6.19.25 The new president of South Korea, replacing the Archbishop of Canterbury, and learning to play the violin

Summary

Podcast Summary: The World and Everything In It Episode: June 19, 2025 – "The New President of South Korea, Replacing the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Learning to Play the Violin"

---

1. Shifting Political Landscape in South Korea

Timestamp: 07:54 – 15:23

The episode opens with an in-depth analysis of South Korea's recent presidential election, where President Lee Jae Myung was elected amidst political turbulence following the impeachment of his predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol. Former President Yoon faced charges including leading an insurrection, which led to his removal from office after declaring an unconstitutional martial law in December last year.

Bruce Klinger, a research fellow with the Heritage Foundation, highlights the intense political climate in South Korea:

“Since democratization in 1987, only two presidents have avoided being convicted of a crime, being indicted or committing suicide.” (10:01)

President Lee, representing the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), is navigating a nation deeply divided between liberal and conservative factions. Joan Cho, an associate professor of East Asian Studies at Wesleyan University, explains that the primary political divide revolves around inter-Korean relations and foreign policy:

“Both the left and right are nationalist parties, but the right seeks to promote South Korea through building good relationships with Japan and the US... The party that former President Yoon belonged to.” (11:40)

Lee aims to balance relationships with the US and Japan while fostering stronger ties with North Korea and China. However, his administration faces challenges such as pending corruption charges and a polarized electorate. Kent Covington remarks:

“We don't know how he will implement his foreign policy and security policy... or whether he will figure, I've got the executive branch, I've got a strong majority in the legislative.” (14:38)

2. The Search for the Next Archbishop of Canterbury

Timestamp: 15:23 – 21:13

Transitioning from geopolitics to religious leadership, the podcast delves into the ongoing selection process for the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. Following the resignation of Justin Welby in November, amid a report on child abuse allegations against a church volunteer, the Crown Nominations Commission is expected to announce a successor by fall.

Paul Butler discusses the diminishing influence of the Archbishop within the Anglican Communion, citing shifts in the church’s stance on marriage and sexuality:

“Over the last few decades, many of the world's more than 80 million Anglicans have stopped looking to the archbishop for spiritual guidance.” (17:45)

Ann Kennedy, overseeing liturgy at the Church of the Good Shepherd in New York, emphasizes the historical significance of the position:

“The Archbishop of Canterbury is not a Protestant pope... he has a spiritual authority that should matter deeply.” (17:30)

However, due to progressive changes and internal conflicts, many conservative Anglicans disengage from the archbishop's leadership. The episode features perspectives that suggest future archbishops may either attempt to restore traditional values or continue the church’s current liberal trajectory:

“Ann Kennedy suspects the church will continue its leftward trajectory.” (20:05)

3. Embracing New Skills: Learning the Violin as an Adult

Timestamp: 23:36 – 30:15

In a refreshing segment, the podcast explores the challenges and rewards of adult education through the lens of learning the violin. Maria Baer, a late-blooming violin student, shares her journey of mastering the instrument at thirty and beyond.

Devin Kopfer, a violin instructor with a degree in Violin Performance from Ohio State, discusses the physiological and psychological hurdles adults face:

“...there are muscles that develop when we're children that stop developing when we reach a certain age.” (26:00)

Ann Kennedy, another adult learner, highlights the differences between learning violin and piano:

“A clear note on a stringed instrument requires several the right posture, consistent pressure on the bow along the string.” (24:22)

The segment underscores the dedication required to learn an instrument as an adult, emphasizing patience and realistic goal-setting. Stefanie Kennedy reflects on the personal growth and humility gained through the process:

“To me, there is nothing so beautiful as the violin. And I think God wants us to delight in beauty for its own sake.” (29:49)

4. Reflections on the Vietnam War

Timestamp: 30:37 – 35:14

Cal Thomas provides a poignant reflection on the lasting impacts of the Vietnam War, drawing from his recent visit to Vietnam as a former US Air Force nurse. He recounts his experiences touring the Cu Chi tunnels and the Presidential Palace in Ho Chi Minh City, illustrating the deep scars left by the conflict.

