Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, Immortalized at 86

I am not religious, but I agree, as would any Korean, that Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan was an inspirational figure. May he rest in peace.

Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, one of the most revered religious leaders in Korea, passed away Monday. He was 86.

Cardinal Kim was sent to Gangnam St. Mary's Hospital due to his frail condition in July last year and had been reportedly in a critical condition before falling into a coma briefly early Saturday morning.

``Cardinal Kim passed away at 6:12 p.m. Monday while in hospital for his deteriorating health,'' an official of the Catholic Seoul Archdiocese said.``He breathed for himself despite poor lung function due to complications from pneumonia resulting from infirmity. But he didn't feel that much pain when he died,'' Chung In-shik, a doctor at the hospital, said.Medical staffs and officials of the Seoul Archdiocese who witnessed the hour of his death, conveyed his last message, which was ``Thank you.''

The body of the late Cardinal Stephen laying in state at Myeongdong Cathedral, downtown Seoul, Moday, in preparation for a memorial servie. /Korea Times Photo

As the late cardinal left a will donating his eyes and other organs after death, his body underwent extraction surgery, according to the hospital. >>More

``Thank You''

Living through times of war, invasion and political chaos was difficult, but the late Cardinal held ``Pro vobis et pro multis'' (For you and for many) as his lifelong pastoral motto, inspiring not only local Catholics but Korean society and beyond.

Born in 1922 in a poor but devout Catholic family (his grandfather perished in prison for preaching his faith), he lived through the darkest hours of modern Korean history, from Japanese colonialism to civil wars and political chaos.

In this 1989 photo, Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, left, exchanges greetings with the late Pope John Paul II at Yeouido Plaza in Seoul, where the 44th International Eucharistic Conference was held. /Korea Times File

In 1968 Kim was appointed cardinal, making him the first ever from South Korea. He was only 46 at the time, and the youngest among the 136 cardinals around the world. With the elevation of his title, he was named Cardinal Priest of S. Felice da Cantalice a Centocelle.

On May 29, 1998 Cardinal Kim left his title as Archbishop of Seoul, ending 47 years of service. Cardinal Kim was friends with neglected minorities, and constantly met with disabled people as well as condemned criminals and the homeless. He was passionate in serving and defending farmers and workers, and later launched the Catholic Urban Poor Pastorals Committee to support the poor. >>More