Korean Christians gathered at the Beverly Hilton on Friday for "Adopt a Day 815," an event created to pray for North Korea and peaceful reunification of Korea.
An intercessory prayer movement for North Korea was launched on Friday at an event called "Adopt a Day 815," which was organized to bring awareness to Korean Americans, particularly of the second and third generation, about Korean history and the reasons Korean Christians must pray for North Korea.
In particular, the event was launched to prepare for August 15, 2015, which will be not only the 70th anniversary of Korean independence, but also the 70th year since the nation was divided. The organizers desire to gather a multitude of Christians to pray together for Korea on that day, and this event was created in hopes to be the start of gathering those Christians.
Yu Su-Kyung Kah-yah Korean Traditional Dance Group performing to "Arirang" at Adopt a Day 815.
The event featured various ways through which attendees could gain a clearer picture of the history of the division in Korea and to pray for North Korea, including a video clip about the Korean War, which depicted the harsh realities of the bombing campaigns, starvation, and separation from family that were prevalent at the time. There were also subtle ways in which the attendees were reminded of the connections between North and South Korea, such as a Korean traditional dance performed to the song "Arirang," one of the few songs that are still sung in both countries.
Seven speakers, most of whom were professors or ministers, were featured at the event, and many discussed the importance of Korean Americans taking ownership of the responsibility to pray for North Korea, who is our family in the North.
"We [Koreans] are pretty good at reaching out to the outermost, but we've forgotten Jerusalem"”our own people," said Dr. Ben Shin, the director of Asian American Studies at Talbot Theological Seminary.
Pastor Jim-Bob Park, the senior pastor at Oriental Mission Church in Los Angeles, said that while the older generations still have remains of hurts, cynicism, and bitterness towards North Korea, the second and third generation Korean Americans do not, because of the generational as well as geographical separation from the country. This, he said, could lead to a great movement led by the younger generations.
"God has reserved for one generation what was impossible for the previous," he said.
But in order for a prayer movement to succeed, Christians must work together, organizers explained.
"We need to change from a spirit of competition into a spirit of collaboration instead," said Pastor Sung-Keun Park, the senior pastor at Berendo Street Baptist Church.
This is the very reason that this group of individuals has refused to even create a name to identify as an organization. They explained that creating a formal organization draws attention to the leading individuals or the organization instead of the cause itself.
"Our purpose is to pray to break down the division in Korea," said one of the organizers. "We just want to be a group of individuals that bring together the Christians and churches who want to pray together. We want to bring unity in the church and in Korea."
The organizers invited and challenged attendees to continue praying for North Korea, and to invite more people to get involved in the movement. Mary Kay Park, the manager of Far East Broadcasting Company (FEBC) Korea in the USA branch, encouraged Christians to count down the days until next year, planting seeds of prayer each day in preparation.
Attendees explained that the event encouraged them to become more committed in prayer, and they were given the opportunity to make a written commitment to pray or become more involved during the dedication time at the event. Dr. Joe Kim, professor of Intercultural Studies at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, said he felt the event accomplished what it was created for.
"I think this accomplished the purpose for which it was started - to launch a prayer movement," he said. "After having been here, I can say that I feel that the prayer movement has been launched in my own heart."
