It is only in their passing that some people’s lives come to light — especially the lives of those who lived in service of others.

So it is with the late Bishop Timothy Yu Gyoung-chon, who passed away Aug. 15, just a month shy of his 63rd birthday, after battling cancer.

Yu was ordained a priest in 1992. In December 2013, he was appointed bishop by Pope Francis, who had been elected pope in March that year.

Yu took as his pastoral motto "you ought to wash one another's feet." The phrase from John 13:14 in the Bible, spoken by Jesus after he washed the feet of his disciples at the Last Supper, is often interpreted as his last instruction to serve one another and in humility.

Yu put his pastoral motto to practice, leading the social service mission of the Archdiocese of Seoul as an auxiliary bishop, reaching out to the needy and listening to the unheard.

Celebrating a Mass marking the first anniversary of the 2022 Itaewon crowd crush, Yu called for a proper remembrance of the over 150 victims, most of whom were young people on an evening out. A “proper and sufficient” remembering was needed for the bereaved families to recover, he said. For the families who had suffered the ignominy of blank name tablets at a public altar set up at Seoul Plaza, his words were a balm to their wounded hearts.

On the occasion of the second anniversary of the Sewol ferry disaster in 2016, he officiated a memorial Mass at Myeongdong Cathedral. For the families of the more than 300 people who died, who were seeking a full account of the disaster, Yu offered consolation in their grief and anger. Most of the victims were school students on a field trip,

In 2014, Yu, who was reported to be afraid of heights, climbed up on a crane to meet with two protestors who had been calling for the reinstatement of more than 100 non-regular workers fired by a cable channel operator. The two had been protesting from a height of 30 meters on top of a billboard for 30 days. Yu listened to them, said he would pray for the issue to be resolved soon and blessed them.

Yu’s life of service to the poor and the marginalized came to be more widely known following his death as people recounted their encounters with the bishop. A little digging around the internet reveals a man of great humility, who preferred to listen rather than speak, who took action rather than merely preaching.

He led the opening of a soup kitchen near Myeondong Cathedral and served meals there once a week without fail, unless other urgent events required his presence. Volunteers working alongside him at another soup kitchen did not recognize the bishop in their midst. He covered his clerical collar with a zipped-up jacket, his face under a mask and cap.

A cleaner at the dormitory-like residence where Yu lived said she never entered his room — he cleaned his own room and insisted on washing his own clothes.

A photograph of an old Kia Pride, a small, long-discontinued car some 20 years old, that Yu continued to drive even after becoming bishop, attests to his frugal lifestyle.

In many of the photographs online, Yu is seen smiling meekly, his hands clasped together in front of him, making himself small, taking up as little space as possible.

In his passing, Yu left behind an example of life well lived, an example that should inspire us.

The writer is the culture desk editor at The Korea Herald. – Ed.


khooran@heraldcorp.com