(2006.08.01)
31 July, 2006
31 July, 2006
Dear Friends,
Warm greetings from Seoul.
In our Korean people"s journey toward peace and reunification, the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) and the Korea Christian Federation (KCF) in the North have met together once a year since 1989 to commemorate the August 15th anniversary of liberation from Japan"s colonial rule by jointly writing the people"s "Common Prayer" for peace and reunification.
Especially in 1989, the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches decided to encourage all member churches to use the common prayer and join the "Common Prayer Week for Peace and Reunification of the Korean Peninsular" on the Sunday closest to August 15th.
After refusing to return to six-way talks, North Korea has become increasingly ostracized and isolated. In addition, the food shortage in North Korea is worsen because of torrential downpours last two weeks. Regarding the situation of Korean peninsular, both NCCK and KCF we heartily ask you to share this prayer in your respective churches on the Sunday closest to August 15th.
In ecumenical solidarity
Sincerely yours,
Rev. Paik, Do-Woong
General Secretary
National Council of Churches in Korea
Common Prayer for Peace and Reunification of the Korean Peninsular
God of peace,
We give thanks for your loving hands caring for every life and all of history.
Lord,
We recovered our freedom after thirty-six years of Japanese occupation, and since then, another sixty-one years has passed.
This is not a short time; but still there are voices around us defending the old structure of division.
Nonetheless, this land abounds with dreams for reunification.
"The North and the South have agreed to join our strength as a sovereign and responsible people, and to independently solve the problem of national reunification."
On that day of June 15, 2000, when news of the North-South Joint Declaration was broadcast,
We couldn"t believe our own ears and eyes.
Lord,
Who will dare obstruct your plans?
Though the sharp teeth of barbed-wire fences remain along the truce line,
Coming and going over those fences
Are the hearts of the divided families,
With their sharing of wisdom for life together,
And their care and concern for each other.
These have laid down the base for our future peaceful community.
Lord,
We thank you for giving us new opportunities.
Rather than clinging to outdated pride in our past leadership role for reunification and peace,
May we, the churches of North and South, embrace a greater value:
Our hope in a new day filled with strength and vitality, a new day we will build together.
We believe
That the peaceful economic and cultural community we dream of,
Will result from the hope that binds our hearts together.
However fierce may be the suffering that we face,
However fearsome may be the storms that try us,
We steadfastly believe in the amazing plan of God, who has brought us out of brokenness and ruin and into a relationship of trust and understanding.
Lord of love,
Now we are awakened to the knowledge
That though we have been divided for the past sixty years, there was never any division in You;
That though we doubted, there was always the reality of oneness in You.
Therefore, in You we already have experienced reunification.
We hope our reunification will be strong and beautiful.
We hope it will set aright our history of pain and suffering,
Bring unity to our nation, and offer hope to the whole world,
May the train departing from this land, pass through the Asian and European continents and finally reach the ocean at the far end of the western land.
May the fire-pillar of peace starting from this land, shine a light on the continents to the utmost reaches of the western land.
Grant that our reunification will be hope for the world.
Lord,
In You, once again we dream a great dream.
The dream you dreamed on the cross in that ancient time,
The great dream of every person and all of history abiding in You,
Is our dream also.
With hope for the peace of this land and the unity of its people,
We pray in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, Amen.
(This Common Prayer was made by the NCC-Korea and the Korea Christian Federation)
※ NORTH-SOUTH JOINT DECLARATION
True to the noble will of all the fellow countrymen for the peaceful reunification of the country, Chairman Kim Jong Il of the National Defense Commission of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea and President Kim Dae Jung of the Republic of Korea had a historic meeting and summit in Pyongyang from June 13 to 15, 2000.
The heads of the North and the South, considering that the recent meeting and summit, the first of their kind in history of division, are events of weighty importance in promoting mutual understanding, developing inter-Korean relations and achieving peaceful reunification, declare as follows:
- The North and the South agreed to solve the question of the countrys reunification independently by the concerted effects of the Korean nation responsible it.
- The North and the South, recognizing that a proposal for federation of lower stage advanced by the North side and a proposal for confederation put forth by the South side for the reunification of the country have elements in common, agreed to work for the reunification in this direction in the future.
- The North and the South agreed to settle humanitarian issues, including exchange of visiting groups of separated families and relatives and the issue of unconverted long-term prisoners, as early as possible on the occasion of August 15 this year.
- The North and the South agreed to promote the balanced development of the national economy through economic cooperation and build mutual confidence by activating cooperation and exchanges in all fields, social, cultural, sports, public health, environmental and so on.
- The North and the South agreed to hold dialogues between the authorities as soon as possible to implement the above-mentioned agreed points in the near future.
President Kim Dae Jung cordially invited Chairman Kim Jong Il of the DPRK National Defense Commission to visit Seoul and Chairman Kim Jong Il agreed to visit Seoul at an appropriate time in the future.
June 15, 2000
Kim Jong Il Kim Dae Jung
Chairman President
National Defense Commission DPRK Republic of Korea
2006CommonPrayer.doc
