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World Council of Churches
Press Release

For Immediate Use

27 August 1999

CENTRAL COMMITTEE No. 4

NEW CHURCHES TO JOIN THE WCC
The Executive Committee of the WCC has recommended to the Central 
Committee, Geneva, August 26, 1999, that the Council of Christian Churches 
in Switzerland and the Anglican Church of Korea be received as new WCC members.

The Council applied for its membership on October 18, 1998. The Council is 
the official ecumenical body of nine churches in Switzerland, namely the 
Union of Baptist Churches; the Old-Catholic Church of Switzerland; the 
Federation of Evangelical Lutheran Churches in Switzerland and 
Liechtenstein; The Evangelical Methodist Church; The Swiss Protestant 
Federation; the Greek Orthodox Church - Ecumenical Patriarchate, 
Archdiocese Switzerland; the Serbian Orthothox Church, Episcopal Vicariat 
Switzerland; the Roman Catholic Church, Swiss Episcopal Conference; and the 
Salvation Army.

As for the Anglican Church of Korea, by presenting its application, it has 
now expressed its wish to be recognized and accepted as a full member of 
the WCC in its own right. The membership of the Korean Anglican Church came 
late because until 1993 it was under the direct jurisdiction of the 
Archbishop of Canterbury.
The church grew out of missionary work which began in the late 19th 
century. The first Korean bishop was ordained in 1965. The church expanded 
increasingly throughout the country in 1970. The development of the church 
is attributed to the important role played by the Korean educational and 
social institutions.
The theological seminary of the church was upgraded to a university in 1992 
to serve the needs for higher education. At present, the church has 100 
parishes and mission churches with about 63,000 members belonging to three 
dioceses.

The Anglican Church of Korea is a member of the National Council of 
Churches of Korea, which it joined in 1960. It is also a member of the 
Christian Conference of Asia. The application of the church to join the WCC 
was endorsed by the Anglican Communion and the Christian Conference of Asia.

Contact: Karin Achtelstetter, Media Relations Officer
Tel: (+41.22) 791.61.53 Mobile: (+41) 79. 284. 52.12
**********
The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of 336 churches, in more than 
100 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian traditions. 
The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church but works cooperatively 
with the WCC. The highest governing body is the Assembly, which meets 
approximately every seven years. The WCC was formally inaugurated in 1948 
in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its staff is headed by general secretary Konrad 
Raiser from the Evangelical Church in Germany.

World Council of Churches
Media Relations Office
Tel: (41.22) 791.61.53 / 791.64.21
Fax: (41.22) 798.13.46
E-Mail: ka@wcc-coe.org
http://www.wcc-coe.org
P.O. Box 2100
CH-1211 Geneva 2