Delegates to a World Council of Churches (WCC) convened forum on peace on the Korean Peninsula vowed to work together in accompanying the Christians of North and South Korea in their efforts for peace, reconciliation, and development.
The Ecumenical Forum for Peace, Reunification and Development Cooperation on the Korean Peninsula (EFK) convened in Leipzig, Germany, on 7-8 July 2017.
Christine Elliott, director of World Church Programmes for Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI), said: ‘It is critical at this time of heightened tension around the Korean Peninsula that we challenge the rhetoric of fear and promote a belief in the power of reconciliation and love to build a lasting peace in the region.’
Steve Pearce, partnership coordinator for Asia with the Methodist Church in Britain, asked for ‘concrete actions for peace from the international community’.
‘The responsibility we carry as churches from this meeting is to speak of this need at every opportunity and to contribute to the building of a new and fair understanding of the present reality’, he said. ‘Having heard the pain of my brothers and sisters in the North and the South, I certainly pledge to do this’.
The meeting closed with a worship service on 8 July, where Bishop Hee-Soo Jung of the United Methodist Church USA said ‘We commit to engage in and support nonviolent efforts to end all war and preparations for war and to create a sustainable and just peace.’
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Worship service on 8 July in Bethanienkirche, Leipzig, Germany
