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Date: 8/30/2023
HAMPDEN — When Pastor Kwan Kim joined the Federated Community Church recently to serve as its spiritual leader, he immediately reached out to his congregation and beyond. He went to the church’s neighbors on Main St., giving each a small box of Korean sweets. He was there to greet them with a taste of his native Seoul, South Korea.
Born into a religious family, he was “a pastor’s kid.” His father is a lifetime Methodist pastor and a retired bishop of the Korean Methodist Church.
“Naturally, I became Christian. But when I was in my second year of high school, I went on a religious retreat, and there I experienced my first spiritual moment. I heard the gospel calling me into the ministry. Since then, my passion and calling haven’t changed.”
Pastor Kim succeeds Pastor Patricia Miller Fernandes who served FCC for five years before stepping down last June.
After living in South Korea for 30 years, Kim came to America. He is now 50 years old.
He studied religion and graduated from a theology seminary in Seoul before relocating to Durham, North Carolina where studied theology at Duke Divinity School. He has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in theology.
Once he graduated from Duke, he began a local ministry in the Korean Methodist Church — where he was drawn to and inspired by broken hearts in the community.
“The young people had broken hearts. They are our future, the next generation of our church,” he said. “I want to be the one who listens to them and shares their pain. I dream about what the congregation and I can do to bring the next generation back to the church and the faith.”
Kim has served in many states including North Carolina and Ohio. An extension of his own calling, he is reaching out to the youth, inviting them back to the church. He said in North Carolina, church attendance rose to 250 people, driven in large part by young people that made up nearly half of the congregation — and in Cincinnati church attendance swelled to 300; half were children and young adults.
“We pour out our love to them, we don’t treat them as children,” he said.
More recently, Kim applied to the Annual Conference of the United Methodist Churches for relocation to another community. He was appointed to the Hampden church by regional leaders in New England.
“I’m so thankful for this welcoming congregation and community. Even though I’ve been here only for a short time, my congregation and I are joyful to be together,” he said. “They have so much commitment. They love the church and one another. Their energy and passion make it a pleasure to be here.”
In his quiet and humble way, Kim is already energizing his new church community. Playing his guitar and singing during the service, he combines energy and serenity in a call few are resisting.
“He plays his guitar and has a beautiful voice. I’ve never heard our church sing so loud,” said Ellie S. Soucy, chair of the board at Federated Community Church. “Our vision is for our church to grow and bring the community together — to bring the younger generation back into church and be one with God.”
Kim is already reaching out to young people, going where they are, finding their comfort zone — sitting with them in a crowd of cheering fans at sporting events.
“They feel like no one cares, but we can start over with them. I’m asking the church to truly listen to their voices. My ministry is to be with them and encourage them to participate in church worship services,” said he said.
Christian ministries brought religion to Korea more than a century ago. Kim said today it is the largest religion on the Korean peninsula.
“They’re so dedicated to the church. The congregation attends worship services where they completely devote themselves. Almost all Korean churches have services every day at 5:30 a.m., and attendance is strong. People are passionate, not only in worship but the social movement is really great in Korea,” said Kim.
Many Korean churches in the U.S. also have early morning services.
Kim is married with two children. He cautions against getting pulled in by the current sweeping across a modern world, moving so rapidly it is leaving many people behind, confused by where they’re going.
“Everything is so fast and everybody needs to catch up, but it’s really hard to find peace and happiness. People are getting bigger houses, but their families are getting smaller. The road system is getting wider, but there is nowhere to go. People are busy on Instagram or other social media, but they are desperate to have someone they can rely on,” he said.
Kim wants his flock and others outside the congregation “to find joy and peace in Jesus. There are ebbs and flows in church history. But one thing has never changed. People need the Lord, and I’m here to deliver that news.”