugural mass. The Seoul Archdiocese held the inaugural ceremony for the new archbishop on the 62nd anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War ― to pray for the unification of the two Koreas. The inaugural Mass was attended by Cardinal Cheong, Culture Minister Choe Kwang-shik, Vatican Nuncio Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla, political leaders including former opposition leader Sohn Hak-kyu, Rep. Kang Ki-gap and Gyeonggi Governor Kim Moon-soo.[6]
According to statistics, as of 31 December 2011, of the 15 dioceses and 1 military ordinariate in Korea, the Archdiocese of Seoul is the most populous with 27% of the total Catholics in Korea. The number of Catholics in Korea is 5,309,964, an increase of 2% (104,375) from 2011. Catholics account for 10.3% of the total population. The total number of Catholics in Korea has slightly and consistently increased at a yearly average of 2–3% during the past 10 years. It has passed the 10% mark of the total population since 2009. According to the Statistics, the number of newly baptised in 2011 was 134,562, a decrease of 4.3% from the previous year. By gender, newly baptised men represented 73,228 and women 61,334. The number of infants baptised amounted to 25,717, an increase of 7.5% over the previous year.
Coat of Arms
The Coat of Arms of Archbishop Yeom features the Traditional Red Hat, or the galero, replaces the Green one with its 10 tassels dangling in two four-tiered formations from either side. Below the Green Hat is the Crucifix symbolizes the Holy Martyrs of Korea who were the victims of religious persecution against the Catholic Church during the Joseon Dynasty in 19th Century.
The shield is a symbol of God's salvation, and the three Rainbow colors: Purple (Love), Blue (Hope) and Green (Faith). The Herald of a new life, Dove, symbol of peace as a messenger came in the past, and will come in the present and future, and the spirit of the Lord brings into the presence among us even today and revealed that symbolizes the Holy Spirit. The Big Star in the center represents the Virgin Mary as she protects the two shining stars below symbolizing the peaceful reunification between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Republic of Korea. An anchor cross and the two Greek letters "A" (Alpha) and "Ω" (Omega) that all the hopes and aspirations of the Korean People will be in the God's plan. The background's color Blue, Yellow, and Red symbolize Peace, Sharing, and Sacrifice.
Archbishop Yeom's Latin motto is taken from the Book of Revelation 22:20, Amen. Veni, Domine Jesu! meaning "Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!"
Cardinal
It has been announced that on February 22nd, 2014 the archbishop, along with 18 others will be created cardinals by Pope Francis.[7]
See also
- Stephen Kim Sou-hwan
- Nicolas Cheong Jin-suk
- Roman Catholicism in South Korea
- Cardinals created by Francis
References
- ^ http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120625000965
- ^ RINUNCIA DELL’ARCIVESCOVO DI SEOUL (COREA) E NOMINA DEL SUCCESSORE
- ^ "Annuncio di Concistoro per la Creazione di Nuovi Cardinali" (in Italian). The Vatican Today. 12 January 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
- ^ a b http://www.koreaherald.com/national/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20120510001237
- ^ Appointments
- ^ http://view.koreaherald.com/kh/view.php?ud=20120625001008&cpv=0
- ^ http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/01/12/pope_francis_announces_names_of_new_cardinals/en1-763352
External links
- "For new Korean cardinal, red of martyrdom is part of family history", National Catholic Reporter, February 4, 2014