With a Korean population that is more than 60 percent in some small towns of New Jersey, Zion began a multicultural mission called Morning Star, which welcomes immigrants into the community and serves as a place of mutual sharing. June Jin (left) and Eunyoung Kim, participate as well.
As for me, my relationships with
these fellow workers in the kingdom have helped me live into a deeper relationship with Christ. I have wit- nessed and experienced true friend- ship in Christ, despite the challenge presented by barriers of language and culture. Even though our lives and cultures are so different, we are all enriched as we come together to learn about each other and talk about God. Tis is what welcoming is truly
about—listening to and learning about each other in the name of Jesus.
metropolitan New York area and drives almost two hours to attend the gathering, said he appreciates the welcome the immigrants have received and the opportunity to read the Bible in English. I told him they have demonstrated
welcome to us Americans, too, because they have welcomed us into their hearts. Te ESL Bible study isn’t a one-sided venture where a student passively receives information. We are equal; we teach one another. At the end of our Bible study,
Stephen Jang reads during the ESL Bible study.
Korean. We end with a study of Sunday’s Gospel. My favorite part is the thoughtful
discussion that emerges from the Bible study, expressed in the most simple, vital and essential language. One week we encountered what
Jesus had to say about welcome. “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me” (Matthew 10:40). We talked about hospitality and welcome during Jesus’ time and in our world today. Taek Sun Han, who owns sev- eral large Korean markets in the
everyone prays a sentence or two in English. One member says he finds this somewhat “stressful,” but all the prayers are sincere and articulate, spoken from the heart. Tey express the essence of faith: gratitude, a need for help, a desire for guidance in their journey with God and piety. Tere is no need for extraneous words.
Harbor of Hospitality
Author bio: Blair is pastor of Zion Lutheran Church in Ridgefield, N.J., and mission director of Morning Star.
123 East 15th Street, New York, NY 10003 Phone: (212) 677-4800
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May 2015 37
KRISTA KENNEL
KRISTA KENNEL
KRISTA KENNEL
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