Korean Church Service Corps

Overview

The Korean Church Service Corps (Korean abbreviation: Hangyobong) is an interdenominational Protestant service organization that brings together churches, pastors, and laypeople from multiple denominations. It describes itself as a diakonia coalition; diakonia comes from the Greek word for "service." The organization was established to carry forward the cleanup work that churches across the country undertook together after the 2007 Taean oil spill. Its principal activities are disaster relief and assistance to marginalized neighbors.

Founding and History

On December 7, 2007, a marine crane barge convoy collided with the oil tanker Hebei Spirit in the waters northwest of Mallipo in Taean County, South Chungcheong Province, releasing a large quantity of crude oil. In the months that followed, more than 1.23 million volunteers removed oil from the coastline. The Corps states that about 800,000 of these volunteers were Christians. The Corps grew out of this experience of churches serving together. The Rev. Kim Jong-saeng served as its first secretary general.

At the general assembly in January 2022, the Rev. Oh Jung-hyun was elected chairman of the board of directors. That same year, the records documenting the recovery from the Taean oil spill, which include records from the Corps, were inscribed on the UNESCO Memory of the World Regional Register for Asia and the Pacific. To celebrate the inscription and mark its fifteenth anniversary, the Corps held a thanksgiving service at Myungsung Church. At its 18th regular general assembly in 2025, the Corps voted to retain its executive leadership, including President Kim Sam-hwan, Chairman of the Board Oh Jung-hyun, and Executive Director Kim Tae-young. The same assembly amended the organization's articles of incorporation to create the new position of standing deputy director.

Major Activities

• Domestic disaster relief: Following torrential rains in July 2025, the Corps visited affected areas, including Sancheong in South Gyeongsang Province and Yesan in South Chungcheong Province, delivering relief funds and daily necessities to flooded churches and local residents.
• International emergency relief: In March 2022, together with the Korea World Missions Association, the Corps dispatched an emergency relief assessment team for Ukraine to the Romanian border region. The team assisted refugees and sent relief supplies into Ukraine.
• Documentation and commemoration: The Corps held a special exhibition, "Records of Taean, Memory of the World," at the Taean Oil Spill Recovery Memorial Hall to commemorate the UNESCO inscription.
• Research and discussion: In 2017, the Corps conducted a survey of public perceptions of the social service activities of Korean churches and held a seminar to present the findings. It also hosts diakonia conferences.

Membership and Organization

As of 2022, the Corps was described as including churches, pastors, and laypeople from fifteen denominations. It is governed by an executive leadership body composed of the president, the chairman of the board of directors, the executive director, the standing director, co-directors, and the standing deputy director. Leaders who formerly served the Presbyterian Church of Korea (Tonghap), the General Assembly of Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong), and the Korea Evangelical Holiness Church as moderator have taken part in its leadership. The territorial commander of The Salvation Army Korea Territory has also been appointed as a denominational representative. A complete list of member denominations has not been verified.

Assessment

Within the Korean church, the Taean cleanup effort is regarded as a leading example of Korean churches joining forces across denominational lines. Some have even called it "the most beautiful scene in Korean church history since the March First Movement." However, figures for the number of Christian participants vary by source. The Corps has stated that about 800,000 of the more than 1.23 million total volunteers were Christians, while President Kim Sam-hwan stated at the 2025 general assembly that about 840,000 of approximately 1.4 million cumulative participants were Christians. Both figures come from the Corps and from church sources.