Just like all the modern countries in the world, Korea is marked by divorce and cohabitation instead of marriage, and by the falling birthrate. The "therapy" proposed by the local church, engaged in the work of discussion and reflection in view of the coming 2015 Synod, is to put the Gospel at the center of every family. Msgr. Lazzaro You Heung-sik, Bishop of Daejeon, said this in an interview with Vatican Insider.
"The family is the basic cell of the Church and society. If the family collapses, what will remain of the Church and of society? Precisely for this reason, it is a central issue, in which the Church is called to indicate an evangelical path. During the Synod, many open questions emerged. Now the problems are on the table: in Korea—he explained—every diocese, parish and prayer movement will reflect and seek answers [...] recalling that the essential mission of the Church is to bring the flock to Christ, to save souls."
Among the priorities—the Korean Bishop continues—is that of "giving the necessary attention to families living in the church communities, while on the other hand being open and welcoming all those families who, for various reasons, tend to exclude themselves from the life of the Church and from grace: these are families with problems, and they need a message of hope. For example, it is important to receive the divorced, who are undergoing great suffering, and to avoid making them feel like 'outcasts': they can carry their cross together with Christ, loving it and making it an instrument of love. "
