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On behalf of the member churches, the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit expressed deep sorrow over the passing away of Rev. Kang Young-sup on 21 Januray, a great Christian leader, whose efforts for the reunification of the Korean peninsula have been significant throughout his life.

A broad group of World Council of Churches (WCC) member churches, inside and outside of Korea, were involved in a recent shipment of food aid to North Korea.

The silence of the international community to the plight of millions of North Koreans facing starvation and severe malnutrition was of deep concern to the members of an ecumenical forum for peace and reunification of the Korean Peninsula, which met last week, 16 to 19 June, in Nanjing, China.

Realizing a peaceful reunification of Korea would not only be a gift for the Korean people but also for the people of Asia and the world as a whole. For the church, both in and outside Korea, realizing a unified Korea will also mean the church being unified in their efforts.

Nearly 140 leaders from the world's churches, North and South Koreans among them, have called for the formation of an inter-Korean confederation even before complete reunification of Korea can take place. Agreement was reached at the close of a three-day meeting in Tsuen Wan, Hong Kong where the Christian leaders expressed unrelenting hope for peace and reconciliation among Koreans, despite the stark realities of the ongoing division of the Korean peninsula.

In a momentary foretaste of Korean reunification, two Korean pastors - one from the north, one from the south - bridged more than 60 years of separation in jointly presiding over a celebration of the Eucharist during a worship service commemorating more than 25 years of work toward bringing peace and reconciliation to the divided Korean peninsula. The “Tozanso Process”, which brings together Christians from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in the north and the Republic of Korea in the south, as well as representatives of partner churches from other nations, was initiated by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in 1984.

In a recent meeting with a delegation from the World Council of Churches (WCC) visiting Pyongyang, North Korean president Kim Yong-nam said a significant impetus to solving the nuclear weapons stand-off in the region would be for North Korea and the U.S. to meet “face-to-face with each other”.

Using a reference from I Corinthians 12, the World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary the Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia told nearly 200 church members at Bong Soo Church in Pyongyang, North Korea that the "Church is one body in Christ".

Amidst the growing tensions and diplomatic negotiations among various countries within the Six Party Talks on peace and security on the Korean peninsula, the general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, will be making a pastoral visit to the churches in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) this week.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia has urged South Korean President Lee Myung-bak to "take urgent measures to strengthen inter-Korean relationships without any pre-conditions".

A proposal for a parallel meeting of churches from nations involved in the Six Party Talks on the Korean peninsula was endorsed by a broad range of churches over the weekend at a conference in Seoul celebrating the centenary of the Korean Great Revival of 1907 and exploring the churches' role in bringing peace to the divided nation.

By Juan Michel (*)