PROK E-News
June 2005_?xml_:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
From June 2005 the PROK National Assembly Office will publish a monthly E-News to share PROK activities and some critical ecumenical news in Korean churches. We hope that this E-News will be a platform to create an open space where not only PROK but also ecumenical communities in the world may share their vision, mission and hope to realize the Reign of God.
The editorial team are Rev. Shin Seung-Min, Rev. Bae Kwang-Jin, Ms. Mary Collins and Rev. Esther Grieder. The E-News will be published in both English and German. Please let us know if you would like to receive the German version.
If you do not wish to receive this E-News, or if it is not necessary that several of you in the same office receive it, please let us know. Please also send us the e-mail addresses of any additional colleagues you wish to receive this.
We look forward to receiving your advice and comments to improve our E-News.
PROK in Focus
1. North and South Korean Christians meet at _?xml_:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Mt. Kumgang
About 250 Korean Christians met at Mt. Kumgang in North Korea on May 23-25. This "North-South Korean Christian Prayer Gathering" was jointly organized by the NCCK, the Korea Christians Federation (KCF) and the PROK. Among the participants were about 15 Christians from the North, and 120 ministers and lay leaders of the PROK. This prayer gathering was a highly significant, historical event in that it was the first joint effort of North and South Korean Christians for a gathering of lay people as well as ministers, and the first such event held on the Korean peninsula. In the past North and South Koreans could meet only in a third country. The main events of the prayer gathering were worship services and a special choir festival. We believe the prayer gathering will give strong momentum to opening up a new history of Korean Christianity leading to peaceful reunification.
2. Ecology Week
Since 1994 the PROK has annually observed the first Sunday of June as the start of Ecology Week, encouraging our 1300 member churches to organize special worship services, conferences and other symbolic actions to mark this week of emphasizing respect for and preservation of all God"s creation.
In preparation for this year"s Ecology Week beginning on June 5th, the PROK and NCCK jointly published a resource to deepen the understanding of the grassroots church members on such critical ecological issues as global warming. The special resource specified 10 guidelines articulating the responsibility of every church member to actively respect the integrity of God"s created world; three of these, for example, exhort us to 1) reduce the use of materials which cannot be recycled; 2) reduce unnecessary energy consumption; 3) educate children and youth in eco-friendly behaviour.
3. Tsunami Interns in India
The PROK has undertaken various tsunami relief works to help ease the terrible suffering of those affected by the devastating tsunami which hit several countries last year. Immediately after the tsunami, the PROK appealed to its members who responded with the amazing generosity of about US$350,000. These funds have been distributed through partners to Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and India.
In India, working jointly with the NCC-India URM desk, the PROK is using some of these funds to support housing projects, job training courses and a fishing boat project in the Tamil Nadu area to enable the affected people to be self-supportive. From June 19th two PROK interns, Rev. Jun Sung-Pyo and Ms. Kang Hye-Rim, will serve a three-month term with NCC-India URM as tsunami interns. In May the PROK sent a Diakonia intern, Ms. Yoon Jae-Hyang to assist the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) for six months in tsunami documentation and theological reflection.
4. Solidarity Message to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines
Protesting against the continuing brutal killings of Filipinos, including ministers and laity of our partner the UCCP, who courageously speak and act for justice and human rights, the PROK joined churches around the world in sending a message of prayer and support to the UCCP. A copy of the letter was sent to Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. PROK members are signing a protest/appeal organized by UCCP/PROK ecumenical co-workers Revs. Frank and Gloria Hernando.
5. Relocation of the PROK General Assembly Office
In mid-May the PROK General Assembly office moved to the grounds formerly owned by the Korea Christian Academy. The new address, shared also by the PROK National Church Women"s Association, PROK National Church Men"s Association, and PROK Institute for Mission and Education, is: Academy House, San 76; Suyu 6-dong, Kangbuk-ku; Seoul, Korea 142-070. The PROK telephone number is (+82-2) 3499-7600 or 3499-7611; fax: (+82-2) 3499-7630.
The official opening ceremony dedicating the new site will be held on June 20th.
6. Appointment of Executive Secretary for Ecumenical Relations
The PROK is pleased to welcome Rev. Shin Seung-Min as the new Executive Secretary for Ecumenical Relations, succeeding Rev. Chae Heawon who very ably filled this position for some thirteen years. Rev. Mr. Shin has wide ecumenical experience, having served for the past seven years as Regional Secretary of the World Student Christian Federation-Asia Pacific, and for seven years before that as NCCK staff for Human Rights, URM and Ecumenical Relations. He earlier served for two years as minister of Sarang Minjung Church in Seoul.
7. Interns Depart, New Co-worker Arrives
From September of last year for six and nine months respectively, Franziska Jekel and Janna Miletzki served with the PROK as interns sent by Evangelisches Missionswerk in Sudwestdeutschland (EMS) and Berliner Missionswerk (BMW). While PROK has received interns from BMW over the past several years, this was the first time we welcomed an intern from EMS. After taking a three-month language course in Seoul, Franziska and Janna each worked first with the social outreach program of Haein Church in Incheon, and then with the Aegwangwang in Koje Island in their varied programs for mentally and physically challenged people. Following the regular pattern of this intern program, PROK interns will next be received by BMW and EMS.
In April of this year PROK was happy to receive a new ecumenical co-worker commissioned jointly by mission 21 in Switzerland and EMS in Germany for an initial three-year term. While Rev. Esther Grieder undertakes full-time language studies for at least a year, the decision will be made about the mission field in which she will serve.
Ecumenical Movement in Focus
NCCK Human Rights Mission Conference
On May 26-27, the NCCK held a human rights mission conference to articulate its theological vision and mission on human rights. The theme of the conference was "The Church and Human Rights". In his keynote presentation Rev. Dr. Ryu Kyoung-Dong, theology professor at the Korean Methodist Seminary, reiterated that the conservative and ego-centric aspect of the Korean church originates from the colonial times; he highlighted the urgency of recovering the democratic system based on community values for the Korean church to overcome the colonial legacy. In a session on the issue of human rights in North Korea, participants expressed their opinion that the approach of the USA is inappropriately shaped by its political agenda of pushing its own national interest, which might lead to a sudden collapse of the North Korean regime. The participants reached a common understanding that the North Korean human rights issue should be dealt with in a proper way that can contribute to peaceful reunification and actual improvement of the human rights situation.
