austraLasia 1588

Brothers' Assembly presented with model of enthusiasm by Korean Brother Oh

SEOUL: 18th June 2006 -- He would have been embarrassed had we published this before his death - but his life of Salesian enthusiasm was no secret to his Korean confreres anyway.  Enthusiasm, which knows no bounds, cannot be kept hidden even by the humblest!|  Brother Thaddeus Oh passed away after a long illness (stomach cancer) on 17th June and will be buried in Seoul on 19th.  He is but the third deceased Korean-born Salesian, all three of whom have been Brothers.
    Brother Thaddeus was born in 1939 at Yosu, 100 kms from Kwangju where the first Salesian community in South Korea was located. He was nicknamed 'Brother Provincial' at one stage of a long stint on the Council during the time of Frs Luc Van Looy and Marc Cuvelier, partly because he was Provincial Economer for those fiftenn years but also in very many ways the 'bridge' between two mentalities, the Korean and the missionary.  It was during this time that he played a crucial role in the construction of so many of Salesian Korea's buildings. But his passion was for people rather than buildings - noted for his commitment to the accompaniment of young candidates and a witness that has been the key to the many good Brother vocations in the Vice Province.  As Economer he was a builder; as a communtiy man, a community builder.
    Brother Thaddeus became a missionary at 60 in one of the Vice Province's outposts, and was instrumental in the launching of a new International Technical School.  He played a vital role, again as the community builder in a demanding situation, keeping up dialogue between local staff, teachers, officials and the SDB and FMA communities involved.
    In 2004, by then suffering the illness that would bring about his death, Brother Thaddeus wrote to the members of the Provincial Chapter.  His message was simple enough: "I have a huge interest in mutual formation amongst us", he said. "We all carry the responsibility of helping each other live the Salesian vocation...to make it possible we need to pause, reflect together.  When we live the same vocation, before anything else we should make our lives interesting.  We should never lose enthusiasm for our life.  That means each one of us is responsible for creating the best atmosphere in our communities....let's have more interest in the life of our younger confreres, see if they are living life with enthusiasm".
    You can read more of the life of Brother Thaddeus Oh by clicking on the What's new on the site this week in the Bosconet homepage.
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