Seoul in September: Korea Orientation

It was a busy month meeting denominational and ecumenical partners, but after each meeting, I felt challenged, inspired, and empowered. I had the privilege of meeting fellow Christian leaders working for environmental advocacy, human rights, and female and youth empowerment. What they all had in common was that their work was fueled by their steadfast faith, hope, and love. Here are a few of the people and organizations that I had the honor of meeting this month:

Meeting my supervisor's family over grilled pork 😋

PCUSA Mission Co-workers

Rev. Chang-ju Kim, General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK)

The general secretary's younger brother Rev. Dong-chan Kim is the senior pastor of Sungam Church, where I am staying. He attended United Theological Seminary in New Brighton, Minnesota—my hometown! What a coincidence 🙂

Also visited Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK) headquarters and learned about the history of the Presbyterian denomination in Korea. Basically, it went from one denomination to many denominations...

Here we are visiting the Reunification House, the former home of Rev. Moon Ik-Hwan's family. Rev. Moon was an important figure in South Korea's reunification, democratization, and peace movements in the late twentieth century. Above you can see a dictionary that includes both South Korean and North Korean words together. In the bottom left photo are Rev. Moon and his wife's pen names: 늦봄 Late Spring and 봄길 Spring Road. Hence, the school I will be teaching at is called Late Spring Moon Ik-Hwan School.

"Sun Mu Arirang" North Korean artist Sun Mu was having an exhibit at the Reunification House, and this was one of the pieces. These flowers were crocheted by North Korean and South Korean women. They each made their national flowers: North Korea's 목란 Korean mountain magnolia and South Korea's 무궁화 hibiscus/Rose of Sharon. They are joined together on barbed wire from the DMZ. This piece had the deepest impact on me, and I have a feeling I will be reflecting on this work for a long time.

Yeongdeungpo Industrial Mission (PCK) Pictured above is a rest station for blue collar workers, including delivery drivers. Here is a helmet drying stand (pink) and charging station. Not pictured: massage chair, drink station, computer station. They also provide legal counseling and financial resources.

Here we are at the War & Women's Human Rights Museum learning about the history of the comfort women issue. Comfort women were teenage girls and young women who were forced into being sex slaves for Japanese soldiers before and during World War II. Victims included women from Korea, China, and the Philippines, among others. We also attended the 1665th weekly Wednesday demonstration in front of the Japanese embassy to demand an official apology from the Japanese government. There was a delegation from Japan there, and one man gave a speech in which he apologized on behalf of his people for this heinous crime. It was a very moving and healing experience.

Meeting staff from:

• 🧑‍🎓 Korean Student Christian Federation (KSCF)—I am a member of the World Student Christian Federation in the US (WSCF-US), so it was wonderful to meet them 😄

• ✝️ Ecumenical Youth Council in Korea (EYCK)

• 🌈 Q&A, an organization for queer Korean Christians

• ♀️ Korea Association of Christian Women for Women Minjung (기독여민회)

• 📖 Korean Association of Women Theologians (KAWT)

• 🌐 Footbridge 이음새, an NGO aimed at cultivating meaningful relationships between people of diverse backgrounds

Duraebang 두레방 My Sister's Place is an organization that supports victims of sex trafficking in camptowns near military bases. They are headquarted in Bbaebbeol Village 빼뻘마을, next to Camp Stanley, a US military base. Victims are referred to as American comfort women, as in comfort women for American soldiers. In the past, the victims were primarily Korean, but now, most of the victims are migrant women, especially from the Philippines.

We ended our month-long orientation with a time of prayer and reflection. The more I learn, the more I understand how each of these seemingly distinct issues are deeply connected. I will carry this truth with me as I continue discerning my own vocation.

Totoro in Sungsu-dong, a "hot place" in Seoul