hankyoreh

Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong

Pope Francis offered a rosary as a gift to President Moon Jae-in and prayers for inter-Korean dialogue.

The Pope presented the rosary and offered his prayers for the dialogue and peace on the Korean Peninsula in a May 24 meeting with Moon’s special envoy to the Vatican, Archbishop Hyginus Kim Hee-joong, Yonhap News reported. With Moon reportedly asking Kim to convey a request for the pontiff’s help in achieving inter-Korean dialogue and relaxing tensions on the peninsula, the next question is whether Pope Francis will play an active role.

Meeting with the Pope at St. Peter‘s Square after his Wednesday general audience, Kim presented him with a letter from Moon and asked him to “offer blessings for the new President to complete his missions and a prayer for improvement of our strained inter-Korean relations,” Kim reported.

In response, the Pope reportedly stressed the importance of the two sides meeting for dialogue.

“The more difficult the situation, the more it should be resolved through dialogue rather than arms,” the Pope was quoted as saying.

During the meeting, the Pope also presented a rosary to give to Moon as a gift. A rosary is a sacred object used in Catholic prayer, with rosaries given by the Pope seen by Catholics as one of the holiest of gifts.

“In giving the rosary, the Pope asked several times that it be delivered to President Moon,” Kim reported.

Kim also relayed Moon’s hope to visit the Vatican, to which the Pope said he would “always be welcome.”

The Vatican has reportedly lauded Moon as both a Catholic and a human rights lawyer who has worked on behalf of the underprivileged and marginalized.

“The Vatican in the past has played a behind-the-scenes role in the normalization of U.S.-Cuba diplomatic ties and the Columbian peace agreement,” Kim was quoted as saying by Yonhap News, suggesting the Pope and Vatican could play a substantial role in resolving conflicts and establishing peace on the peninsula as they did before in helping normalizing relations and achieve reconciliation between hostile countries and groups.
While flying back to the Vatican on Apr. 29 after a visit to Egypt, Pope Francis expressed concerns about rising tensions on the peninsula in the wake of North Korea’s missile launches and called for dialogue and a diplomatic solution.
“There are so many facilitators in the world, there are mediators who offer themselves, such as Norway for example,” he said at the time.
Soon after the Pope’s remarks, North Korea and the US launched a two-day long track 1.5 meeting in Oslo on May 9.
By Jung E-gil, senior staff writer
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