The Keys to God’s Kingdom
A reflection by Fr. Jim O’Brien
As a young boy growing up in Boston, I vividly remember the experience of seeing my first movie. The name of the film was The Keys of the Kingdom, released in 1944 and starring Gregory Peck. It is the story of a young missionary priest, Fr. Chisholm (Gregory Peck) sent to China to establish a Catholic parish among the non-Christian Chinese. Fr. Chisholm struggles in China enduring isolation, disease and poverty. In the end, it was a film produced in Hollywood after all, he does succeed in China using patience and understanding.
However, I was puzzled when I left the theater since I still did not know who had the keys! Was it Fr. Chisholm? Or, did the Chinese people have the keys? Many years later, I read a book by the same title, and I thought I figured out the answer. It was the missionary who had the keys and could open up the gates of God’s kingdom. All would be welcome to enter and become members of God’s family.
In my vocation as a Columban Father, I was sent to Korea as a missionary. After a struggle with the language and the culture, I began to see that I wasn’t the only one with the keys. I came to a new understanding and insight into who had the keys. I began to see that the Korean people had already been blessed by God. It was an eye opener when I realized God had been there before me.
The culture and language of the Korean people spoke of spiritual blessings and the Great Spirit. God had already spoken to the people in a way far different from my previous experience. Realizing that God has been in Korea long before my arrival was a decisive moment in my life as a missionary.
The land, the people and the culture were sacred because God had blessed them in a special way. Acting on this important revelation and listening to their stories, I was able to share my faith experience with them and how I had come to know God.
Many people listened and in time asked for baptism and were received into the Church. Some were polite, heard the message but never joined us. However, we would meet from time to time and remained friends and enjoyed some non-church events together.
These positive experiences moved me to reflect on why I was Korea. If God was already there, why was I? I was there because I was sent to bring the Good News about Jesus and his teachings. My role was to be a witness for the gospel in a land far from home and help the Korean people come to know God in a new way.
The Church in Korea is alive and well. I was just one Columban among many who served in Korea. Along the way I kept seeing how God was present there, and I realized how blessed I have been to be there as well. Like Fr. Chisholm, I saw the Catholic church flourish among the missions. The keys of the kingdom are found among all nations and peoples in their cultures, their languages and their experiences.
Columban Father Jim O’Brien currently resides in Bristol, Rhode Island after many years on mission. For more information about The Keys of the Kingdom, check out http://www.imdb.com/. For more information about the Columban Fathers and their missionary work, go to http://www.columban.org.
A reflection by Fr. Jim O’Brien
As a young boy growing up in Boston, I vividly remember the experience of seeing my first movie. The name of the film was The Keys of the Kingdom, released in 1944 and starring Gregory Peck. It is the story of a young missionary priest, Fr. Chisholm (Gregory Peck) sent to China to establish a Catholic parish among the non-Christian Chinese. Fr. Chisholm struggles in China enduring isolation, disease and poverty. In the end, it was a film produced in Hollywood after all, he does succeed in China using patience and understanding.
However, I was puzzled when I left the theater since I still did not know who had the keys! Was it Fr. Chisholm? Or, did the Chinese people have the keys? Many years later, I read a book by the same title, and I thought I figured out the answer. It was the missionary who had the keys and could open up the gates of God’s kingdom. All would be welcome to enter and become members of God’s family.
In my vocation as a Columban Father, I was sent to Korea as a missionary. After a struggle with the language and the culture, I began to see that I wasn’t the only one with the keys. I came to a new understanding and insight into who had the keys. I began to see that the Korean people had already been blessed by God. It was an eye opener when I realized God had been there before me.
The culture and language of the Korean people spoke of spiritual blessings and the Great Spirit. God had already spoken to the people in a way far different from my previous experience. Realizing that God has been in Korea long before my arrival was a decisive moment in my life as a missionary.
The land, the people and the culture were sacred because God had blessed them in a special way. Acting on this important revelation and listening to their stories, I was able to share my faith experience with them and how I had come to know God.
Many people listened and in time asked for baptism and were received into the Church. Some were polite, heard the message but never joined us. However, we would meet from time to time and remained friends and enjoyed some non-church events together.
These positive experiences moved me to reflect on why I was Korea. If God was already there, why was I? I was there because I was sent to bring the Good News about Jesus and his teachings. My role was to be a witness for the gospel in a land far from home and help the Korean people come to know God in a new way.
The Church in Korea is alive and well. I was just one Columban among many who served in Korea. Along the way I kept seeing how God was present there, and I realized how blessed I have been to be there as well. Like Fr. Chisholm, I saw the Catholic church flourish among the missions. The keys of the kingdom are found among all nations and peoples in their cultures, their languages and their experiences.
Columban Father Jim O’Brien currently resides in Bristol, Rhode Island after many years on mission. For more information about The Keys of the Kingdom, check out http://www.imdb.com/. For more information about the Columban Fathers and their missionary work, go to http://www.columban.org.
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1 comment:
Good morning Kate.
I read the blog and Fr. O'Brien's collaboration last Saturday (I linked to it from the English website). In a great coincidence, I had just watched the same movie, "The Keys of the Kingdom", a couple of days before.
Unlike Fr. O'Brien, I hadn't not seen the movie before but had read the book (by A.J. Cronin) many years before, in the 1970s. Really liked the story. I particularly remember that the author describes a couple of Protestant missionaries (don't recall what denomination) as having the same Christian zeal to spread the Word, and places the couple in the same type of dangerous situations that he places Fr. Francis Chisholm, his main character, in what I thought was an unconventional and tolerant view of non-Catholic missionaries, especially for the time when it was written and published.
I was looking for "The Good Earth" DVD at Amazon but when I saw "The Keys..." DVD advertised, also purchased it. Looking at the order summary, I just realized that I bought several China-themed movies!
Anyway, thanks for the blog. A great communications tool!--Manny
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