South Korean Christians at a training conference
(Photo source: Simon Na)

In August, South Korea agreed to end all 'missionary work' in Afghanistan in exchange for the Taleban's release of its nationals.  CMS Regional Manager Simon Na reflects on that.

Let's be clear, the Korean government does not even consider missionary work much because, a priori, the government is secular and maintains its stance of being neutral about all religion.

Officials have stated clearly the rightness of their action in doing their best to rescue South Korean nationals who were in danger, but South Korea is not a simple society in which governmental authority and strategy is driven or controlled by a religious policy.

How have churches been affected?

Most churches that send or support missionaries are usually very firm in their convictions and so this incident does not seem to have influenced them much.  For example, the pastor of the Sam Mul Church, which sent the team to Afghanistan, recently preached that it hopes to send more and more missionaries to the Middle East.

Mission work is assessed more by structural criteria in South Korea than by any church leaders' tastes or decisions.

By 'structural', I mean that Koreans tend to assess churches pragmatically by their words and deeds. Korean Protestants tend to focus on preaching and a change of heart.  Non-Christians, however, focus more on "What do they, the churches, actually do?"

Missionary work can satisfy these two contradictory demands.  Churches can act altruistically, doing humanitarian work for example, while, concurrently, they continue to concentrate on individual aspects of faith.

A South Korean Christian conference
(Photo source: Simon Na/CMS)

It is proper for Korean churches to mobilise vision, funds and human resources for mission according to their evangelical faith, and that imperative will not easily be shaken.

I think that this incident --- the kidnapping of the South Korean Christians by the Taleban --- exposed a particular church, whose members are mostly beginners in this field, in a poor light in South Korea.

It was widely known that there were hundreds of Korean volunteers who'd served in Afghanistan.  Among them are prudent missionaries who worked efficiently for quite a long time in the background, but this particular episode, the kidnapping, stimulated some media practitioners to try and portray all Korean mission work as 'careless' and 'aggressive'.

Koreans might feel the team was 'careless' in part because, I think, it's confusing for Koreans to come across a term such as 'an encounter trip'.  They have no such idiom, so it rapidly became classified instead as 'a short-term mission'.

Our culture does not identify with such a roundabout, experiential way of travelling, learning and being trained in another culture as 'an encounter', but tends to think directly about contribution to and results in mission.

Church leaders were quite successful in drawing commitment to mission from their members, but need the wit to expose such beginners to experience in safe contexts and to give them participation at an appropriate level.

Although some say that "Korean mission is aggressive", I believe it's natural for mission to encounter conflict; every movement does.

It's easy to find governments or customs that do not permit Christian evangelism.  So how is it possible to do mission while respecting a culture and its regulations?  Balance is needed between the extremes of liberalism and fundamentalism.

It is Jesus' way to accept all sinners unconditionally and give them himself and his love rather than threatening or blaming them.  I believe that most missionaries are on their way to learning Jesus' way of being warm and gentle with enthusiasm.

Will this episode harm the cause of mission?
 
Not in the long term, I believe.

It is a pleasure for me to meet experienced missionaries and hear their stories.  Some of them point out that most missionaries struggled to root faith initially among the people of particular countries.  For example, the great preacher Wesley failed in his mission to America.

Mission is a lonely, intensive task that requires grace from God.  I think it is most important to regard even slight mission outcomes as precious, and expand on minimally successful examples in order to take mission a step further.

One endemic disease here is impatience.  Some Korean missionaries want to show visible results to their supporters, even though these require long preparation and steady, incremental advance.  They are learning the wisdom of discovering the secrets of the mission field and waiting for germination of the Gospel even though it is slow.

There is room for these young participants to learn from the mature experience of other missions.

Christians constitute about 30% of the population in Korea, and it's logical to assume that the other 70% will be indifferent or, sometimes, cynical about Christian evangelism.

If mission is in crisis, it is because of Christianity.  Attitudes towards Christian mission are closely related to those on Christianity itself.  Korean Protestants seem to be losing ground in persuading people and to have difficulty in communicating with contemporaries and moderates.

In 2005, the Korean government published a statistical report on changes in the numbers and distribution of Christians in the population.  It shows Korean Protestants are experiencing a crisis because of declining numbers --- although the angle of decline is a moderate one --- after a period of rapid growth.

Korean churches need to train their leaders steadily, to prove their contribution to society, and to keep a balanced view about culture and society.  Mission is one part of this dynamic, and I believe there will be time and opportunity enough to overcome the recent crisis.

Of the 23 South Korean Christians taken hostage, 21 were eventually released but 2 were killed by the Taleban while in captivity.

Published: 11:53 AM :: Wednesday, September 26, 2007 :: 546 views :: 0 Comments :: Featured News Stories, Church of England, Media, ANALYSIS