Lutherans Participate in Ecumenical Effort Regarding Korea

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) is participating in an effort to address humanitarian need on the Korean peninsula and the current political impasse between the United States and North Korea. The ELCA and 16 other members of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. (NCC) and Church World Service (CWS) met April 11 here at the ELCA churchwide office to plan the effort.
The ELCA is a member of the NCC and participates in the work of CWS -- the global humanitarian aid agency of the NCC. CWS has provided $4.25 million in food to North Korea since the onset of the food crisis there in 1996. The ELCA has responded to CWS' appeal for funds with more than $61,000. CWS issued its latest appeal for funds March 31.
Participants at the meeting set out to develop a common advocacy strategy on U.S. policy toward the Korean peninsula, plan a consultation between United States and Korean church leaders this summer in Washington, D.C.,; and organize an ecumenical delegation from the United States to visit the Korean peninsula later this year to foster "mutual partnership" and engage in advocacy with the people of North Korea and South Korea.
"It's important that we're involved ecumenically through Church World Service and Action by Churches Together. Our relationships with them are supported through the Lutheran World Federation and the ELCA World Hunger Grants Program," said the Rev. Barbara Lund, program director for East Asia, ELCA Division for Global Mission.
Action by Churches Together is a worldwide network of churches and related agencies that meets human need through organized emergency response. It is housed with the World Council of Churches and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF), both in Geneva, Switzerland. The LWF is a global communion of 136 Christian churches in the Lutheran tradition in 76 countries representing more than 61.7 million of the 65.4 million Lutherans worldwide.
"The ELCA response, through its Division for Global Mission, is ecumenical because of the political and humanitarian crisis on the peninsula. More can be done ecumenically through Church World Service and Action by Churches Together, which are supported by ELCA World Hunger grants," said Lund.
"Members of the ELCA can respond through its World Hunger Appeal, which builds our relationships with people and churches. There are two Protestant churches and one Roman Catholic church in North Korea, and there is an ELCA pastor currently serving at the International Lutheran Congregation in Seoul. Lutherans also respond by lifting up the people of North and South Korea during prayers," she said.
"As people of faith it's important for us to remember that political references such as 'Axis of Evil' about a country are incongruent with mission among God's people," Lund said.
A critical component of the meeting was "that member communions of the National Council of Churches understand this to be an urgent moment for churches to respond not just with their charity and humanitarian aid but with a commitment to confronting" governments of North Korea, South Korea and the United States, "recognizing that we have a role to play in seeking reconciliation and reunification of North and South Korea, and in moving away from the brink of war," said the Rev. Robert Edgar, NCC general secretary, in an interview with the ELCA News Service.
Edgar said that churches should "understand what their roles are in the dynamics of the world" and they ought to consider their "broader foreign policies. We think nothing of governments and nations having foreign policies," he said. "God is a God of creation, so part of our foreign policy is to care about the earth and stewardship of the planet."
"Every January we listen to the president give his State of the Union address, and we remember [President Bush's] 'Axis of Evil.' We think that the Axis of Evil is the pandemic of poverty, the destruction of earth and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. If church people think that, then theologically we ought to have a foreign policy that reflects it," said Edgar.
The Rev. John L. McCullough, CWS executive director, said the meeting served as an "opportunity for communions to come together around an issue that is of critical and mutual importance." He said, "Churches need to be concerned about what is happening in North Korea in terms of the political situation between the United States and the Korean peninsula, and the humanitarian situation there which continues to be a crisis."
A highlight of the meeting was a report delivered by Victor W.C. Hsu, senior advisor to the executive secretary, CWS. Hsu visited the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) -- North Korea -- April 1- 5.
"The primary purpose for the trip to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea was to monitor the distribution of 660 metric tons of fortified wheat flour intended for young children and pregnant and nursing women," Hsu said. The CWS shipment was in response to an urgent appeal for food assistance to avoid the worsening of widespread hunger and malnutrition, he said.
Hsu visited several hospitals, children's centers and homes in Pyongyang, North Korea's capital. "In each place, I was able to determine that the fortified flour was used in a variety of ways. Some use it to make plain buns as snacks. Several mix the flour to make fried dough, apparently most popular with the children. Others make a Japanese-style tempura. As for babies, the flour is mixed with other ingredients to make a nutritious gruel," he wrote in his report.
"The Koreans kept asking me, 'When is the next shipment?' I did not feel free to speak on anyone's behalf, but, knowing the history of the generosity of the church in this country, I was able to say with some degree of confidence that I'm sure that within the next 12 months we would be able to do another shipment. They are in need of all sorts of aid, whether it's medicine or food. The need is massive," Hsu told participants.
"Government officials made it clear to me that the DPRK continues to be eager for direct talks with the Unites States," Hsu said. "They hoped that I would help to take this message to the church in the United States. It is their conviction that the only route to peace is through Washington. At the same time, they questioned whether the United States would be interested in peace," he said.
In an interview, Hsu said some important elements of the April 11 meeting here are "the fact that it happened and the fact that several denominations have affirmed its importance by sending representatives to be here. There has been a very rich history of involvement among the communions of Church World Service and National Council of Churches. The contribution is pioneering, because we were the first organization in the United States to talk about Korea's reunification. We were among the first people to enter North Korea and to have substantive conversations with key government officials, so that we have a better understanding of where they stand with regards to their relationship with the United States government." -- -- --
The ELCA maintains information about North Korea at http://www.elca.org/dgm/country_packet/korea-north/desc.html and South Korea at http://www.elca.org/dgm/country_packet/korea-south/desc.html on the Internet.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html