Mission life: THE KUKMIN DAILY

World Churches: “Let’s stop hating, and pray”

2016-06-15 15:43

In the wake of the June 12 massacre in Orlando, Florida, the worst mass shooting in US history, church organizations and leaders in Korea and worldwide are united in their response: “Let’s stop hating, and pray.” They have put up a hashtag (#prayfororlando) on social networking sites (SNS), homepages and other sites, and are sending prayers and messages of condolence.

The National Council of Churches in Korea sent a letter of condolence to Jim Winkler, general secretary of the National Council of Churches in the USA, condemning the incident as “a horrible crime caused by groundless hatred and contempt directed toward a random mass of people.” The NCCK message continued, “We hope that people will break the chain of indiscriminate violence, accept one another, and go forward to create a peaceful, coexistent world; and we will work for this in solidarity with the world churches.”

Korean pastors and theologians also sent condolence messages. Rev. Kim Hak-jung of Ansan Dream Community Church wrote on Facebook, “Seeing how difficult life can be, we may feel hatred toward someone, but this is not the way God wants us to live…David, instead of expressing his hatred, entrusted himself to God’s guidance. That is the way to overcome hatred.”

LifeHope Director Cho Seong-don noted, “Our society also has a problem, due to its tendency to neglect life or to take it too lightly.” He counseled, “Public agencies should take constructive action, set up forums for discussion, and develop alternatives.”

Reporters Sangmok Shin & Narae Kim (smshin@kmib.co.kr), with Marion Kim (marionkkim@icloud.com)
Photo courtesy of AP Newsis


Original Article in Korean:
세계교회들 “증오를 멈추고 기도하자”

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