Thomas notes the ongoing propaganda efforts and the juxtaposition of prosperity in major cities against the dilapidated outskirts:

“In the major cities, Vietnam appears prosperous... But when one leaves the big cities, many streets are lined with dilapidated shops...” (33:10)

He emphasizes the lessons yet to be learned from the war, particularly regarding the imposition of values:

“For Vietnam veterans who served honorably... it should have been a warning that American values can't be imposed on people who do not share them in sufficient numbers.” (34:15)

Thomas concludes with a somber reflection on the war’s legacy:

“North Vietnam won the war, but freedom for the Vietnamese people was a casualty in Ho Chi Minh City.” (34:55)

5. Lighthearted Anecdote: A Bear's House Invasion

Timestamp: 22:31 – 23:08

Adding a lighter note, the episode shares a humorous incident of a bear wandering into a home in Monrovia, California. Mary Reichard narrates how the family's dog, Doodle, bravely confronted the intruder:

“Doodle dodged a claw swipe, barked, and lived to wag another day.” (22:31)

This segment serves as a whimsical reminder of the unexpected moments life can bring.

---

Conclusion

This episode of The World and Everything In It offers a compelling blend of global politics, religious leadership transitions, personal growth stories, historical reflections, and lighthearted moments. Through engaging discussions and insightful commentary, listeners gain a multifaceted understanding of current events and personal endeavors shaping our world.

---

For more in-depth coverage and to stay updated on global stories, tune into future episodes of "The World and Everything In It" on Apple Podcasts and other platforms.

Transcript

[Mary Reichard]

Good morning. A new president in South Korea signals shifting political winds. But will his leadership bring stability or more chaos?

[Kent Covington]

We don't know how he will implement his foreign policy and security policy. And we don't know if he will try to reconcile the two very divided halves of the South Korean electorate.

[Myrna Brown]

And the Church of England gets ready to choose its next Archbishop of Canterbury. Also, learning new skills later in life can still pay off, just maybe not the way you'd expect.

[Devin Kopfer]

Fortunately or unfortunately, there are muscles that develop when we're children that stop developing when we reach a certain age.

[Myrna Brown]

And world commentator Count Thomas on the lasting effects of losing the war in Vietnam.

[Mary Reichard]

It's Thursday, June 19th. This is the world and everything in it from listening. Welcome to Listener supported World Radio. I'm Mary Reichert.

[Myrna Brown]

And I'm Myrna Brown.

[Paul Butler]

Good morning.

[Mary Reichard]

Time now for the news with Kent Covington.

[Kent Covington]

A plea for peace. A Palestinian citizen of Israel heard there saying that his wife and two daughters were killed in an Iranian missile strike over the weekend. His family members among the roughly two dozen residents killed in Israel since the back and forth airstrikes began a week ago when Israel launched a mission to destroy Iran's nuclear sites. And sirens once again rang out over Tel Aviv yesterday as Israeli air defenses intercepted more incoming Iranian missiles. But the Wall Street Journal reports that Israel's defenses may be increasingly vulnerable with defense forces running low on critical aero defensive interceptors. As for Iran, publicly, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei says his government has no intention of backing down. But President Trump says that privately Iran wants to talk.

[Cal Thomas]

I don't want to fight either. I'm not looking to fight. But if it's a choice between fighting and them having a nuclear weapon, you have to, you have to do what you have to do. Maybe we won't have to fight. Don't forget we haven't been fighting.

[Kent Covington]

But all eyes remain on the White House to see if President Trump gives the order for the US Military to join the Israeli airstrikes against Iranian nuclear targets. Republican Senator Ted Cruz the only question.

[Cal Thomas]

Of direct US Involvement that is being discussed is do we use the bombs that we have and Israel does not, the bunker busters to take out this nuclear weapons research lab.

[Kent Covington]

The Ayatollah Khamenei is threatening the United States with, quote, irreversible harm if the US Military joins the airstrikes. President Trump, when asked about Iran's tough talk and refusal to surrender, responded, quote, Good luck. The U.S. supreme Court Wednesday upheld Tennessee's law banning puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors with gender dysphoria, World's Travis Kercher reports.

