Global Ministries

As the captivity of the Korean hostages held by the Taliban in Afghanistan stretches to agonizing length, the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK) and ecumenical partners are praying in united faith. The killing of a second hostage prompted the PROK to send out an urgent appeal for prayer on July 31st, calling on "the entire ecumenical community around the world to pray to God that the killings of innocent people may stop and that these hostages may safely return to their families."

Between May 15 and May 24 the Northwest Regional Christian Church and the Pacific Northwest Conference of the United Church of Christ hosted nineteen people from the Dong Kwang Church and the Presbytery of South Korea on an official visit to the Northwest.  This was the every-other year exchange as part of a partnership agreement with conference/region and the PROK.

This Common Prayer is written jointly every year by the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the Korean Christian Federation (KCF).  We ask that this prayer be lifted in churches around the world together with Korean Christians on the Sunday closest to August 15, the anniversary of the liberation of Korea from Japan in 1945, followed so tragically by the division of the peninsula.

Dear Rev Yoon,

We have received your words of compassion and sorrow for the tragic event at Virginia Tech earlier this week. Please know that your quick response gives us comfort, as it helps us to remember that in Christ we are part of a global community of care and Christian love.  I have shared with my church that you stand beside us as we mourn. I know that brothers and sisters in Korea feel the anguish of this in a particular way, but in times like this we all stand together as one family. There is no national boundary in grief. All our hearts break for the young man who was so damaged as to do this, even as we are crushed with sorrow for the other families who have lost so much.

April 18, 2007

The Rev. Yoon Kil-Soo
General Secretary
Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea

Dear Rev. Yoon:

April 18, 2007

Rev. Dr. Sharon E. Watkins
General Minister and President
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Dear Rev. Dr. Sharon Watkins,

April 18, 2007

Rev. John H. Thomas
General Minister and President
Office of General Ministries
United Church of Christ, USA

Dear Rev. John H. Thomas,

In this present critical situation following North Korea's missile-test launching, the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK) has issued the following statement. Let us pray and act together to help bring peace to this region and the world.

In solidarity with the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK), We, the Co-Executives and the Area Executive for East Asia and the Pacific of the Global Ministries of Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), USA and Canada, and United Church of Christ, USA (UCC) express deep sorrow over the decision by North Korea to conduct missile tests on July 5, 2006.

Peace Statement is issued by International Ecumenical Consultation on Peace in East Asia during a meeting in Seoul, Korea, May 2-4, 2006.