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Japanese, Korean bishops promote peace for volatile region Prelates examine how church can approach growing tensions in Northeast AsiaNovember 24, 2016Bishops from Japan and Korea are worried that South Korea's decision to deploy a U.S. anti-ballistic missile system and Japan's political swing to the right threatens peace in Northeast Asia. At their annual meeting, bishops from the two countries discussed war, peace and the media and pledged to raise the awareness of their parishioners and educate them on the social teachings of the church. Sponsored by Incheon Diocese, over 30 bishops from the two countries gathered for the 22nd Korean-Japanese Bishops Exchange Meeting on Nov. 15-17 in Songdo, Incheon. In the meeting titled, "Threatening world peace: focusing on the war industry and media," 19 Korean bishops and 13 Japanese decided to work together to alert Catholics about Japan's new nationalism and other threats to peace in the region. The deployment of the U.S.'s THAAD [Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missile defense system] in South Korea's southeast was discussed by the bishops because it is escalating tensions with North Korea and China. The bishops also listened to lectures from media professionals on how the media and war industry dovetail. Afterwards, the prelates divided into four groups to discuss concrete measures to deal with the issue. Related Reports |