[Cal Thomas]

In a 6, 3 decision, the justices ruled that the law only needed to meet the lowest legal standard called rational basis under the Constitution's equal protection clause. That means the state just had to show that the law serves a reasonable purpose. Arguing for Tennessee in December, Matthew Rice pointed out the law's purpose its application turns entirely on medical purpose, not a patient's sex, that is not sex discrimination. The equal protection clause does not require the states to blind themselves to medical reality. Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority, noted that there are strong debates over safety and efficacy. But he said the court's job is only to decide whether the law violates the Constitution's equal protection clause, and in this case it doesn't. So, Roberts said it's up to voters and lawmakers to decide the policy, not the court. The court's three liberal justices dissented. They argued that the law clearly targets people based on sex and transgender status, which they said should trigger tougher legal scrutiny. The case centered on whether gender identity is a fixed, immutable characteristic, and that came up during this exchange between Justice Samuel Alito and Chase Strangio, a woman who identifies and presents as a man. Alito raised questions about people who describe their gender as fluid. Are there not such people? There are such people. I agree with that. Justice so it's not an immutable characteristic, is it? For world I'm Travis Kercher.

[Kent Covington]

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the central bank will continue to hold interest rates right where they are for now. The Fed's strategy, he says, remains wait and see.

[Cal Thomas]

Everyone that I know is forecasting a.

[Kent Covington]

Meaningful increase in inflation in coming months from tariffs because someone has to pay for the tariffs. The Fed held rates steady for a fourth meeting in a row. That drew criticism from President Trump, who said many predicted that inflation would have already surged by now and that has not happened.

[Cal Thomas]

We have no inflation, we have only success and I'd like to see interest rates get down.

[Kent Covington]

Trump said he feels the Fed chairman is doing a poor job. Powell, though, for his part again said the president's remarks have no bearing on Federal Reserve policy. But Jerome Powell also said Wednesday that the U.S. economy remains solid and that the board does foresee two interest rate cuts by the end of this year. On Capitol Hill like to welcome everyone to this judiciary hearing, a Senate panel began the process of digging into whether there was a cover up at the White House to hide then President Joe Biden's cognitive decline. Republicans charged that by the end of his presidency, Biden was not mentally fit for office. Senator JOHN cornyn this was a constitutional.

[Cal Thomas]

Crisis bigger than President Biden, bigger than in any single election.

[Kent Covington]

GOP senators want to know if White House officials work to hide Biden's condition from Congress and the public. And they say they're determined to find out if anyone other than the president was secretly pulling the strings on policy decisions while wielding President Biden's automated auto pen signature. But Democrats on the panel called the hearing political theater and a waste of time. Ranking Member Dick Durbin.

[Cal Thomas]

So far this year, the Republican majority on this committee has not held a single oversight hearing despite numerous critical challenges facing the nation that are under our jurisdiction.

[Kent Covington]

The panel is set to question several former Biden aides later this month and have subpoenaed the former president's then White House physician, Kevin o' Connor. Representatives from Congo and Rwanda have signed the text of a peace agreement between the two countries. In Washington, Congo has accused rwanda of backing M23 rebels in the eastern part of the country. And UN experts say the rebels are supported by about 4,000 troops from the neighboring nation. The decades long conflict escalated earlier this year when the M23 rebels advanced and seized the strategic Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu. I'm Ken Covington. And straight ahead, a new president in South Korea raises more questions than answers. Plus, what it's like for an old dog to learn new tricks. This is the WORLD and everything in it.

[Myrna Brown]

It's Thursday the 19th of June. Glad to have you along for today's edition of the WORLD and Everything In It. Good morning. I'm Myrna Brown.

[Mary Reichard]

And I'm Mary Reichard. First up, a new leader in South Korea. This month, voters there elected President Lee Jae Myung after their former president was impeached for unconstitutionally declaring martial law in December. South Korea plays a key role in countering North Korea and is a vital US Trading partner.

[Myrna Brown]

Now the new president faces a rocky road ahead, tense regional diplomacy and a potential trade war with the US World's Mary Manse reports on what lies ahead for South Korea's new leader.

