PCT and UCCJ summit provide opportunity for churches to learn and carry each other’s burdens

["Taiwan Church News" <enews@pctpress.org>]

3131 Edition

February 27-March 4, 2012

General Assembly News

PCT and UCCJ summit provide opportunity for churches to learn and carry each 
other’s burdens

Reported by Chen YI-hsuan

Written by Lydia Ma

The biennial missions summit between the PCT and the United Church of Christ in 
Japan (UCCJ) was held at Aletheia University (Matou Campus) on February 20-23, 
2012. Led by UCCJ Moderator, Rev. Ishibashi Hideo, this year’s delegation 
consisted of 18 church officials including PCT missionaries to Japan, Rev. 
Divan Suqluman and Rev. Lee Meng-che. 

The theme of this year’s summit was “Suffering with those who suffer” and PCT 
shared about its rebuilding strategies in the aftermath of Typhoon Morakot in 
2009, while UCCJ shared about the hardships of living under the shadow of a 
nuclear spill in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan 
in March 2011.

The summit began on the morning of February 21 with a report from Rev. Noda 
Taku from Tohoku region on the work of volunteers in Sendai in the aftermath of 
the tsunami. He said that volunteers had helped local residents clean up their 
homes and had reached out and comforted them in their time of need. After his 
report, Rev. Takahashi Makoto from a local UCCJ church in Fukushima showed a 
map and used some statistical reports to give an overview of areas impacted by 
the nuclear spill.

In the afternoon, PCT General Secretary Andrew Chang and Post-Morakot 
Rebuilding Center Executive Officer Rev. Lyim Hong-tiong gave an outline of 
response measures taken by PCT volunteers immediately after Typhoon Morakot 
wreaked havoc in Taiwan. 

The UCCJ delegation was separated into two groups the following day and taken 
to see Morakot Rebuilding Centers. One group went to Chiayi and another group 
went to Pingtung. The delegation also visited a church in Rukai Presbytery that 
had just been rebuilt and UCCJ delegates were especially interested in learning 
how the church managed to pay for this new building and how it budgeted its 
funds.

Speaking on the financial toll of these rebuilding efforts on PCT finances, 
Chang said that the church still had a significant outstanding balance. 
However, it still managed to give an offering to churches in Japan in the 
aftermath of the earthquake last year because it knew that churches in Japan 
needed help even more urgently. 

With this in mind, Chang advised a weary Ishibashi that no matter how top 
leaders decide to proceed in any given scenario, they will be criticized 
because there will always be something that could have been done better. “But 
if we let this get to us, we will never get anything done,” he said.

Ishibashi said that what impressed him the most about PCT was its boldness to 
speak the truth and its courage to press the government on rebuilding efforts 
because such a scenario would have been unheard of in Japan. He added that this 
earthquake also prompted the UCCJ to realize that it needed a new mission 
strategy based on the ministry of each of its regions. For the time being, how 
to rebuild after such a massive tragedy remains a daunting challenge that will 
require all churches to work together, learn from one another, and collaborate 
with one another.

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