Top Stories 24/06/27 Online archive of Korean Christian social movements launched

[성기화 요셉]

Online archive of Korean Christian social movements launched

The project is a part of the centenary celebration of the National Council of Churches in Korea

South Korean Christians join a prayer gathering in this undated image. (Photo: World Prayer School/The Baptist Paper)

By UCA News reporter

Published: July 17, 2024 11:04 AM GMT

Updated: July 17, 2024 12:05 PM GMT

The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) has launched an online archive to present the history of Christian social movements that impacted politics, society, and the economy over the past century.

The project is part of the centenary celebrations of the founding of NCCK, a leading inter-denominational Christian forum in South Korea.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism supports the 'National Council of Churches in Korea Online Archive.'

The archive will preserve about 25,000 materials, including data sheets, statements, declarations, and photographs related to Christian social movements in the country since 1910. It is freely accessible.

"The centenary slogan is ‘History to Come, a Future to Be Remembered,’” said NCCK Secretary General Revered Kim Jong-saeng during a press conference at Yonsei University in the national capital of Seoul on June 27.

“We want to make this a time to prepare for the next 100 years rather than just a time to celebrate the past 100 years,” he added.

The archive aims to preserve minutes and other documents of the General Assembly from the Joseon Jangam United Council in the 1910s to the National Council of Churches in Korea in the 2020s.

The preserved material includes the NCCK statements and declarations, such as the Social Creed of the Joseon Christian United Council (1932), Statement Against the Third Constitutional Amendment (1969), Petition for the Release of Prisoners (1985), and the Korean Christian Church Declaration on National Unification and Peace (Declaration of 1988).

The archive allows users to interact in various ways, including by contributing new materials such as relevant documents and photographs, reporting errors, and submitting offline and online comments.

According to official data, Christians make up some 29 percent of South Korea's 51 million people. About 50 percent of the South Korean population follows no religion. Over 15 percent are Buddhists, and the remaining 6 percent follow other faiths, such as Confucianism and Islam.

Catholics make up about 7 percent of the nation’s populace.

* This report is brought to you in partnership with the Catholic Times of Korea.