[Cal Thomas]

For the past three years, South Korea has gone through a very difficult time.

[Bruce Klinger]

Nam Hye Jung is a homemaker in South Korea. On election day, she was in the Capitol cheering for now President Lee Jae Myung.

[Cal Thomas]

I sincerely hope that from now on things will be done properly for the sake of the country and for all 50 million citizens.

[Bruce Klinger]

She's talking about last December when former President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law.

[Kent Covington]

I declare an emergency decree to protect the Republic of Korea from the threat.

[Bruce Klinger]

Of North Korean communist forces. Thousands gathered outside their legislative buildings to oppose him. Yoon was part of the conservative People's Power Party, or the ppp. The more liberal Democratic Party of Korea, or the dpk, controlled the legislative branch, and Yun said they were endangering South Koreans by blocking its policies. Lawmakers reversed his order just six hours after it was implemented. Then this student and others started calling for Yoon to step down. The opposing party started the impeachment process, and the Constitutional Court upheld it in April, officially ousting Yoon and starting a 60 day countdown to elect a new president.

[Kent Covington]

Politics in South Korea tends to be a blood sport.

[Bruce Klinger]

Bruce Klinger is a research fellow with the Heritage Foundation. He says since democratization in 1987, only two presidents have avoided being convicted of a crime, being indicted or committing suicide.

[Kent Covington]

And one of those two, when he had been a opposition leader, the South Korean intelligence agency at the time had tried to assassinate him.

[Bruce Klinger]

Authorities arrested former President Yoon in January, levying several charges, including leading an insurrection. If he's convicted of that one, he could face the death penalty or life imprisonment. Klinger says. The other corruption charges are more or less standard practice in South Korean politics.

[Kent Covington]

Being a former South Korean president is not very conducive to good health.

[Bruce Klinger]

All of this cleared the stage for the more liberal Lee Jae Myung to be elected president on June 3.

[Cal Thomas]

It's time to restore our democracy, our livelihoods and economy, and our national security and peace.

[Bruce Klinger]

In his acceptance speech, he promised to set the stage for a peaceful coexistence between the north and South.

[Cal Thomas]

The pattern is pretty predictable.

[Bruce Klinger]

Joan Cho is an associate professor of East Asian Studies at Wesleyan University.

[Cal Thomas]

The political parties are not mainly divided on left right issues that have more to do with redistribution and minority rights. In Korea. It seems like the clearest difference in policies comes down to policies regarding inter Korean relations, but also foreign policy, cho says.

[Bruce Klinger]

Both the left and right are nationalist parties, but the right seeks to promote South Korea through building good relationships with Japan and the us. That means they tend to be much harsher on North Korea and China, their biggest trading partner. That's the party that former President Yoon belonged to. President Lee is part of the left leaning party, the dpk. That party wants to build stronger relationships with North Korea and China while trying to lessen US military presence in the country.

[Cal Thomas]

Given this context, Lee Jae Myung is actually known to be more pragmatic and less ideological than Moon.

[Bruce Klinger]

That's Moon Jae in, the last left leaning president of South Korea.

[Cal Thomas]

So there's been some expectation that he might strike a different kind of balance.

[Bruce Klinger]

So far, Lee has turned off the loudspeakers that blast North Korea with propaganda and K pop songs and and he's upped the consequences for dropping anti regime leaflets across the border.

[Cal Thomas]

However, he has also acknowledged the importance of trilateral cooperation with the US and Japan.

[Bruce Klinger]

Earlier this year, Trump imposed 25% tariffs on things like steel and vehicles from South Korea. President Lee had planned to meet with Trump at the G7 summit to discuss trade, but their meeting had to be postponed as Trump left the summit early.

[Cal Thomas]

When Lee Jae Myung was elected to presidency, Japan and us both expected that.

[Bruce Klinger]

The relationship would change within the country. Cho says Lee's first priorities are stabilizing the economy after months of political turmoil and uniting the government.

