Young Nak Presbyterian Church

One of the biggest Korean-American congregations in Los Angeles will move into a newly constructed church complex next weekend--a $9-million symbol of the robust church activity among Korean-heritage Christians. Despite inconvenient parking and makeshift classrooms at their old Koreatown facility, the Young-Nak Presbyterian Church was ranked last year as the fourth fastest-growing U.S. church in attendance. Attendance at Young-Nak services and religious education classes grew to more than 4,600 churchgoers on the average Sunday in 1987, according to the latest survey by the Church Growth Research Center in Bolivar, Mo. "But we know many people stopped coming because of lack of parking and educational programs," an assistant pastor at the church said.

From blocks away on any Sunday afternoon, hundreds of homeless people, many waking from street corners or community shelters, move in a solemn line toward a parking lot at Fourth and Crocker streets on skid row. On the lot, a blue tent shelters the Korean choir from the sweltering sun as they lead their congregation with a bass and tambourine in singing praises to Jesus.

A Korean immigrant denomination with more than a fourth of its churches in Southern California has become the 32nd member of the National Council of Churches. The Korean Presbyterian Church in America is the first Asian church body to be admitted to the Protestant, Orthodox and Anglican organization and the first new member since the Coptic Orthodox Church was accepted in 1979.

It's Sunday morning and thousands of Koreans are flocking to Young Nak Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles. A dozen male volunteers in bright orange vests are directing traffic with an efficiency and enthusiasm that rivals the attendants at Disneyland. "Yuh-gi-ro-osae-yo (Come this way)! Juh-jjok-euh-ro-kasae-yo (Go that way)!" they shout in Korean. The old folks and visitors get a break; they are allowed to park close to the church.

From blocks away on any Sunday afternoon, hundreds of homeless people, many waking from street corners or community shelters, move in a solemn line toward a parking lot at Fourth and Crocker streets on skid row. On the lot, a blue tent shelters the Korean choir from the sweltering sun as they lead their congregation with a bass and tambourine in singing praises to Jesus.

Stepping up efforts to improve relations between African-American and Korean-American communities, a Christian organization in South Korea is sponsoring an educational trip for 10 outstanding black high school and college students from Los Angeles. The trip, the first of its kind for African-American students, was announced Monday at the Young Nak Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles, the largest Korean church in the United States.

Every Sunday morning, 57-year-old Chong Hee Yim walks from the main sanctuary to the education building at Young Nak Presbyterian Church with at least three leather-bound volumes in his arms: one Korean Bible, one printed in English and a hymnal in Korean. That bilingual armload of books is symbolic of the diverse language and cultural needs addressed by this large congregation of worshipers who meet just north of Chinatown. "Some of our young people here understand English, but some only know Korean, so I must be ready with both," said Yim, a church elder who works with Young Nak's college group.

It's Sunday morning and thousands of Koreans are flocking to Young Nak Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles. A dozen male volunteers in bright orange vests are directing traffic with an efficiency and enthusiasm that rivals the attendants at Disneyland. "Yuh-gi-ro-osae-yo (Come this way)! Juh-jjok-euh-ro-kasae-yo (Go that way)!" they shout in Korean. The old folks and visitors get a break; they are allowed to park close to the church.

A coalition of churches and synagogues will stage a peace demonstration June 14 to bring the city's diverse communities together in a symbolic gesture of unity, religious leaders said Monday. The "Hands Across L.A. All People. One City." gathering will bring together members of several faiths who will walk a 10-mile route on Western Avenue, between Franklin and Florence avenues.

Minority contractors and owners of construction-related businesses are invited to a workshop March 26 to learn how to be certified as a minority-owned business in preparation to seek work on the Alameda Corridor and other public works projects. The event is scheduled for 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Young Nak Korean Presbyterian Church, 1721 N. Broadway, Los Angeles. Information: (213) 934-2855.

Stepping up efforts to improve relations between African-American and Korean-American communities, a Christian organization in South Korea is sponsoring an educational trip for 10 outstanding black high school and college students from Los Angeles. The trip, the first of its kind for African-American students, was announced Monday at the Young Nak Presbyterian Church of Los Angeles, the largest Korean church in the United States.

Every Sunday morning, 57-year-old Chong Hee Yim walks from the main sanctuary to the education building at Young Nak Presbyterian Church with at least three leather-bound volumes in his arms: one Korean Bible, one printed in English and a hymnal in Korean. That bilingual armload of books is symbolic of the diverse language and cultural needs addressed by this large congregation of worshipers who meet just north of Chinatown. "Some of our young people here understand English, but some only know Korean, so I must be ready with both," said Yim, a church elder who works with Young Nak's college group.

One of the biggest Korean-American congregations in Los Angeles will move into a newly constructed church complex next weekend--a $9-million symbol of the robust church activity among Korean-heritage Christians. Despite inconvenient parking and makeshift classrooms at their old Koreatown facility, the Young-Nak Presbyterian Church was ranked last year as the fourth fastest-growing U.S. church in attendance. Attendance at Young-Nak services and religious education classes grew to more than 4,600 churchgoers on the average Sunday in 1987, according to the latest survey by the Church Growth Research Center in Bolivar, Mo. "But we know many people stopped coming because of lack of parking and educational programs," an assistant pastor at the church said.

A Korean immigrant denomination with more than a fourth of its churches in Southern California has become the 32nd member of the National Council of Churches. The Korean Presbyterian Church in America is the first Asian church body to be admitted to the Protestant, Orthodox and Anglican organization and the first new member since the Coptic Orthodox Church was accepted in 1979.

An American missionary helped lead the Rev. Kyung-Chik Han to Christianity, and it was this country he turned to for his college and divinity school degrees more than 60 years ago. Han, who won the 1992 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion, said in a recent visit to America that he encountered a different nation from the one he remembered as offering a haven to immigrants.