Congregation praying for Canadian pastor detained in North Korea
Hyeon Soo Lim’s church hoping to continue humanitarian work upon his release
MISSISSAUGA, ON—An Ontario congregation is praying for the safe return of its pastor, detained in North Korea while on a routine humanitarian trip.
Hyeon Soo Lim and his Mississauga congregation of 3,000 have been building factories and providing millions of dollars in humanitarian aid to North Korea for nearly 20 years.
“Reverend Lim has never had trouble in the past, which is the strange thing [about this time],” says Lisa Pak, a family friend since childhood who works as Education Director at Lim’s Light Presbyterian Church. “Our purpose was to show Christ’s love physically, not asserting the gospel in a way that would shut down the work we wanted to do.”
Pak says since the news broke in early March, the media has repeatedly questioned her about whether Lim would have preached the gospel while in North Korea, but she is certain he didn’t. She explains that in a conversation on January 26, the day before he left, he told her they would continue working on a translation project upon his return.
“If he had said, ‘I don’t know when I’ll see you,’ that would suggest he was going to do something differently, but there was nothing. He knows how to navigate the politics so he won’t jeopardize 20 years of work.”
Pak says they have almost no information about what happened because part way through the trip Lim and his ministry partner, a missionary based in China, agreed to separate and meet in China on February 4. Lim never arrived and it wasn’t until church officials asked the Canadian government for help that the North Korean government acknowledged they were holding him.
“They didn’t specify anything; not his location, no charges, just that he is being held. There’s been crazy speculation about what has happened, but when we pray, we have a sense of peace in our minds, so we believe he is okay.”
The church began sending humanitarian trips into the reclusive nation in 1997. Over the years, they have built and helped operate noodle, yogurt and tofu factories in North Korea, as well as developing various farm projects. Lim has personally visited 110 times.
On this visit, Lim was visiting a school, orphanage and nursing home his church had built, where they hoped to encourage the workers and ensure the facilities were being maintained.
“Those projects mean a lot to him,” Pak states. “He just loves kids, and Asian culture has not been kind to orphans. The nursing home is also very dear to his heart because that generation of Koreans either experienced the war or were born right after. They are the dying generation who has not seen the reunification of our country.”
Pak says the church doesn’t know if the North Korean government will let them continue these projects, but Lim will definitely want to return, despite the risks. She asks Canadians to pray for him and his family, but she also urges believers to pray for revival in the Korean Peninsula and to boldly engage in missions.
“Canada is a very comfortable country, but we were blessed to be a blessing. There is a whole world out there. It doesn’t matter if it’s domestic or foreign missions, just go out and help with the heart of Christ.
“Going forward, we hope to continue our projects in [North Korea]. We don’t know if it will be possible, it all depends on what Reverend Lim says. He may be even more fired up and feel we need to do more when he gets out. He’s not reckless, but he errs on the side of compassion.”
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