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Faith in the Face of Empire: Face to Face in the Context of Occupation

KANG HAN BYEOL (South Korea)

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives.” (John 14:27)

I am writing this on June 25. This was when the Korean War broke out, a day that is unforgettable to all Koreans. Korean War brought tremendous sacrifice to us and our country has been divided for 60 years now since then. Even now, there are conflicts between South and North Korea and people in this land are still under fear about war. This war took place because of powerful nations and empires that surround the Korean Peninsula. If the Korean Peninsula did not become separated by the powerful nations after suffering the Japanese Colonization, then the country would have been reconstructed peacefully without war. However, due to the ideologies of the powerful nations and reasoning of the empire, the land became a battlefield for powerful nations and the wounds and pain that resulted from the war is a burden that is carried by all the blameless people in the Korean Peninsula.

The suppression and violence that result from the reasoning of powerful nations and the empire is also happening in Palestine. The reality is very harsh for Palestinians. Due to Israel and powerful nations like the United States that provide protection for Israel, Palestinians suffer indiscriminative mass violence. It is unilateral violence. The people in Palestine had land taken away from the base that they had been living in for a long time and their lives were obstructed by huge walls and they always have to get discriminative inspection. Their lives are becoming completely destroyed due to these factors. This is the land where Jesus exclaimed ‘the just peace’ 2,000 years ago but it is now a land of despair that has been taken over by violence. Even to this day, many Christians consider this land as a sacred place and go there for pilgrimage. However, most of them cannot see the miserable lives of Palestinians as they only focus on Israel and the sacred place that they built. Is this really the Kingdom of God that was mentioned by Jesus? 

In John 14:27, it says, ‘My peace I give you. I do not give you as the world gives.’ Then, how was it during the time period of Jesus? Back then, Palestine, where Jesus lived in, was dominated by Rome, an enormous empire. Rome tried to maintain order within the empire through powerful force. It was literally ‘PaxRomana.’ Jesus rose in revolt. He went against peace that was forced by the empire’s power through people’s sacrifice and he exclaimed the just peace of God who was always with the helpless and weak people.

Even now, people in Palestine are groaning because of violence and oppression. Their pain comes from the invasion and violence of powerful nations. This issue should not just be understood as a religious conflict between Palestine and Israel that surrounds Palestine, a Holy Land. It is strictly political. Moreover, people in Palestine are in pain due to the reasoning of powerful nations and empires. It is the same for the Korean Peninsula, where I live right now. We still live among threats of war. We want to reach peaceful unification through our own efforts but the fate of the Korean Peninsula has been controlled by the interests between other powerful nations. This brings a greater need of people’s power, especially the just peace that Jesus spoke to Christians. If Christians promote the just peace and take actions accordingly, then it will certainly bring the just peace in the Korean Peninsula and Palestine. Accordingly, we have to build solidarity in places with violence and oppression. This not only relates to the Korean Peninsula and Palestine as Christians around the world have to take action together and shout out the just peace. The Christians in Palestine are making a request to us right now, “Come and see.” Now, we have to respond to their request.