Seoul (AsiaNews) - One of the most famous Korean "new
wave" artists, actor and singer Rain, was baptized a few days ago in a small
parish in Gwangju, on the outskirts of Seoul. Rain, best known for his vocal
talents, is one of the leading exponents of "K-Pop", the Korean music
trend that is highly popular throughout Asia. According to some sources, he
drew close to the Catholic Church through his girlfriend Kim Tae-hee, a famous actress
and a fervent Catholic.
The baptism was confirmed this morning by his PR agency, the Cube DC: " Rain was recently
received baptism as a Catholic. It was something that was planned a long
time ago. Only family and close friends were attending". The same agency denied there was any sentimental compulsion behind his
choice: "It is not true that Rain and Kim are getting married, and it is not true
that he was forced to undergo baptism".
Rain is only the latest in a long list of celebrities to join the South Korean Church.
The champion figure skater Kim Yu-na was baptized in adulthood choosing the
name of "Star" and is very devout; BoA, known as the "Queen of Korean
pop" instead comes from a Catholic family and, in the course of her career
and has always given a lot of importance to her faith. Precisely for this
reason, she was chosen to attend the lunch with Pope Francis to be held in the
Diocese of Daejeon South Korea during the pontiff's visit to South Korea
The Pope will visit the peninsula August 14 to 18 to participate in the Asian Youth
Day in the Diocese of Daejeon, and to beatify Paul Yun Ji-chung and his 123 companions,
martyred in hatred of the faith during the persecutions of the Joseon kingdom.
The lunch will take place on August 15: BoA along with 17 other young people will
be representatives from many Asian nations, chosen as "ambassadors" of
the faith among their peers. According to the bishop, Msgr. Lazzaro You Heung-sik,
"the territory of this diocese has been the home of many martyrs. Hopefully
the Asian Youth Day will inspire other young people to look to their sacrifice.
This meeting with the Pope is sure to be a huge encouragement for their faith.
"