Korea
|
| In Korea when one thinks along the line of “those who fear him from generation to generation” (Luke 1:50), the family of the Rev. In-shick Rim comes to mind,” writes mission worker Art Kinsler. “God’s working in the life of this family is also something to celebrate.” In the early 1900s Joon-cheol Rim of Pakchon in northwest Korea, influenced by a missionary, the Rev. Clarence Hoffman, became a follower of Jesus. After a pastorate in Shenyang, China, the Rev. Joon-cheol Rim served his longest pastorate in Namsi, North Korea, near the border with China.
In the second generation the Rev. Jae-soo Rim was ordained by the Korean Methodist church. His son, In-shick Rim, enrolled at the seminary in Pyongyang in 1947. Amid the destruction of the Korean War, Evangelist Rim, his wife, and two sisters escaped to the South together in December 1950. In South Korea In-shick graduated from the Presbyterian seminary in Pusan and was ordained a military chaplain in April 1951. After serving as pastor in several churches in southeast Korea, Mr. Rim was called to the Noryangjin Church in Seoul in 1962, which then had about two hundred adult members attending. At the time of the Rev. In-shick Rim’s retirement in 1994, adult attendance had increased tenfold and the church school had grown very large. Mr. Rim continues to serve the larger Christian community as a senior leader and visiting preacher. The story of the ministry of the National Korean Presbyterian Women (NKPW) begins over 108 years ago with the founding of the Presbyterian Church of Korea. The Rev. Sook Hee Bae works with the NKPW as it relates to foreign and social issues. One of the committees she works with is the Welfare for the Least Committee (WLC). Its program bases its work on the words of Jesus: “Whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me” (Matt. 25:40). The WLC pays school tuition for some seven hundred youngsters from disadvantaged homes, runs the House of the Least, where about forty persons with developmental disabilities live together in community, and operates a home for the elderly in rural Korea. Ms. Bae writes, “I believe all Christians are called by God as missionaries in the world. Wherever we are, that spot is where our Lord asks us to make peace and to comfort and heal in order to shine in the dark world.” Throughout the 2004 Advent season, about twenty ministers of the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK) Life Mission Association held a continuous prayer fast in the General Assembly office of the PROK to pray for and urge the abolition of the National Security Law of Korea. It began on November 29 and continued until December 9, the last day of the 17th National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. Praying together five times a day, the pastors and their supporters prayed continuously and even took their demand for abolition of the law to the streets and into public arenas. The PROK believes that the National Security Law of Korea has distorted and harmed the lives and the faith of the Korean people since its enactment in 1948. It has been used to oppress democracy and block reunification, dividing the Korean people. The PROK believes that if Koreans are to realize justice, peace, and national reunification, the law must be abolished. The PROK asks for prayers for the day when all of the Korean people may live united and free of fear. In December 2004, the Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK) sent pastoral letters to all PCK congregations asking for prayer and support for all those brothers and sisters affected by the tsunami. In cooperation with international mission organizations, local partner churches, and church-related organizations, the PCK is developing long-term relief projects in the tsunami-affected areas. In Sri Lanka it is supplying fishing nets, water pumps, and bicycles; staffing medical centers; and building youth training centers. It plans to rebuild the orphanage in Phang Nga, Thailand. In Indonesia the PCK is providing basic relief, digging water wells, and building public sanitary facilities and clinics. |
 Partners/Ministries Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK): Rev. Dr. Seung Gi Cho, general secretary, Rev. Kyong In Kim, executive director for planning and ecumenical relations • National Organization of Korean Presbyterian Women: Dr. Yon Ok Lee, honorary president, Rev. Sam Yuk Song, general secretary • Presbyterian Medical Center, Chonju: Min Chul Kim, M.D., director • Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea (PROK): Rev. Kil Soo Yoon, general secretary, Rev. Seung Min Shin, executive director, ecumenical relations • National Council of Churches in Korea: Rev. Do-Woong Paik, general secretary • Han Nam University: Dr. Sang Yoon Lee, president • Christian Literature Society: Rev. Ji Kang Chung, president • Kwangju Christian Hospital: Kyong Eui Song, M.D., director • Yonsei University: Dr. Chang Young Chung, president • Siloam Eye Hospital: Rev. Dr. Sun Tai Kim, director • Honam Theological Seminary: Rev. Dr. Jong Soon Cha, president • Presbytery Partnerships: Presbytery of Cayuga-Syracuse, Presbytery of Los Ranchos, Presbytery of New Harmony, Seattle Presbytery, and Sierra Mission Partnership with the PCK; National Capital Presbytery with the PCK and the PROK; Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary: Dr. Joong Eun Kim, president • Hanil University and Theological Seminary: Rev. Dr. Chang Bok Chung, president • Soongsil University: Dr. Hyo Gae Lee, president • Hanshin University: Dr. Young Seok Oh, president • Keimyung University: Dr. Jin-Woo Lee, president PC(USA) People in Mission PC(USA) General Assembly Staff |
 “With God are wisdom and strength; [God] has counsel and understanding” (Job 12:13). |
 Ps. 9, 62, 73, 145 Job 12:1–6, 13–25 Acts 11:19–30; John 8:21–32 |
