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A question of faith
by Jean Briesbois
I'm not proud of what I'm doing. But if people are prepared to pay to
see my special talent, then I'll happily take their money...
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
"Drink! Drink! Drink! Drink! Don't stop now; you can do it! Drink for your
faith!"
Looking a little worse for wear, a beet-faced, visibly inebriated foreign male
wearing an Irish football jersey, a red "Korea Team Fighting Scarf" and a
green toque is draining the last drops from a green bottle of soju into his
mouth. His wife, motivator and trainer, an attractive Korean woman dressed in
a flowing hanbok, is beating on a traditional drum, urging him to continue
drinking.
No, this isn't the opening scene from seedy, low budget DVD porn flick, but a
training session for what Conor Talty, 35, an Irishman from Belfast, hopes
will be the first soju drinking record to be entered into the pages of the
Guiness Book of Records.
"Look at him, he's so brave," said Lee Kyung-sun, 25, Talty's wife of three
years and number one fan. "I love drinking soju but Conor's got a great
talent. Whiskey, rum, tequila ... you name it, he's so good at drinking it.
Taking a moment to steady himself before preparing to down his sixth bottle of
soju, Talty believes that if his attempt is endorsed by Guinness World
Records, he'll not only be carving out a place in history but will be helping
to further the lofty ideals of his church.
"I'm going for 20 bottles," he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his
hand. "I'm doing this for me future and the future of the church. People may
think I'm a loon for trying to set a record, but this is a real way of proving
my faith."
As a former English teacher who now heads up the Reunification Church -- a
private organisation established by Talty after experiencing a vision while
climbing Namsan in 2003 -- setting the world soju drinking record is not only
about providing inspirational leadership for his flock, but raising money to
continue the churches activities in Korea and abroad.
"I remember sitting on the mountain watching the sun rise, and felt so
inspired by the earth, the seas, the planets and the greater universe," Talty
explained in a thick Irish brogue. "The experience was so special that it
changed my life forever."
Armed with his new found inspiration, and having read nearly a hundred titles
on spirituality and self-help, Talty unleashed his new brand of religion on
the unsuspecting Korean masses, a move that although well received by the
people who worship with him, is not yet a paying proposition.
"At the moment, we're operating out of a van with an awning," he laughed. "We
move around from place to place but it's time that we settled down. A church
needs a solid foundation and that requires cash. Hopefully, by setting the
soju drinking record we'll raise a lot of money, not to mention our profile."
Based on the simple principle of reunifying divided peoples such as Koreans
and the Irish, Talty believes that his church is the way of the future and
argues that the opportunity reunification should be undertaken at every level.
"For instance, I'm wearing a shirt from the republic but I'm from Northern
Ireland," he said, tugging at his emerald green jersey. "If can take such a
small step, then why can't we all try harder?"
A point that parishioner, Robert "Notorious BOB" Blaney supports. "I'm a proud
third-generation Irish American and I love what Conor is trying to do.
Reconciliation between countries, people and even the sexes is the way of the
future, this truly is a unique religion."
With plans to stage his record attempt at Itaewon's Helios in the pipeline,
Talty believes that even if Guinness refuses to readmit records for drinking
or alcohol consumption into their record books, this is still the perfect way
to reconcile the Irish and Korean communities in Itaewon.
"You know, I really shed a tear when I heard about the Irish lads being beaten
like dogs by the folk at Helios. We [the Irish] have such a bad reputation in
Korea and this did nothing to help," he said. "That's why I plan to have a
chat with the owners [Helios] and see if they'll back me attempt. I can't
think of a better way to reunify our communities."
But for Talty, setting a soju drinking record is more than just a way to raise
money for his Reunification Church, it's about testing his faith in the face
of the ultimate demon: alcoholism.
As a reformed alcoholic, Talty swore that he would never touch another drop,
but strengthened by his faith and the love of his wife, he now believes that
any hurdle can be overcome if you have faith.
"Things were pretty bad for me," he said. "I was unemployable because of me
boozing and wound up sleeping under an overpass near Olympic Park. They were
tough times and it was only through counseling that I managed to get back on
me feet."
Renato Germinario, a qualified counselor who taught English in Korea for three
and a half years believes that if it weren't for the hours of grueling
sessions that he guided Talty through, the Irishman probably wouldn't be alive
today.
"He was basically at the bottom of a downward spiral," Germinario said in an
email interview from his home in Toronto. "Feelings of inadequacy had driven
him, like so many English teachers in Korea, to heavy drinking. I genuinely
fear for his mental and physical health if he goes through with this attempt,"
he added.
Yet for David Jonkers, a former English teacher who owns Loose Baby! (specialising
in the production of reality-based TV programmes), the chance that Talty could
fail and return to a life of alcoholism is an outcome that in terms of
ratings, is "absolutely tantalising."
"We're looking for him [Talty] to fail," smirked Jonkers. "It's nothing
personal but if we go ahead with our plans to film a reality-based show about
ESL in Korea, then this is the stuff that will keep viewers glued to the
screen."
And Talty, a Stakhanovite at heart, believes that while allowing his life to
become little more than cheap entertainment for the masses is demeaning, it is
a means to an end, and that is something he and his wife have never lost sight
of.
"I'm not proud of what I'm doing. But if people are prepared to pay to see my
special talent, then I'll happily take their money. This really is nothing
more than a question of faith."
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October 6, 2004