A Communiqué from the 30th Anniversary Convention of Mission Collaboration
between the Anglican Church in Japan and the Anglican Church of Korea
They shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,neither shall they learn war any more.
‐‐‐‐Micah4:3‐‐‐‐
By the grace and guidance of God, the Anglican Church in Japan (Nippon
SeiKo Kai, NSKK) and the Anglican Church of Korea (ACK) held the 30th Anniversary
Convention of Mission Collaboration, from October 20th to 23rd, 2014 on Jeju Island,
Korea. Participants representing all three Korean dioceses and all eleven Japanesediocesesincluded both of the NSKK and ACKPrimates, several bishops, priests, andlaypersons. The members totaled 87, gathering 36 from Korea and 51 from Japan,
including those who represented co‐missions, and women’s and youth groups.
Building on the Communiqué of the 20th Anniversary Convention ofNSKK‐ACK Mission Collaboration, both Churches have been engaged in various
mission collaborations such as the NSKK‐ACK Youth Seminar, a study tour of Koreansocial missionary projects, the Worldwide Anglican Peace Conference, and theinvitation of Korean missionaries to Japanese churches.
Even though the mission collaboration between our Churches has deepened,
many problems have been harming the bilateral relationship between the twocountries; for example, territorial disputes and the issue of“comfort women,” womenforced by the Japanese to serve in military brothels in Korea. Recently, anti‐Koreansentiment has become a social problem in Japan. In response to this, the UN
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has strongly recommended
action be taken against malicious anti‐Korean publications andincidents of hatespeech towards Koreans who reside in Japan.
As this year marked the 30th anniversary of official collaboration,
participants decided to look back on past mission collaborations and discussed theroles of both the NSKK and ASK in East Asia. The idea was to further advance mutual
understanding and collaboration in order to enhance the theme of the convention,"Life, Justice, and Peace", with a straightforward look at current turmoil. In particular,
participants deeply recognized the problems this island of peace, Jeju, has faced(suchas hosting military bases and degradation of its natural environment), and themeaning of holding conventions in this place.
On the first day, The Rt. Revd.OnesimusDongsin Park (Bishop of Busan,ACK)officiated at the opening Eucharist and the Most RevdNathaniel Makoto
Uematsu (Primate of NSKK) delivered the sermon,speaking about a new perspective
offorgiveness which forms the basis for true reconciliation and peace.Also, duringthe
Eucharist, a special anthem sung by the children of the Jeju Church was deeply-1-moving for all participants.
The second day started from the keynote speech, titled "Reflection on PastHistory, Devotional Reconciliation, and Forgiveness," delivered by Revd. Dr. Jeremiah
GuenSeok Yang (Professor at Sungkonghoe University). Panelists from the NSKK andASK then looked back at past collaborations and proposed the agenda for the 40thanniversary. Group discussions followed. Following this, participants of the"Korea‐Japan Anglican Youth Seminar 2014", held in Sendai (Miyagi Prefecture) andShinchi (Fukushima Prefecture) Japan reported that, although they wereoverwhelmed by the hardship and pain of the survivors of the Great East Japan
Earthquake, they realized the joy of unity through the process of sharing theexperience. The theme of their seminar was "Let's Go for Peaceful East Asia Over
Nuclear Tragedy."On the third day, field reports on Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution,
Okinawa, nuclear power plants, and hate speech were given from NSKK, whereas
field reports on the GFS U‐Mul‐Ga project (helping women refugees from North
Korea) and TOPIK (Towards Peace in Korea, the peaceful reunification of the twoKoreas) were given from ACK. Through the general meeting, a joint statement wasprepared.
Through Bible studies, the mutual problems arising from hosting militarybases was shared between Jeju and Okinawa. This confirmed that the Lord was on theside of the belittled ones, and the importance of having sympathy for the pain felt by
all of God's creation.
The last day a service in remembrance of the victims of the Jeju April 3rdIncident was held in the Peace Park and a closing ceremony officiated by the youth ofJeju Church followed. The sermon delivered by the Most Revd. Paul Keun‐Sang Kim
called on immediate actions for the various problems discussed during theconvention. The dispatch of the Revd. Moses Nak Jun Yoo (Bishop elect of Daejeon),
was the first step toward the 40th anniversary of official collaboration.
We thank our Lord for allowing us to have this event, and decided to take thefollowing actions in the future mission collaborations.
(1) NSKK and ASK will establish an institution for planning and advancing continuous
mission collaborations at the provincial level.
(2) Based on the statement at the general synod for the eradication of hate crimes
and hate speech in 2014, both NSKK and ACK will continue efforts to protecthumanrights of all people, and in particular, minorities such as Korean residents in Japan.
(3) Through the interactions of Korean and Japanese youth, both NSKK and ACK
encourage youth activities for understanding the hardships and pains experienced inEast Asia. To achieve this, NSKK and ACK will construct a support system that enables
active youth cross‐border interactions.
(4) Both NSKK and ACK condemn the construction of new military bases in Okinawa-2-and Jeju, and will take specific measures to embody the spirit of the Communiqué ofthe 2nd Worldwide Anglican Peace Conference held in Okinawa.
(5) Both NSKK and ACK share a vision of mission of the Jeju Church, the so‐called"transforming the windy island to the spiritual island" campaign and seek a joint
practice to live up to a faith which pursues life, justice and peace.
(6) Both NSKK and ACK regret that women's fellowship, which was advocated in theCommuniqué of the 20th Anniversary Convention of Mission Collaboration, was not
sufficient. They will therefore build up an environment which enables women to learn
and work together. They will also create regular networking opportunities and makeefforts to raise to more than 30 percent the proportion of women in thedecision‐making bodies and committees.
(7) Both NSKK and ACK reaffirm that an effort in re‐uniting North and South Korea isa crucial issue of mission for the peace of Eastern Asia and will work cooperatively in aproactive manner under the aegis of TOPIK (Towards Peace in Korea).
(8) Both NSKK and ACK will do their best to celebrate the Eucharist together in bothlanguages and aim to realize a true multiracial and multicultural symbiotic society.
(9) Both NSKK and ACK will share "the Five Marks of Mission" of the Anglican
Communion and work together especially for the fifth mark, "to safeguard theintegrity of creation and sustain and renew the life of the earth" by recognizing as anissue of faith the gravity of the issues of nuclear energy and radiation.
(10) Both NSKK and ACK will deepen historical studies of not only the Japan‐Korea
relationship but also all of Eastern Asia and exchange their ideas of mission in order
to continue collaborative studies of theology, liturgy, missiology, and pastoral care.
(11) Both NSKK and ACK will pray to solve the issues above, make efforts to exchange
information and secure financial resources, and will examine the state of progress
every year. After a decade, in 2024, they shall have an opportunity to evaluate theirapproach to the agendas above and hold discussions on the further mission
collaborations.
This Communiqué is dated October 23, 2014. It is undersigned by the 30th Anniversary
Convention of Mission Collaboration between the Anglican Church in Japan and theAnglican Church of Korea Joint representatives:
The Primate of NSKK, The Rt. Revd. Makoto Uematsu
The Chairperson of ACK, The Rt. Revd.Geun Sang Kim
And all participants-3-