Open-Air Market Connects Rural and City Adventists, Raises Funds for Mission

An open-air market at Sahmyook University in Seoul, Korea, on November 10 helped to connect rural Seventh-day Adventist producers with their urban counterparts as it also raised funds for mission projects beyond the country’s borders. The annual event, which took place on the campus of the Adventist school, coincided this year with the celebrations of the 120th anniversary of the Adventist denomination in the Korean peninsula.

“The idea is for Adventists from rural areas to come, display, and sell local agricultural products and other goods, especially to other Adventists living in the city,” organizers explained in a letter advertising the event. “Adventists are encouraged to view and purchase these products, with the goal of fostering a connection between urban and rural communities.”

A second goal, organizers acknowledged, is that some of the proceedings from the sales will be donated to fund mission projects mostly in Asian countries, where the work of the Adventist Church faces some challenges due to the Muslim or Buddhist background of the population, they explained.

Bustling with Activity

In 2024, the open-air market on the Sahmyook campus included close to 70 stalls. Most of them offered fresh produce at competitive prices and traditional Korean dishes for every taste. Offers went from Asian pears and persimmons to chili peppers, raw chestnuts, and organic honey.

Other stalls offered dried mushrooms, seaweed, and homemade kimchi, all staples of traditional Korean cuisine. Still others advertised sweet options, including peanut brittle, Korean pancakes, and made-on-the-spot cookies. And among the stalls, a special section included tables and benches where members could socialize as they enjoyed the food options under the slightly warm autumn sun.

Besides food options for every taste, Adventist members visiting the stalls could purchase flowers and books. In a corner, a worker of Sahmyook Foods shared tips on healthy eating. The Adventist food company is known for going beyond profits to fund Adventist mission projects beyond the country’s borders. Still another stall offered relaxing foot massages.

Focus on Mission

While the urban-rural Adventist connection was certainly part of the day’s activities at the market, the organizers made sure the focus of the event on mission was visible for all guests. A double-sized stall advertised the activities and projects of the Adventist-Laymen’s Services and Industries (ASi) branch in the West Central Korean Conference. During the 2024 festival, ASi raised funds to open a dental clinic in Lahore, Pakistan, a region added to the territory of the Northern-Asia Pacific Division (NSD, which includes Korea) only in 2023.

In the central square of the open-air market, an ASi member showed how to ring a bell to announce a personal contribution to that specific project. Other stalls raised funds either directly or indirectly through sales to fund mission initiatives in Cambodia, a country outside the NSD territory but inside the 10/40 window, a region where most of the world population lives but where Christianity is a minority religion.

“Shorter mission trips, longer mission trips, outreach projects to improve the life of the people, and evangelistic initiatives,” one of the promoters explained. “Everything is about mission.”

Adventist-Laymen’s Services and Industries is a nonprofit mission support organization and is not operated by the corporate Seventh-day Adventist Church.