Joint Easter Service

Definition and Meaning

A joint Easter service is a worship service held on Easter, the day commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, at which multiple denominations and churches worship together, rather than an individual church or a single denomination worshiping alone. The Korean term yeonhap (聯合) means "union," the gathering of many into one. The service's significance lies in bringing together members of different denominations under their common confession of faith in the resurrection. Because it is frequently held around sunrise, it is also called the "joint Easter sunrise service."

Biblical and Historical Background

The custom of worshiping at dawn is connected to the Gospel accounts in which the women went to Jesus' tomb early in the morning on the first day of the week, after the Sabbath (Mark 16:2; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). The Easter sunrise service in its modern form is generally traced to the dawn service held in a cemetery by the Moravian Brethren at Herrnhut, Germany, in the eighteenth century.

The arrival of Henry Appenzeller and Horace Underwood at Chemulpo (present-day Incheon) on Easter 1885 is often cited as a link between Korean Protestantism and Easter. The first joint Easter service involving multiple denominations is reported to have been held in 1947, after Korea's liberation, on Namsan in Seoul.

Practice in the Korean Church

In the 1970s and 1980s, large crowds reportedly gathered for worship in spacious outdoor venues such as Yeouido Plaza in Seoul. During this period, the joint Easter service was regarded as a symbol of the outward growth of the Korean church.

In later years, differing positions among ecumenical bodies—such as the National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK), whose membership is centered on progressive denominations, and the Christian Council of Korea, whose membership is centered on conservative denominations—led in some years to separate joint services or to extended discussions over how to prepare the service together. More recently, it has become common for a preparatory committee involving major ecumenical bodies such as the United Christian Churches of Korea and various denominations to organize the service, holding it at a designated venue such as a megachurch sanctuary or a public plaza. Regional joint services organized by city- and county-level Christian councils are also held in local communities.

Denominations also differ in how they observe Easter. Presbyterian, Methodist, Holiness, Baptist, and Full Gospel churches observe it primarily through an Easter sunrise service and the main Sunday service. Churches that emphasize the church year and liturgy, such as the Anglican Church of Korea and the Lutheran Church in Korea, may also observe the Easter Vigil. Which denominations take part in the joint service varies from year to year and from region to region.