News & Joy article: https://www.newsnjoy.or.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=304820
PROK Prayer Service to Commemorate the Itaewon Disaster,
“Where was the country when I shouted for help?”
[News & Joy - Reporter Na Soo-jin] On November 4, the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK Moderator Rev. Kang Yeon-hong) held a prayer service in front of the joint memorial altar for the victims of the Halloween stampede in Itaewon at Seoul Plaza. There were a total of about 80 participants, including PROK executives, who attended the prayer service to pray for comfort to the victims, injured, and families.
PROK Vice-Moderator Rev. Oh Cheong-hwan lamented the pain and trauma from the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster and now again from the Itaewon disaster, “Please let this country be a country now. Let us be a country that guarantees the right to safety and survival, the right to pursue happiness, and a government that guarantees these rights.” He prayed, “As the saying goes, ‘People’s lives are more precious than the world,’ let us become a society that values people more than money.”
PROK Moderator Rev. Kang Yeon-hong spoke of how Christians must be present with the people suffering from the Itaewon disaster. “This is a mourning for the young people who were killed without knowing why. We need God’s love to overcome darkness and console our sorrow. As long as the people loved by the Lord hold those suffering in the world in their arms, the light will shine on the whole world and not fall down.”
Chairperson Kim Hyun-sook of the National Church Women’s Association of PROK shared her thoughts, “After the Sewol ferry disaster, we said that we would not let the deaths become meaningless, that we would not forget that day, and that we were sorry that we could not protect the victims. However, we have failed to follow the lessons left by the disaster of the Sewol ferry. This fall, we have again lost the lives of young people who can no longer bloom on the streets.”
“Where was the country when our children shouted for help? Why was there no preparation for the large crowd that would gather, even though everyone predicted that huge crowds would gather? I pray for peace to the victims who collapsed due to the complacency and indifference of society. I pray for healing for those seriously injured and those still struggling between life and death. I pray for comfort to bereaved families who have lost their loved ones. My condolences to the foreign nationals and their families who were injured or died while visiting Korea,” she said.
Lastly, PROK General Secretary Rev. Kim Chang-ju expressed his condolences, “We will continue to remember and pray for the peace of the victims of the Itaewon disaster, the recovery of those injured, and the truth and resolution of the case.” After the prayer service, participants moved to the memorial altar to pay their respects. The offering collected during the prayer service will be donated to the bereaved families.
[Source: News & Joy] “PROK Prayer Service to Commemorate the Itaewon Disaster, ‘Where was the country when I shouted for help?’”
