Pastor Kyusuk Kong (who I met on Monday) showed me around the Baekseok University campus. Baekseok Univeristy is a Christian University established in the 1970's.
It has many departments including Theology; the undergraduate divinity school is in Cheonan and the post-graduate at Seoul. Alongside this is Baekseok Church which is a Presbyterian church with about 1,000 worshippers who are mostly students or staff, but about 30% are not part of the Univeristy but just residents of Cheonan. Pastor Kong is the senior pastor and there are four full time associate ministers, and three part-time student ministers. There is one associate minister who is charge of worship, one for mission, one for the seniors, and one for the children's and youth ministry. There is also four admin staff: a burser, one for media and communications, one for general office work, and one who is his personal assistant. So quite a set up!
Here is the building where their offices are.
After showing me around and describing the church I had dinner with him and one of his daughters who is studying Psychology at Chester University. She spent about 10 years of her schooling in the UK and so decided to go back to the UK for further study. It was great to hear her perspectives as a young person who is Korean growing up in the UK.
We then went to the student worship service; it was exam period so not so many students were around, however there was still a good 100 undergraduate students there. I was really encouraged by their passion. There was a lively worship group with musicians and eight singers; ranging from 18-22 yrs old. We sung familiar songs like The Splendour of the King, and Praise is rising. I would say the worship was lively and heartfelt. Then we were led in prayer (I didn't know what she was saying but again it sounded quite emotional). One of the associate ministers read from 1 Kings 19, and spoke of Elijah's heavy heart and how God spoke to him. I didn't know what it was he was saying but through some hand gestures and the way he spoke I could tell he was passionate and full of conviction. He then invited everyone to allow God to speak to them also. I would say the service was quite modern and lively.
I asked whether Sunday morning worship was similar; and was told it wasn't quite so lively but still modern and passionate. I haven't had much experience of Presbyterian churches; only in North Wales as in England we have the URC, but that little experience made me think it was quite a traditional church with a dieing congregation. I was encouraged to see a different side to Presbyterianism in Korea. I also realised the differences of the generations and the type of worship services that they engage with within the Korean context.
After staying overnight with Pastor Kong and his family; I went along to 5.30 am prayer service. Again the style was quite different. It started with a time of silent prayer, we then sang a hymn (it wasn't a familiar one to me), said the Lord's Prayer together, and then one of he ministers read from 1 Kings 1:5-11 and spoke on the passage. We then had a time of prayer when people prayed individually quite quietly but you could hear them speaking and calling out to God. Some you could hear crying, some speaking in tongues, but again quite passionate and heart-felt. The meeting ended at 6.30, and then I had a little more time to sleep after that before breakfast and returning back to Seoul.
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