Salt and Light
Seoul is home to a number of churches with English services for foreigners and Koreans interested in learning English. I would love to check them all out, as well as those mega-churches with hundreds of thousands of participants, but at the same time I was hoping to find something a little closer to where I lived and that’s when I found Salt and Light.
I first saw Salt and Light on Koreanforexpat.com’s list of English speaking churches in Seoul, but it wasn’t until someone recommended it to me that I worked up the courage to check it out. It’s housed in Yum Kwang Presbyterian Church, a large establishment here in Seoul that has lots of attendees, has multiple summer mission trips across Asia, and a TV time slot to boot.
The English service is smaller; a handful of foreign English teachers attend alongside Koreans and expats from other Asian countries. They play modern Christian music and keep things friendly and personal, encouraging people to sit together at the tables before, during, and after service. The sermon is the most impressive part though. Given by a pastor who is full of conviction for English language speakers, Pastor Im gives a powerful English sermon, covering Biblical concepts in depth and applying them to our own lives.
I’ve been twice now and the day I came for the first time was also someone else’s first time. To celebrate the group of foreign teachers along with the pastor is planning an outing to the Hongdae area, a cool area of Seoul near Hongik University that appeals to young 20-30 somethings. Certainly am looking forward to it!