Unity Movement of the Korean Presbyterian Church

This study examines the 2005 reunion of the Presbyterian Church of Korea’s Hapdong and Gaehyuk denominations as a case of ecclesial reconciliation within modern Korean Protestantism. While scholarship has often emphasised narratives of schism, this work reconstructs the historical, theological, and socio-political dynamics that produced repeated divisions and the pathways that enabled reunification. An integrated theoretical framework combines historical reconstruction, phenomenological hermeneutics, narrative identity, and contextualist intellectual history with theological analysis of the church, ecclesial communion, and reconciliation. Central attention is given to the leadership and repentant agency of Pastor Kyu-Oh Chung, long regarded as a principal figure behind nearly every major schism within Korean Presbyterianism. The very leader once associated with division became the agent of repentance and, by taking a prominent role at the forefront of the unity negotiations, decisively enabled the success of the 2005 “Union Principles Agreement.” Documentary sources identify the importance of union committees, mutual recognition among presbyteries and seminaries, and public reaffirmation of union at the 90th General Assembly.The study illustrates that reunion was theologically based on biblical themes of reconciliation and unity. It was institutionally based on negotiated recognition among seminaries, presbyteries, and the media, and politically in a public reaffirmation that confronted contemporary issues. The work contends that diversity in confession is compatible with unity. Open government and reciprocal recognition can sustain doctrinal integrity and cure the wounds inflicted on broken relationships. It offers an empirically nuanced and theoretically astute examination of Christian unity in Korea and argues that repentance, leadership, and institutional form function as essential mediators between theological principle and ecclesial practice. Building on these findings, it sets forth a mobile approach for post-conflict settlement churches, contending that humility, theological norms held in common, and incremental organizational integration can transform difference into durable unity with enduring significance for the global church.