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August 2014 Commencement Address 2014.08.29

August 29, 2014
 
  I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all honored guests who have joined us to grace today’s commencement ceremony. Above all, my heartiest congratulations are sent out to everyone who will be graduating today with their well-deserved undergraduate, graduate and doctorate degrees, as well as their beloved family members and friends.
 
  Beloved graduates, 
  Today is your day. You are now the proud alumni of Asia’s leading private university, Yonsei University. I would like to commend the end of your long journey over the past years here, enjoying the romance and delight of youthful days, at times carrying the burden of intellectual responsibility?, and yet still completing the challenging tasks of work, family and studies. Please send a big round of applause to show our appreciation to your family, friends, colleagues, and teachers of Yonsei.
 
  Graduation marks the end of one chapter in life, but is also a turning point for the next new one. You are now facing a new - and sometimes overwhelming - journey into the world after leaving this campus. Your future path may not always be rosy and you may have to face thorns along the way. However, do not worry. Please have faith that anywhere you go, the roads you pave will change the world and the future of humanity to begin a new history. The spirit of Yonsei is about believing in miracles and making them come true by overcoming high barriers along the way. Yonsei is a place “where we make history” based on its 129 years of challenge and its pioneering spirit.
 
  The late Odon Kwon, who will be receiving his certificate of honorary graduation today, is a living witness to this spirit of Yonsei. After entering Yonhi College to study mathematics and physics, he participated in the June 10th Independence Movement and became imprisoned as a patriot. Two years later, he eventually passed away due to the aftereffects of torture during his imprisonment. Just like Kwon who offered his life in pursuit of the goodness of the community, the spirit of sacrifice is the source of what made today’s Korea and Yonsei.
 
  Dear graduating students, 
  At times it may not be easy to overcome high barriers. Yet the path may become even more difficult if you are intimidated, worried, or fear failure. You must concentrate on the present moment with all of your heart. The Great Learning from the “Four Books” in Confucianism said, “When the mind is not present, we look and do not see; we hear and do not understand; we eat and do not know the taste of what we eat.” We must devote our hearts to become people of empathy who can see well, hear well and empathize with our surroundings.
 
  Do not despair if you experience an unexpected fall along the way. Simply get up again to take a firm stand and continue walking forward. Success does not mean owning many things. Success is getting up after falling and learning from our mistakes. Yonsei’s name shines in history today because we have experienced trials and falls, but we were always determined to get up and continue walking our paths.
 
  At Yonsei, you have not only gained outstanding academic capabilities, but learned firsthand the living history and spirit of Yonsei, which cannot be experienced anywhere else. Yonsei has created an unprecedented history of miracles through endless challenges and pioneering over the past 129 years. Through the sacrifice and passion shown by its many benefactors and pioneers during the seemingly hopeless wasteland and barren fields of its early years, and through the support of our 300,000 alumni, Yonsei makes history today by ranking at the top 20 among all private universities in the world as Asia’s leading university.
 
  Beloved Yonseians, 
  Our society, in despair and pain, is at a historically critical transition period to seek for a new leap before crossing over the threshold to reach further development. Since the 1960s, Korea has been praised for achieving rapid industrialization and democratization within a short period of time. However, due to recent tragic incidents, all people of Korea are full of frustration and skepticism about the current state of affairs in our society. Reforming the national system has become the topic of importance.
 
  Despite the eye-opening progress achieved over the past three decades, democratization has not fully embedded in our society as a natural practice. Human rights, journalism and citizen autonomy have been guaranteed in many areas; however, un-democratic practice still remains in place, overlooking democratic procedures. Regulations and just process are disregarded. Lawful order and democratic outcome are dismissed in turn for dogmatism and exclusion. Political ideology and emotional framing are used to judge all decisions. Unfortunately, destructive culture of overflowing conflicts is left in one corner of our society, even without being able to actualize the practical benefits of democratization. It is truly regrettable that our ranking in the Social Conflict Index remains at the bottom among all OECD countries. We need to call for a culture of respect and custom to seek for universal values and faith, instead of falling into the dogma of prejudice and misunderstanding.
 
  Beloved graduates, 
  We are confronted with the realities of this difficult and painful transition period. However, we believe that Yonsei’s education will lay the foundation for a revolutionary change in our society. At a time like this, Yonseians must remember the mission given to each person to make a history of challenging and pioneering. Lu Xun said, “For actually the earth had no roads to begin with, but when many men pass one way, a road is made.” Likewise, we need to pave a new way and make new history. The Third Founding initiative calls for “Yonsei, where we make history” for this very reason.
 