[Cal Thomas]

But the irony here is that Lee himself is a polarizing figure in South Korea. He's been referred to to as being simultaneously the country's most popular and unpopular politician. He won the presidency with 49.4% of the vote and you know, that was enough to win, but it also means that more than half of the country didn't vote for him.

[Bruce Klinger]

He's also facing several charges of corruption and criminal investigations that are still pending. But Bruce Klinger says he doesn't think anything will come of them, at least while Lee's in office.

[Kent Covington]

I think all of the courts are probably just going to stand back and say, you know, either I decide that he does have immunity or feel that that individual court doesn't want to be the one to create a constitutional crisis.

[Bruce Klinger]

Klinger says North Korea is in a stronger position since it's been providing weapons to Russia for the war in Ukraine. And he's interested to see how this stronger north reacts to a more conciliatory party in the South.

[Kent Covington]

We don't know how he will implement his foreign policy and security policy, and we don't know if he will try to reconcile the two very divided halves of the South Korean electorate or whether he will figure, I've got the executive branch, I've got a strong majority in the legislative. We're going to do what we want to do.

[Bruce Klinger]

During Lee's campaign, he characterized himself as a centrist willing to compromise with the right. But Klinger and Cho say based on his staunchly left political past, they're not sure he'll bring the unity South Koreans are hoping for. Reporting for World I'm Mary Muncie.

[Mary Reichard]

Coming up next on the world and everything in it. New leadership for the Church of England, the search is underway for the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury. In late May, the Crown Nominations Commission began its work and it's expected to name a successor this fall.

[Myrna Brown]

But for most of the world's Anglicans, the decision won't carry much weight. World's Paul Butler has the story.

[Paul Butler]

Last November, Justin Welby resigned as the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury. Welby stepped down after the Church of England published a 253 page report detailing child abuse allegations against John Smith, a volunteer Christian camp leader. While the document didn't implicate Welby in the abuse, it indicated that he had known about Smith's behavior since 2013. Audio here from a BBC interview with the archbishop.

[Cal Thomas]

I should have pushed harder because I knew enough to know that people very rarely, almost never abuse once. I should have said, are we absolutely sure there's no one else involved?

[Paul Butler]

After announcing his resignation, Welby spoke before Parliament.

[Cal Thomas]

There comes a time, if you are technically leading a particular institution or area of responsibility, where the shame of what has gone wrong, whether one is personal, personally responsible or not, must require a head to row.

[Paul Butler]

As the lead bishop of the Church of England, Welby decided he was the one who should take the fall. The Archbishop of Canterbury was once a powerful role. The first Protestant archbishop, Thomas Cranmer, shaped the principles of the Anglican Church with a book that he wrote in 1549.

[Ann Kennedy]

And that book, the Book of Common Prayer, is really what makes people Anglican in their ethos.

[Paul Butler]

Ann Kennedy oversees liturgy at Church of the Good shepherd in Binghamton, New York. She's also a World Opinions contributor. She says that as Anglicanism spread with the British Empire, the Church of England couldn't effectively govern each province.

[Ann Kennedy]

They gradually gained jurisdictional authority. So there were archbishops and bishops and clergy in every place where the British Empire had been, and that then became what's called the Anglican Communion.

[Paul Butler]

The Archbishop of Canterbury is not a Protestant pope. He doesn't directly control churches within the.

[Ann Kennedy]

Anglican Communion, but he has always had the power to convene meetings and synods where decisions would really be made and has a spiritual authority that should matter deeply.

[Paul Butler]

But over the last few decades, many of the world's more than 80 million Anglicans have stopped looking to the archbishop for spiritual guidance. The that's largely because of the widespread failure to uphold biblical principles about marriage and sexuality. The slide developed gradually. More than 25 years ago, things looked pretty good.

[Ann Kennedy]

In 1998, all the bishops from around the world made what's called Resolution 110. And in that resolution they all the bishops from around the world affirmed marriage as between a man and a woman.

[Paul Butler]

Yet just five years later, the Episcopal Church, which represents the United States in the Anglican Communion, it ordained Gene Robinson as the first openly homosexual bishop.

[Ann Kennedy]

Even though they made this wonderful resolution, they were not able to carry it through.

