Repentance and Self-emptying: Our Guide Into Our Future

By Fr. Taemoon Kwon, SSC

In Jonah’s time, Assyria was the largest and strongest empire in the world. Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, was described by Jonah as an exceedingly large city, a three days’ walk across (Jonah 3:3).

Although it is uncertain, Jonah likely harbored many doubts and a skeptical attitude toward God’s command to call the people of this great city to repentance.

With this in mind, I can vividly imagine Jonah trembling with fear and dread as he entered Nineveh. However, he ultimately delivered God’s message, and the people of Nineveh repented, sparing the city from disaster.

Jonah himself experienced a profound transformation, repenting of his disobedience to God’s command. This change didn’t stop with him; it led to the collective repentance of the people of Nineveh.

“Repentance” was the first word Jesus spoke when He began His public ministry, and much of the Gospel revolves around repentance, making it central to our salvation.

Jesus says, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” The goal of repentance is to lead us into the new way God prepares for us. The practice of repentance helps us to empty ourselves, listen to God, and change our direction.

As our Society becomes smaller, more diverse, and multicultural, we are faced with many challenges and concerns. As a result, we can’t expect to walk our missionary journey the same way we did before. We must strive to find the new way that God has already prepared for us.

So, as we start our  post-General Assembly 2024 (GA2024) tomorrow, I emphasize the importance of a spirit of repentance. This might feel heavy, but the repentance I refer to here is  our collective acknowledgement of how we’ve neglected to truly listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Repentance is not just a matter of giving up. It also involves the beginning of a new way of life. And so, it is a life-giving.

I remember at the final Mass of the General Assembly 2024 in Lima, Fr. Andrei Paz, our new congregational leader, in his homily, said:

“Listening to the Holy Spirit is not easy because sometimes we are deaf and blind not only to others but also to ourselves. At times, we have become so accustomed to being blind that we don’t realize our need to be healed. We refuse to acknowledge that our minds and hearts are shuttered to prevent the light from coming in, and we deny the blocks that impede us from moving forward.”

Tim Mulroy, the former congregational leader, might have had a vision for our future, which is why he emphasized the Great U Journey during the opening Mass of the General Assembly in Peru.

The Great U Journey—symbolized by a large letter “U”—was undertaken by Christ. Simply put, though Jesus was God, He emptied Himself and came into the world as human.

As human, He faced many challenges and strong resistance to His message. Despite knowing this path would lead to His death, He remained faithful to His mission.

Jesus chose to descend lower and lower, down to the bottom of the U, surrendering everything to God. In return for His deep trust and faithfulness, God raised Him from the dead and exalted Him, making Him Lord of all.

Thus, God lifted Him to the highest point on the other side of the Great U Journey.

“Like Jesus, this will involve going down, renunciation, going down even further, letting go again and again, as well as a readiness to accept our fragility, suffering and nothingness.”

Therefore, if we take the risk of surrendering everything to God, we can trust that He will lift us up in ways we cannot imagine, leading us to new heights that reveal His power, wisdom, and glory to the world.

Moreover, using the story of our fellow Columban Des Hartford’s discernment of missionary commitment and his journey of interreligious dialogue with the Muslim community as an example, he emphasized that following Christ is extremely challenging. Through his journey, we are reminded not to ignore the inevitable pain and difficulties that come with reform and change—things that cannot be achieved through mere words or ideas that sound good.

Dear brothers and sisters, I also want to emphasize Jesus’ emptying himself to fulfill God’s mission as we gather for this meaningful post-GA assembly. His journey reflects our faith and commitment as Columban missionaries. In other words, we are called to live with a spirit of repentance, letting go of our egos and being filled with the abundance of God’s wisdom.

Thomas Merton says, “in striving to follow God’s will, I changed my spiritual practices. By abandoning the spiritual path I once followed, I became increasingly poor and silent, until I had nothing left. Still, I believe that God speaks to me from the deepest and truest poverty within myself.”

I want to suggest that we avoid glossing over or rushing through the difficulties and pain that come with change. Instead, we should take the time to stay with and embrace them, enduring them together. Only through this shared effort will we be granted the grace of collective wisdom.

Therefore, the self-emptying Jesus call us to live with the wisdom of His self-giving, which has guided our Society since its founding, will continue to inspire us into our future.

I will end my homily with the words of Isaiah 44: 3-4, “For I will pour out waters upon the thirsty ground, and rivers upon the dry land. I will pour out my Spirit upon your offspring, and my benediction upon your stock. And they will spring up among the plants, like willows besides running waters. ”

Regional Assembly 2024