Land-Treading Prayer

Definition and Meaning

Land-treading prayer (Korean ttang balgi gido) is a practice in which the person praying walks through a particular area or place and prays for its residents, institutions, and churches. In Korean the term is also written as a single word, ttangbalgi. It is usually presented as belonging to the same family of practices as "prayer walking" in the English-speaking world. Those who practice it understand it as a form of intercessory prayer (prayer offered on behalf of others) that asks for the gospel to reach the area and for God's rule to come upon it.

Biblical and Historical Background

Practitioners commonly cite the following passages in support:

• Joshua 1:3, "Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you," together with the parallel passage in Deuteronomy 11:24
• Genesis 13:17, where God tells Abraham to "walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it"
• The fall of Jericho, when the Israelites marched around the city (Joshua 6)

Others interpret these passages differently, arguing that because they concern Israel's historical promise regarding the land of Canaan, present-day believers cannot apply them indiscriminately to any region.

The modern form of the practice is generally said to have spread through evangelical mission movements in the English-speaking world during the 1980s and 1990s. Some strands combined it with the concept of "territorial spirits," the idea that evil spirits hold dominion over particular regions, and with "spiritual mapping" (surveying the spiritual condition of an area and charting it as if on a map). These strands overlap with what later came to be called the New Apostolic Reformation.

Practice in Korean Churches

In Korean churches the practice is carried out by individual congregations or mission organizations rather than as an official denominational rite. Typical forms include:

• Church members walking and praying together through a neighborhood targeted for new evangelism or through the area surrounding their church
• Walking around and praying over a site designated for church construction
• Walking and praying through local streets during short-term missions

Assessments of the practice are divided. Supporters regard it as a legitimate way of expressing concern for one's community and neighbors through prayer. Critics argue that its theological premises, such as the doctrine of territorial spirits, have weak biblical support. They also contend that when it is carried out at the facilities of other religions, it amounts to disrespect toward, and an attack on, neighboring faiths. The general assemblies of some Presbyterian denominations have adopted resolutions cautioning against the New Apostolic Reformation as a whole or urging members to refrain from participating in it.

In 2010, a video showing young Protestants praying on the grounds of Bongeunsa, a Buddhist temple in Seoul, became widely known and sparked public controversy. Those involved reportedly visited Bongeunsa to apologize. After the incident, voices within the Korean church itself also called for restraint in conducting land-treading prayer in public places and at the facilities of other religions.