The Assembly finishes

ŴqqqThe hotel can look after my exceedingly heavy luggage until the Assembly finishes around 4pm, but I check out of the room on the most beautiful morning, with an unexpected view across to Japan - looks like a high mountain (volcano?) down towards the closest point. So last time in on the shuttle bus, knowing more people now, not least after yesterday so I sit with Maurizio from Pax Christi who was in the buzz group at yesterday's bible study. Variously I bump into the 2 Korean women pastors in the Women's Church who were also in the bible study, the Myanmar Baptist Pastor from the Baptist meeting who it turns out works in an HIV/AIDS project supported by Christian Aid, Elaine Storkey, Paul Goodliff, the Bishop of the Lusitanian Anglican Church, the Syrian woman. The Korean pastors are working with a migrant church and have written about it. I called at a by now untenanted stand to pick up a leaflet about a session they were involved in yesterday afternoon, and they materialised from nowhere and gave me a couple of books they had prepared especially for the Assembly including the last copy they had. Lovely people, they may be mother and daughter from something I've now read.

Being given a couple of books at this stage is a bit dangerous - my stuff is incredibly heavy, though manageable.

I sat through some of the final business with last attempts by delegates to gettheir phrases and emphases into the final documents, as these will be the policy guidelines for the WCC for the next few years. Arguments over the Middle East statement, Armenia where 2015 is the anniversary of their holocaust, over nuclear power and global warming on both of which the Bishop of Chester intervened, decrying the scientific basis of the statement re nuclear power, and wanting to resist the statement on global warming. He have way without attempting to speak on the latter as he was a lone voice and time was short, but ensured that the nuclear power statement was referred to the Central Committee. Finally it was to the votes of thanks, which was pretty comprehensive by the Chairman, and received an equally comprehensive response from the Chair of the Korean organising committee, who started with the cross, and the Holy Spirit, and towards the end was affirming scripture. One sensed he had an eye on home consumption. It is quite clear the assembly has been a divisive event for many in Korea. We have faced barracking, placards, running the gauntlet of people giving out tracts, fasting, preaching with loud-hailers every time we arrived, left, or went out for lunch - not all have been very gracious about it. Some have spoken a little English but most have just learnt a few phrases which they keep repeating. They have been distributing an old policy document of the WCC. Some have linked the WCC with Communism, others with homosexuality, the main sin being dialogue talking with such people and with representatives of other faiths. To talk with in their reading of the scripture is to be unequally yoked and is the work do Satan. It culminated in the final session when someone infiltrated into the closing worship and prayers, running up onto the stage and looking as if he was about to attack the person who was leading the prayers. Instead he started throwing something, and was very quickly wrestled to the ground by some bigger guys who looked as if they might have been Oriental Orthodox priests who may have to be ready for such occurrences in the ordinary course of events (but I may have that completely wrong).

Morning prayers has felt a bit like hard work, shooting around the worship book with its many languages, and some songs in the order for the day and others at the back, some to be sung in English, others in Korean, or French, or German, or Spanish, often with a mixture so they have to issue you with a supplementary sheet telling what to do. Evening, and the closing prayers today have been easier because it's all been printed out on a service sheet. The closing sermon was preached by Father Michael Lapsley who is the nearest thing to a martyr who's still around, having lost both hands and an eye in a parcel bomb explosion just after Nelson Mandela was released, having been a big supporter of Mandela. He is now engaged in reconciliation work, and spoke very movingly. It's sort of sad it's over but I think we're all ready to be on our way.

For me it's back to the hotel to collect my luggage and get a taxi to the station which is a seriously long way from the hotel - quite a bit cheaper on the way back than it had been coming last week though. Then 2 and a half hours on the train and Ji Hee and Ju Ho were there to meet me at Gwangmyeong Station. Back to the Ahn's where they prepared a nice supper and gave me a fork which I didn't decline. Ji Hee will be translating for me on Sunday. Foyer a while the family start returning from the Friday night meeting at church, including the young nephew who is still up at 11.20pm.