  The history we pursue has a common objective, philosophy and special elements that can touch and change the world. We can achieve this by establishing the norms of a mature and democratized society and making a society of community culture where one trusts and cares for others. Please take time to ponder when and where you should take actions for advancement of the Korean society, while demonstrating your personal capabilities to the fullest.
 
  For our society to establish such development in a desirable manner, surely we need to reform the nationwide system. More importantly, however, each and every person shall stand straight. A society cannot advance through means of external control, regulation and punishment. The recent tragedies may appear to be a problem of the system and customs. Ultimately, however, they may have been led by persons lacking a sense of responsibility, courage, discernment and wisdom due to disconnection from reason and isolation from common sense. Yonseians must become the driving force of today’s society and lead the future by fulfilling all given responsibilities. You shall become the pioneers of making the new history of development through changing oneself, just as our foregoers had paved the way for modernization, industrialization and democratization.
 
  Dear graduating class, 
  In 2 Corinthians 3:3, Apostle Paul says, “You are a letter from Christ… written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” You are the very letter Christ is sending to the world through Yonsei. A letter is sent to touch and move the recipient’s heart. A letter that cannot touch the reader is not alive but useless and dead.
 
  How can we Yonseians touch and move the world? I do not think it is necessary to demonstrate superhuman power to do so. It should begin by living the day to the fullest, respecting the reasonable standards under the right values and living a life of trust by keeping to the basics. Our society is currently in a critical crisis of lack of trust. How can common good be pursued in a system where people do not believe in the government, media, school and even the organizations that they belong to?
 
  If you do not gain trust from others, Yonsei will also lose its credibility. A trustworthy letter is made up of Christian faith and scientific rationality, as well as intellectual respect for the truth. This is what it means to have Yonsei’s founding spirit, which is “The truth will set you free.” We shall become the yeast of the world to change the faithless society into a society of faith and trust. Our intelligence can shine more brightly with responsible actions that expand the foundation of faith, which can further become sublimated into the driving power that leads society to change dynamically.
 
  Dear graduates, 
  You shall definitely remember one other thing: your alma mater, Yonsei University. Yonsei is rapidly developing through the Third Founding initiative. We have established a new paradigm of higher education in Korea by implementing Asia’s first Residential College (RC) system at the Yonsei International Campus in Songdo, fully equipped with cutting-edge facilities. At our Sinchon Campus, new extension works are underway with the Baekyangro Project, as well as the expansion of the School of Business and the College of Engineering. Woojeong Residence, the new residential building of is also near completion. Following the construction of the Cancer Hospital, the Yonsei University Health System is strengthening its reputation as the Asia’s best. The Wonju Campus is also continuously making development progress.
 
  Yonsei is not just making progress in terms of modernizing facilities. For the first time in history, Yonsei ranked in the top 80 in the world in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings and is placed in the top 20 among all private universities in the world as Asia’s leading university. In addition to expanding our strategic networks with the leading universities such as Princeton University, Oxford University, Cornell University and King’s College London, we also advanced to the world-class ranking by joining the Association of Pacific Rim Universities. Our alumni have been more remarkably successful in all fields of politics, economy and finance. We are also experiencing a rapid growth in all areas of our mission fields in education, research, patient care and community service.
 
  Yonsei University is a private university. The future of a prestigious private institution cannot be guaranteed without the strong support from its alumni. It has been reported that more than 60% of alumni at Ivy League schools make donations to contribute to their alma mater. At Yonsei, we are carrying out a campaign to incite up to 10% of our alumni to contribute to Yonsei through Baekyangro Project. It is with your love, passion and support that Yonsei can continue to leap towards becoming a world-class university. As you take pride in Yonsei, we take pride in you. I would like to sincerely request your participation and support to continue raising Yonsei’s name as a subject of love and admiration through our Baekyangro Project, RC system and advanced facilities expansion.
 
  Lastly, I sincerely pray that God’s abundant grace and blessings will be with all graduating students and their families here today, who will now leave this campus as our Yonsei alumni. I would also like to extend my gratitude to all parties who supported our students to finish their studies and the honored guests for gracing this occasion.
 
  Thank you.