Peace Train 2013 - Testimony Rebecca Froese

Peace Train 2013:  8.10.-29.10.2013 Berlin-Moskau-Irkutsk-Peking-Pyongyang-Pusan

Thanksgiving Worship 
29.10.2013 Ttangkkeut Church, Busan 

Testimony Rebecca Froese

October 29th - Peace Train testimony - Rebecca Froese

First, I would like to say "Thank you" for the great opportunity to have our closing worship here in this church.

Yesterday, when I was preparing and thinking about what I am going to say here today, so many memories just flashed into my mind that I had a very hard time to decide, what to share with you today. So, I started reading old posts from my peace train blog to get settled and structured again. I recognized that throughout the blog my posts were pervaded by impressions describing a very unique peaceful community in that we were living on the train. Not only that the idea and the mission of this peacetrain were unique (so unique actually, that some people back home even call me crazy), but the international ecumenical fellowship, that I experienced here on the train, was something, that I have never experienced in this depth before. Some people may call it live-changing, some may describe it as extending their horizon. I, for myself, will remember this experience as "tent-expanding".

Maybe you ask yourself what I want to say with this term "tent-expanding"? When I usually go on a trip, I take my tent with me. It is a small and very light tent for two to three people. When I arrive with my fellow travelers on the camping ground, we usually sit outside, because not everybody fits in the tent. Of course, I did not literally take a tent on the peace train journey, but I consider this term to be a good image for us that we travelled on the train. In a way, we were like the nomads travelling around the country with not more than we could carry. We all came from different backgrounds, from different congregations and confessions, and - to keep the image - everyone of us arrived with his own "confessional" tent. God called us to extend our tent and to invite people to be one in the spirit. And indeed, the extension of the tent does not need more than the strengthening of the pole and the lengthening of the cords. And this was exactly, what I experienced during our journey. Day per day, the poles were reinforced and the stripes were extended through intense conversation and discussion, worship, singing or simple picture taking. But in every action, I felt, that our cords were not only extended but also linked and anchored in the ecumenical community and in addition our poles got grounded and strengthen in the foundation of our common faith in Jesus Christ.

But why am I telling you all this, when - as I said earlier - the main and unique mission of the train actually addresses the reunification and reconciliation of the Korean peninsula? Well, I believe, that the development of an "open-tent community" can work in every context when there are people and churches that support the idea. During our trip I learned a lot about Korea and the reconciliation attempts and I feel that this issue should not be carried only by Korean churches. Yes, the WCC already addressed this issue a long time ago, but in my German context in my church it has not really been discussed. So, I take this as my personal mission, to share my experiences and the knowledge that I gained during this journey within my context at home.

I want to thank all of you that made this experience as wonderful as it was. I feel so blessed with the opportunity to participate in this great project and I will keep these memories in the safest place that I know, which is right here.
Thank you!

 

 

 

WCC - ÖRK

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BLOGs aus dem Peace Train und aus Pusan

BLOG
Online-Tagebuch der badischen Teilnehmenden 

BLOG
vonRainer Lamotte (Pfalz, DOAM, EMS)

BLOG
von Rebecca Froese (Mennonitin, Steward in Pusan)

BLOG
von Reisegruppe EKHN (Hessen, Frankfurt a.M.)

BLOG 
von Kai Lüke (Pfalz, Berlin)

BLOG
von Anne Heitmann (Baden)

WEBSITE des KNCC

BLOG
der EKD-Delegation

BLOG
Posts während der VV auf der meet Homepage

BLOG
von Brot für die Welt