[Paul Butler]

In 2009, 53 US churches broke away from the Episcopal Church over this and other theological issues. The group formed the Anglican Church in North America. Today, the ACNA represents 28 dioceses throughout the United States and Canada. A larger split over so called same sex marriage occurred while Justin Welby was archbishop. Many Anglicans had high hopes when Welby was installed in 2013. He was advertised as an evangelical, but that's not how he'll be remembered.

[Cal Thomas]

He still wanted to be cautious for the sake of the institution. So he said he wouldn't push radical change. But he personally supports gay marriage.

[Paul Butler]

Stephen Wedgeworth is the rector at Christchurch Anglican in South Bend, Indiana.

[Cal Thomas]

The doctrine on paper, it still says marriage between a man and a woman with the intent for the propagation of the species, with the intent to be faithful for life. But they said we will bless same sex marriages. And so that was the final breaking point.

[Paul Butler]

In 2023, roughly 1300 bishops met at the Global Anglican Future Conference to renounce the leadership of of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

[Cal Thomas]

So that's their response is that we are actually in fact, in truth the majority of worldwide Anglicans and additionally, even better, we represent the historic doctrine and moral practice. And from their perspective, Canterbury no longer follows historic Anglican faith and practice.

[Paul Butler]

Today, some conservative Anglicans might be curious about what the Archbishop of Canterbury has to say.

[Cal Thomas]

However, no one is waiting for the Archbishop to weigh in in order to.

[Paul Butler]

Decide a controversy that's unlikely to change when the Crown Nominations Commission picks Welby's successor. Wedgeworth says they could surprise everyone by choosing a biblically orthodox candidate. And if that's the case, the role of archbishop could regain some credibility. But Ann Kennedy suspects the church will continue its leftward trajectory.

[Ann Kennedy]

I would expect them to pick a woman of color in a same sex relationship. That would be my expectation. I don't see how they could do anything less at this point.

[Paul Butler]

For World, I'm Paul Butler with reporting from Becca McCollum.

[Kent Covington]

Additional support comes from the Mission Focused Men for Christ podcast this month.

[Cal Thomas]

Fathers Helping Sons embrace Biblical manhood.

[Kent Covington]

Mission Focused Men for Christ on all podcast apps from Rich Haven Camp and.

[Cal Thomas]

Retreat Centers in Brevard, North Carolina and Kono, Iowa. Camp and year round retreat [e-mail] and.

[Kent Covington]

From the Joshua Program at St. Dunstan's Academy in Virginia. A gap year shaping young men through trades, farming, prayer. St. Dunstansacademy.org.

[Mary Reichard]

A home invasion in Monrovia, California this weekend. But the culprit wasn't your average burglar. It was all caught on security camera. I'm guessing a bird sounding the alarm there when a black bear sauntered into Zoe Cadman's house through a screen door. Zoe only woke up when the bear opened the fridge, but the real wake up call when the family dog Doodle came face to face with the intruder. Doodle dodged a claw swipe, barked, and lived to wag another day. The bear, well, it let itself out.

[Myrna Brown]

Doggy power. Who needs an alarm system when you've got Doodle?

[Mary Reichard]

It's the world and everything in the Today is Thursday, June 19th. Thank you for turning to World Radio to help start your day. Good morning, I'm Mary Reichard.

[Myrna Brown]

And I'm Myrna Brown. Coming next on the World and everything in it. Learning new things later in life. The violin is one of the hardest instruments to master, especially as an adult. But for world correspondent and late blooming violin student Maria Baer, the lessons go well beyond the strings.

[Ann Kennedy]

I grew up playing the piano. Theoretically, anyone can sit down, press a piano key and a musical note will sound. The first thing I learned when I picked up a violin for the first time as a 30 something year old woman is that it is nothing like the piano.

[Devin Kopfer]

Let's see if we can start with this Note Reading page 42.

