“With a deeper desire to devote my life entirely to the youth...”
Written by KOR SocCom
Seoul, Korea, 25 January 2025 -- On the Feast of St Francis de Sales, 24 January, at 2 p.m. the Salesian Family in Korea once again celebrated a great joy in the chapel on the 7th floor of the Salesian Province house. 'Finally' it was the day when Dominic Kim Hyun-ki was ordained priest. Fr Dominic Kim went through an initial formation period that was much longer than others, spending five years of practical training instead of the usual two, so he always had to use the modifier “finally” whenever he was the protagonist at each stage of formation.
The ordination Mass, celebrated by Bishop Lee Kyung-sang, an Auxiliary Bishop of the Seoul Archdiocese, was attended by about 500 people, including many Salesian Family members and the faithful of Seoul Hoehwa-dong, the new priest's home parish. In particular, many young people from the Salesian Youth Centre in Daerim-dong, Seoul, where he had been stationed for many years during his long initial formation step, attended to celebrate his ordination.
After the ceremony, Mr Francis Kim, who is the father of the new priest, gave a speech on behalf of the family, “When Fr Stephan Yang Seung-guk, who was the former provincial superior, was the rector of the Daejeon community, I often visited him there. One day, he came to my house with a sack of sweet potatoes harvested from the community farm and said, ‘I'm going to take Dominic to the Salesians.’ I thought that I could easily give away even a single sweet potato at that time, without thinking that I would lose anything. You have endured so much at the Salesian Congregation and raised him so well that you finally made him a priest, so I have really done a great deal of business,” he said, making the participants laugh.
While delivering his congratulatory remarks, Fr Marcello Baek Kwang-Hyun, the provincial superior, said, “Fr Dominic Kim prepared for today with an earnest desire and finally reached the priesthood. I think that it was that desire that helped him to push forward on the path to the priesthood without giving up or becoming frustrated even when he encountered more difficulties than others. Now that he has become a priest, he should not think that the time for that desire has ended. Rather, it is sublimated into a deeper desire to devote his entire life to the youth, and I hope that it will be the driving force behind his exemplary life as a Salesian." With these words, he congratulated him on the long process he has worked hard to build up to this day and prayed that he would become a happy Salesian loved by young people.
“I first came into contact with the Salesian community in 2002 when I was in the sixth grade of elementary school, and I joined the Salesian community in 2009. After 16 years of initial formation, I 'finally' have received the sacrament of Holy Orders. Looking back, every moment was a grace of God. If I had not had those difficult times, I would probably have remained a child. Now, as a priest, I will join the Salesian priests who follow Don Bosco and, together with all of you here, especially all the young people I will meet in the future, I will renew my desire to enter the Kingdom of God together.” He expressed his gratitude and asked for continued accompaniment and more prayers for his vocation journey.
We congratulate Fr Dominic Kim Hyun-Ki on his ordination and look forward to his life as a priest who can inspire the strong will, hope, and courage of many young people who are facing difficulties today.
