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Asia and the Pacific
The Asia and the Pacific region is an area of tremendous ethnic, religious, political, and cultural diversity. Beginning north at the Japanese island of Hokkaido and spanning 5,000 miles southward to Vanuatu, near the Tropic of Capricorn, this immense region brings unique challenges and opportunities for mission and partner relations to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).
Staggering amounts of energy and dynamism are present in the movements of the Asia-Pacific region: democratization, self-determination, economic advancement, modernization, and technological advancement. Corresponding with the momentum from this growth, this region has seen tremendous faith development and a quest for an understanding of what it means to be Christian in today’s Asian reality. More than 3 billion people inhabit the Asia-Pacific region, and half of them are under age thirty-five. The richness of cultures in this region, including religion, is a result of a long and varied history. One prominent experience for many nations in this region, however, was invasion and colonization by Western nations for several hundred years. Colonial powers consistently exploited natural and human resources from Asia and the Pacific countries.
At the end of World War II, liberation came for countries in Asia and then the Pacific. However, the joy and excitement of becoming independent nations were short-lived. In one country after another, rulers were replaced by military dictators, totalitarian despots, or authoritarian rulers. Many of these leaders are still in power, and some of the military dictatorships are aided by foreign powers that exert military or economic control, or both.
In recent decades, the people of Asia and the Pacific have come of age.
An emerging phenomenon in the region is an awakening of people who have become more conscious of their rights and have begun to demand that their dignity be honored and their rights be respected. The future of mission here lies in how seriously we take people’s growing sense of empowerment and connect that to the mission of the PC(USA).
PC(USA) General Assembly Staff
Rosemary Gallagher, BOP
Rev. Marissa Galvan-Valle, GAMC
C. Gamble, BOP
God of grace, we are grateful for the many witnesses whose sacrifice and faithful testimony brought the remarkable changes and growth of your church in this part of your world. Amen.
Ps. 5, 147:1–11 Ps. 27, 51
Jer. 17:5–10, 14–17 (18)
Phil. 4:1–13; John 12:27–36
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