[Ann Kennedy]

A clear note on a stringed instrument requires several the right posture, consistent pressure on the bow along the string. Despite the changing angle of your elbow as you pull, you can't press your left hand fingers too hard onto the strings. I started taking violin lessons about four years ago when my oldest daughter was starting hers. She was five years old. The Suzuki method recommends adults learn the basics alongside their children so they can help with practice. But no one had to twist my arm. I'd always wanted to learn the violin. Our teacher, Devin Kopfer has a degree in Violin performance from Ohio State. She currently teaches 28 students from her home based studio. The vast majority are elementary schoolers. Only two, including me are grown ups.

[Cal Thomas]

Have you seen it?

[Devin Kopfer]

Yeah.

[Cal Thomas]

What did you just say?

[Ann Kennedy]

Khafrer says the age of a student has less little effect on her teaching method.

[Devin Kopfer]

Largely we're doing the same exercises. You really can't replace rote practice. There's no way to speed Up a bow hold exercise that has to happen a thousand times.

[Ann Kennedy]

Even learning to hold the bow takes a daunting amount of time and repetition. Maybe this helps explain why the violin has a reputation for being the hardest instrument to learn.

[Devin Kopfer]

In a string instrument, it's our entire body that moves.

[Ann Kennedy]

That physical component is part of what makes learning as an adult particularly difficult.

[Devin Kopfer]

Fortunately or unfortunately, there are muscles that develop when we're children that stop developing when we reach a certain age. Like when people say, I feel like there are just some things that are easier for my kid than they are for me. That's true. That's physiologically true.

[Ann Kennedy]

When my daughters pick up their violins, their shoulders are low and easy. They hold their bows lightly. The violin challenges them too. But when they play, they look calm and graceful. When I play, everything tends to tense up.

[Devin Kopfer]

It's like the middle of the hand gets a little ambiguous. So it's like not quite clear all the time.

[Ann Kennedy]

Another challenge with adult students building trust. Sometimes we're just less teachable.

[Devin Kopfer]

Even though as an adult you're going to an expert and you're paying your own money to go there, it's not always a given that that person who's paying the person is like open and trusting in the process.

[Ann Kennedy]

Still another challenge gently managing adults expectations. Some of Kapfer's adult students have gone on to play in community orchestras or with their church's worship team. But aspirations of playing in a world class symphony one day, that's less realistic.

[Devin Kopfer]

I have no business telling you what's possible for you, but what I do want to do is give you some realistic expectations about where we can be in three months, or where we can be in six months, or we can be in a year.

[Ann Kennedy]

The Suzuki practice books I share with my daughters work from the assumption that the students are kids. Warm up songs are set to nursery rhymes. Bow exercises encourage students to play their magic violin in the air before bringing the bow to the strings. Vibrato practice means making the violin sound like a spooky ghost. Kapfer adjusts her own language accordingly.

[Devin Kopfer]

You know, I'm not saying let's swim the fish to the pond. You know, I'm saying, let's get our. Let's get our arm shaped the way it needs to be.

[Ann Kennedy]

Indeed, the hardest part about learning the violin as an adult might be the threat to one's pride. In late May, Kopfer rented an old Presbyterian church in downtown Columbus for a studio recital. Each student climbed the red carpeted altar steps to play a piece for parents and friends in the pews.

[Cal Thomas]

Hello everyone.

[Devin Kopfer]

Welcome to the spring recital. I'm so excited. Thank you so much for being here. This is my favorite day.

[Ann Kennedy]

Adult students took the same stage as 4 and 9 and 16 year olds and played from the same repertoire. The whole experience of performing is a bit of a minefield. I want to model self assurance and perseverance for my girls. I don't want to sound bad, but I also don't want to appear to take it too seriously. The straight A student in me wants to give a disclaimer before my piece. Something like, I promise I really did practice. You don't understand how hard this is. Kopfer is like a storybook music teacher. She loves music and she'll teach anyone who wants to learn to love it too.

[Devin Kopfer]

But the process of starting an instrumentalist, a violinist, no matter what age they are, is fascinating to me.

[Ann Kennedy]

It's fascinating to me too. I could say I'm doing it simply to help my daughters practice. And it's true. I want to shepherd them toward a love of music and a strong work ethic.

[Devin Kopfer]

Go ahead and play the second half. Yeah.

