Musical Remembrance Launches 120th-Anniversary Celebration in Korea

A one-hour musical, described as “poignant” and “moving” by some of those who watched it, launched the celebrations of the 120th anniversary of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Korea.

The event kicked off a weekend of ceremonies and activities at the main auditorium of Sahmyook University in Seoul on November 8, with the presence of world and regional church leaders, special guests, and the church community.

“The journey of the Korean Adventist Church, which began 120 years ago in 1904, was far from easy, unfolding in an environment marked by extreme hardship,” Kang Soon Gi, president of the church’s Korean Union Conference, wrote in an opening welcoming message. “The early missionaries and first believers, despite harsh circumstances, dedicated themselves to spreading God’s Word, and through their sacrifices and earnest efforts, we stand here today…. Their sacrifices and dedication have become the foundation of today’s Korean Adventist Church, a legacy we must always remember.”

As part of the celebrations, a special temporary exhibition opened at the museum on the Sahmyook campus, which is open November 1 to 30. The exhibition tells the story of the beginnings of the Adventist Church in Korea and includes photographs, artifacts, and testimonies of many of the pioneers of Adventist mission across the peninsula.

A Story through Music

On November 8, a musical titled “Face to Face” told the story of the arrival of missionaries Rufus and Theodora Wangerin to Korea in 1909. The recently married couple from the United States arrived to support the mission work in the relatively new mission field. With original music, script, and staging, an all-women musical troupe called SULAMMI, which regularly supports Adventist evangelism and other initiatives, shared how the Wangerins faced their challenges in the mission field with courage and determination.

In that context, the “face to face” leitmotiv became a symbol of the lengths early Adventist missionaries went to meet people where they are and get to know them and love them, as they waited for the ultimate “face to face” meeting, the second coming of Jesus. “Only when we meet people face to face can we start being missionaries,” a narrator repeated as a recurring theme of the presentation.

As told through successive choreographed songs, the musical shared how Theodora faced the death of the couple’s first baby, then the sickness and eventual death of her husband, Rufus, and later the demise of her sister, Mimi Scharffenberg, also an early missionary in Korea. Those back-to-back heartbreaks did not deter Theodora, who as a widow returned to Korea, where she served in various church positions for decades.

The musical ended with a call to younger generations to also be willing “to be crucified with Christ” and give their all for mission.

From Barren to Fruitful

At the end of the musical, Kang reminded those who filled the auditorium and those following the program online that for years, Korea was a barren land for the gospel. Then Adventist world church leaders sent the first missionaries and the country experienced remarkable growth. “The gates were opened as [Korea became] one of the lands where the gospel was planted more successfully,” Kang said.

Against that background, it is imperative to have a passion for the Word of God, Kang said. He also called for the commitment of families and all we have to face current missionary challenges. He quoted an early missionary, who wrote, “I didn’t come to Korea to look around; I came to bury my bones.”

In the Face of Daunting Challenges

Kang issued a call to church leaders and members to renew their commitment to the call to mission, because, he said, challenges are daunting.

“In Asia alone, a vast region of 68 countries with 5.3 billion people, 98 percent have never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ,” Kang wrote in a message to participants. “Sharing this precious light of the gospel with Korea and the world is our duty and our calling, a mission entrusted to us by God Himself, who has chosen and revived us for this purpose.”

In conjunction with this reality, a wave of secularism is impacting the Christian message in Korea. Thus, according to Kang, if current Adventist missionaries want to make Korea a fertile land for the gospel again, they must be willing to give “their sweat and blood” again. “It’s how our pioneers kept this land fertile” for the gospel, Kang emphasized.

Fulfilling the Missionary Potential

Kang believes that the Korean Adventist Church and its members possess the strength and potential to proclaim the three angels’ messages across Asia and beyond. “The Korean Adventist believers possess a passion for evangelism that rivals that of any other nation,” Kang wrote. “Additionally, the church is blessed with a great number of well-trained pastors and countless dedicated members who continue to serve with unwavering commitment. Now is the time for us to rise and join in the great cry for the Lord’s return.”

Then, Kang issued a specific call. “Let us follow the path of devotion demonstrated by our predecessors over the past 120 years, ensuring that this faith is passed down to future generations,” he emphasized. “As we await the return of our Lord, may each of us live faithfully, fulfilling the mission God has entrusted to us until that day.”