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In the wake of the recent Panmunjom Declaration, signed in April by South Korean President Moon Jae-In and Chairman Kim Jung Un of North Korea (DPRK), as well as the June summit of Chairman Kim with US President Donald J. Trump, the WCC central committee has re-assessed the prospects for peace on the troubled Korean peninsula.

In a powerful symbol of unity, Christians from North and South Korea sang together yesterday during celebrations of the 70th anniversary of the World Council of Churches (WCC). The Koreans linked arms to sing the 600-year-old folk song Arirang that is the unofficial anthem of Korea – the united Korea that existed until civil war divided the country in the 1950s.

“The pilgrim experience is one great communal prayer by walking together”, said Rev. Dr Fernando Enns, speaking to the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee on 18 June, during a plenary on the Pilgrimage of Justice and Peace.

After the United States (US) - Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) summit concluded, World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit gave thanks to God for what he called “an important first step on the path to a more peaceful and secure future in the region.”

The day before the 2018 North Korea–United States summit - the first between a sitting US President and the leader of North Korea - the World Council of Churches (WCC) expressed hope for a successful outcome.

As people in Seoul held a candlelight vigil on 7 June to pray for peace on the Korean Peninsula, they were joined by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Geneva, the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA (NCC), and hundreds of others across the world.

Interview with pastor Martin Robra on the visit of Pope Francis to the World Council of Churches by Antonio Spadaro, SJ

조선그리스도교연맹의 초청으로 5월 3~7일WCC와WCRC의 대표들로 구성된 6인의 국제에큐메니칼대표단이 WCC 총무인 올라브 픽세 트베이트(Olav Fykse Tveit) 박사와 WCRC 총무인 크리스 퍼거슨(Chris Ferguson) 목사의 인도하에 5월 3~7일 북한의 평양을 방문했다.

The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) released a statement on 27 April in response to the Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity, and Unification of the Korean Peninsula.

As the leaders of North and South Korea formally vowed to end the war and work toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the World Council of Churches (WCC) celebrated this moment as an affirmation of long-held ecumenical hopes and dreams for peace and reconciliation among the Korean people.

In preparation for a 27 April summit between North and South Korea - the first in more than a decade - the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) is calling on Christians around the world to pray for a successful outcome.

On 19 April, the World Council of Churches (WCC) welcomed recent initiatives to establish meaningful and constructive dialogue between the United States of America and North Korea.

A wide-ranging group of evangelical leaders and pastors from the USA released a joint call on 27 March for Christians everywhere to pray for peace on the Korean peninsula.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is mourning the death and remembering the life of Rev. Dr Dong Sung Kim, WCC programme executive for Diakonia and Ecumenical Solidarity, renowned pastor, peace negotiator and author of many texts on diakonia. Kim lived out a passion for peace and reconciliation both in the land of his origins and around the world as a faithful pilgrim for justice and peace.

On 9 March the National Council of Churches of Korea (NCCK) commented on the news that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), while agreeing to cease missile tests, has requested a summit meeting with the United States, and that President Trump has agreed to a meeting with the DPRK by May.

The World Council of Churches welcomed historic meetings on 5-6 March between a South Korean special envoy delegation and North Korean leadership in Pyongyang, the first high-level direct talks between the two Koreas in more than a decade.

The visit to China will begin the celebration of the World Council of Churches (WCC) 70th anniversary. In Beijing on 7 January, WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit preached in Chongwenmen Church, one of the oldest Protestant churches in China, on the theme “Jesus Christ, the Joy of the World.”

Participants in a 7-11 December consultation on ecumenical diakonia held in Seoul, South Korea, didn’t just talk about the important concept of service. They also took time to visit local projects where Korean Christians are fleshing out their call to actively practice diakonia in the communities they serve.

At a consultation in Seoul on December 7-11, participants from churches throughout northeast Asia shared insights on diakonia and how vital it is to the nature and mission of the church.

Amid continuing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Christians in Seoul are hoping the fragile light of candles will illumine a path to peace. Along with Christian groups around the world, they are holding candlelight vigils for peace during the season of Advent.