[Ann Kennedy]

But I also just love it. Even despite the hits to my ego. To me, there is nothing so beautiful as the violin. And I think God wants us to delight in beauty for its own sake, just as he does. Just as I do when Kopfer plays. For World I'm Maria Baer in Columbus, Ohio.

[Cal Thomas]

Oh my gosh.

[Myrna Brown]

Today is Thursday, June 19th. Good morning. This is the world and everything in it from listener supported World Radio. Hello, I'm Myrna Brown.

[Mary Reichard]

And I'm Mary Reichard. Up next, world commentator Cal Thomas has been in Vietnam the last couple of weeks. He's witnessed firsthand the lasting impact of the lost war.

[Cal Thomas]

Rod Kirsten has returned to Vietnam for the first time since he was a nurse in the US Air Force Hospital in Cam Ranh Bay. Now 77, he recalls the precise date when he left, May 28, 1970. He served at the hospital for two years, where he treated wounded American soldiers and saw many die. He says while he was initially gung ho about the US And South Vietnamese war efforts, he has since become neutral. Asked why, he said it was after seeing the Cu Chi tunnels on this trip. These tunnels were some of the tunnels used by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong soldiers to hide and pop up to shoot at Americans. There's a museum of sorts, requiring paid admission, so one can not only see the tunnels, but a propaganda film that shows the camouflage traps, Kirsten said, especially after touring the presidential palace. It suddenly struck me that the goal of both sides was the unification of Vietnam. Yes, but for different reasons. I saw an example of those different reasons at the Presidential palace in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon. A woman was leading about 20 children, all dressed in red, to a US warplane that had been shot down and placed on display next to two North Vietnamese tanks. She appeared to be indoctrinating them in the government's version of the war and how the US Was the enemy. There was a different scene a few miles up the road, competing for the hearts and minds of Vietnamese children. It was inside an evangelical church where vacation Bible school children were singing praises to God. Freedom of religion is supposed to be guaranteed in the Vietnam Constitution, but it's limited mostly to those churches that register with the government. According to Human Rights Watch, Vietnam systematically suppresses basic civil and political rights. The government, under the dictatorial one party rule of the Communist Party of Vietnam, severely restricts the the rights to freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly, movement and religion, unquote. In the major cities, Vietnam appears prosperous. Motorbikes swarm the streets like locusts. Shops carry brands familiar to Americans, though at much lower prices, as so much is made here using cheap labor. But when one leaves the big cities, many streets are lined with dilapidated shops that appear empty with few or no customers. Trash defiles these streets and graffiti defaces structures. I didn't see a lot of smiling faces in the week I spent here. As in the US Hotels here fly the flags of several nations, with one exception. Understandable signs celebrate the unification of Vietnam. In April, there was a large military parade and observance of the day. Many things contributed to the fall of South Vietnam. These included declining support for the war at home, corruption in the South Vietnamese government, the lack of good military training for many South Vietnamese troops, lying by American officials about body counts and alleged progress, along with the high motivation of North Vietnam to unify their country and expel Americans. A growing media opposition to the war added to the decline in morale among US forces that remained in Vietnam until the end. A general cynicism set in, especially among the young, towards American institutions, politicians and the country itself. Some returning veterans were spat upon. Historians will continue to debate Vietnam for many years. For Vietnam veterans who served honorably and the relatives of the 59,000American service members who died here, it should have been a warning that American values can't be imposed on people who do not share them in sufficient numbers. Apparently, we have not fully learned that lesson. North Vietnam won the war, but freedom for the Vietnamese people was a casualty in Ho Chi Minh City. I'm Cal Thomas.

[Mary Reichard]

Tomorrow, John Stonestreet joins us for Culture Friday. Also, Colin Garbarino reviews Pixar's latest animated adventure. This one features aliens. And George Grant is back with Wordplay for June, reflecting on our human tendency to mess things up. That and more tomorrow. I'm Mary Reichard.

[Myrna Brown]

And I'm Myrna Brown. The world and everything in it comes to you from World Radio. World's mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates and inspires. The Bible says, but do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. Verses 8 and 9 of 7, second Peter, chapter 3. Go now in grace and peace.