A bit of heaven

In Korea, Christianity makes up roughly a third of the population, and here on Jeju, its much the same. Its hard not to notice the neon glowing steeples that highlight the cityscape on the island. Being a Christian, although somewhat more lax in my attendance, I was curious to see what a Korean church was like. Having mentioned it to my friend Serena, she recommended that I come with her to mass on Sunday...so I did.



The church we attended was the Seogwipo Presbyterian Church, and it is the biggest church in the area with an average weekly attendance over 1,100. I am Catholic, but I figure god will forgive me, besides, I don't think I could have told the difference had I not caught a glimpse of an English pamphlet.

As we approached the steps, the Pastor had a wide grin on his face, obviously pleased by my attendance. I shook his hand in the Korean manner (clasping his arm with my other hand), and then proceeded into the church with my friend. She lead me up onto the second floor balcony, where there was less people, and was probably thinking that it would make me feel a bit more comfortable.



The balcony is usually populated with more children, as they can be loud and usually can't sit still anywhere for very long. Serena went over the program with me; prays and singing, seemed simple and familiar enough. Along with the choir there was an orchestral ensemble, with, from what I could tell, some woodwinds and stringed instruments. I couldn't see very many of them from where I was sitting, but when the mass started, you could see them up on the projection screen above the altar.



I guess being the biggest church in the area, and probably the most popular, they had several cameras setup to broadcast the mass, not only for inside the church, but for shut-ins at home. You can see almost everything that goes on up on the screen, making it quite easy to follow along with.

When the choir started singing, I was absolutely blown away by their talent and music...it was a bit of heaven...and a good incentive to go to church more often. I managed to record a few minutes on my camera, though I left the cover on over the lens as I thought it would be rude to hold a camera up during mass.



After listening to the choir sing and the pastor give his sermon, we headed down the stairs to the reception hall in the basement. To my surprise, another added bonus to going to church is a free meal after the eleven o'clock mass. Beef stew with a side of rice, kimchi, and spinach...delicious.



We finished our meals rather quickly, as neither of us had breakfast and were very hungry. We also got the chance to meet with the pastor...since Serena is leaving Jeju next week for another job in Seoul. After some quick introductions, he said a prayer for her and wished her luck in her new position. We grabbed a cup of coffee from the hall and decided it was time to head out. I took one last look at the church...