Daniel Im

Pastor + Author

Leadership

Sociology of the Homeless in Seoul, Korea

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There are approximately 1 million homeless individuals in Seoul, and 300 at Seoul Station, which is a major landmark in Seoul.  That’s very intriguing because the population of greater Seoul is 24.5 million people.  That means 1 in every 25 people is homeless in Seoul. Since writing this article, I have had much discussion on this statistic above. I heard this initially from a worker on the field with many years of service helping out and caring for the homeless. However, in a recent article from the Yonhap News Agency in 2011, they reported that there are 4403 homeless individuals in South Korea. This number seems a bit low to me, but then again, how is the Ministry of Health and Welfare defining “homeless?” (edited on Aug 8, 2012)

Now let’s return back to my original article.

We had an outreach to the homeless in Seoul a few weeks ago, and I noticed something very intriguing about the sociology of the homeless here.  We went to the City Hall Subway Station and discovered that there were three types of homeless, for lack of a better word, “lifestyles.”

The first type of “lifestyle” is the large-community “lifestyle” where many homeless individuals live together in community.  For example, we saw an area at the City Hall Subway Station where 20-30 homeless individuals lived together in community.  The second type of “lifestyle” is the small-community “lifestyle” where a few homeless individuals live together in community.  The third type of “lifestyle” is the individualized private “lifestyle” where the homeless live by themselves.

When I noticed all three lifestyles, I wasn’t surprised by those who lived in the large-community or even small-community lifestyle because Asian Culture is so community-focused.  However, what I couldn’t quite understand was why there were so many different dynamics between the lifestyles.

Here are my thoughts or hypothesis as to the differences:

1) The homeless individuals in the large-community “lifestyle” were a lot more forceful and demanding when we handed out the blankets to them.  It’s almost as if they knew that they somehow deserved the charity, so they wanted as much charity as possible.  As a result, I believe that the homeless who live in these larger communities have accepted their homeless condition and are more-or-less content with their identity being linked with homelessness.

2) The small-community “lifestyle” individuals are not adapting to the large-community “lifestyle” because they are possibly holding onto the hope that there is a way out of their condition.  A few minutes after giving one of our blankets to the small-community “lifestyle” homeless, I saw him scratching out the bible verse that we had taped on the case.  It almost seemed as if he was concerned with the “presentation” of the blanket because he wanted to sell it.

3) The homeless living a individualized private “lifestyle” actually turned out to be the most grateful for our blankets.  There were even a few homeless who didn’t want the blanket and suggested that we give it to others who are more in need.  Furthermore, when we gave them food, they were bowing their heads to us with gratitude – a gesture that we seldom came across with the other two “types” of homeless “lifestyles.”  My hypothesis is that these homeless are F.O.S.’s – “fresh on the street.”  In other words, they recently lost their job or some other unfortunate situation happened, which in turn, caused them to move to the streets.  As a result, they are still living in heavy shame regarding their condition.  Thus, by not associating with other homeless individuals, they are convinced that they will get back on their feet again.  Homelessness is not their identity, it’s just a temporary condition.

Has anyone else seen similiar patterns of the homeless in other cities? Please correct me if I’m wrong.

The Common Locations of the Homeless in Seoul, Korea:

  • Seoul Station
  • Ulgiroo 3Ga Station (Line 2)
  • Yeungdeongpo Goochung (Line 5) –> this station has the most homeless individuals and the majority of them will gather here at 11:00 pm to sleep.

Green McDonald's and Missional Living

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Reserved parking spaces for hybrid cars, tables and chairs made from recycled milk and detergent containers, and vegetative green roofs – these are a few of the 20 features that McDonald’s has conjured up to attract the eco-concious population (see Korea Times Article).

Green McDonald's

On top of that, today’s McDonald menu is vastly different from its menu 20 years ago.

Why are they changing? What’s motivating them? Is it working?

One word – culture.

It’s all about culture.

For example, 20 years ago, were large companies really concered about their carbon footprint? Of course not! And that’s why we never heard much about carbon footprints back then.  It just wasn’t a concern to the wider culture.  However, what about today? Don’t you find that it’s hard to come across many companies that aren’t “going green?”

So why does this issue matter?

Well, if Christians are to really be genuine and not hypocritical, then that means that sharing the good news of Christ is essential.  The amazing thing is that the good news of Christ is timeless, whereas the method of sharing it isn’t.

And that’s exactly it.  Culture changes! Therefore, the method of sharing the good news of Christ must change as well.

Yesterday, my wife and I finally found a place to live in Korea. After 3 days of searching, and many hours of mediocre places, we finally found a place that’s perfect for us.  We have a large living room, so we can have people over to entertain them (since the apartments are so small in Korea, it’s very uncommon to have people over), and we even have a second bedroom, so that we can house visitors.  And the location?  It’s right in the center of the international community in Seoul.

As a pastor, it’s really easy to hide in the church.  There is always an endless amount of work to do, and a countless number of Christians that need discipleship.  As a result, there is always the danger that pastors will live in a “Christian bubble,” lose touch with the culture, and become hypocrites.  In other words, the danger is that pastors will stop sharing the good news of Christ with those who don’t know it and desperately need it.

My prayer is that I would never become that kind of pastor.  Perhaps that’s why God blessed us with such an amazing place in the center of the international community in Seoul?  We’re definitely not going to be hard pressed to find people in our neighborhood who need the hope of Christ.

Our prayer (my wife and I) is that we can be like a shining city on a hill that cannot be hidden (Matthew 5).  A city on a hill that is so bright, that it dispells the darkness surrounding it.  (Isn’t it ironic how our apartment is actually on a hill?)

Ministry and Life Transitions

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3 days remain.

I only have 3 more days in Canada.

There are only 3 more days until my wife and I begin our new life in Seoul, Korea.

How did it get this way? How did we end up leaving our ministry and our life in Montreal to move to the other side of the world?  How were we so sure that this is where God was calling us? How did we know that this was God’s will for our lives?

[Read more…] about Ministry and Life Transitions

the full story – Michael Guglielmucci’s Deception

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Almost a month ago, Michael Guglielmucci, a pastor in Australia who had written and sung “Healer” on the latest Hillsong album, came out and confessed that he had been living a life of deception.  For the past two years, he had deceived everyone, his wife and parents included, and told them that he had terminal cancer.

When I first heard what had happened, I went into absolute shock and I began grieving.  I couldn’t understand how he could do such a thing – especially as a pastor and a follower of Christ.  And how could he lie like that to his wife and to his parents? However, I resisted the urge to blog about it and tell everyone until I heard the full story.

Here is the full story and statement of confession.

Here is also an exclusive interview (video) where Guglielmucci came out and made a public statement,

[Read more…] about the full story – Michael Guglielmucci’s Deception

animals and spirituality

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As you can see in this picture, my wife and I have a puppy – his name is Teddy and he’s almost 6 months old.

Teddy - Our Dog
Teddy - Our Dog

For the past couple of days, we have been babysitting Christina’s parent’s two dogs and it’s been fascinating to see the interaction between the three of them.

The most significant thing that my wife and I keep on noticing is the interplay between love and jealousy.

  • When we come home, the dogs love us. But when we begin to pet one of them, the other two become jealous.
  • If we are going to give them all treats, they love us.  But when we give the first one out, the other two are jealous.
  • If we hold one of the dogs, that dog loves us.  But the other two walk towards us and either whine or look at us with eyes of jealousy.

How often, as human beings, are we also like that?

  • When we receive a gift from a loved one, we love that person.  But when our loved one gives a gift to someone else and forgets us, we become jealous.
  • When we complete a project or a task and people positively acknowledge our work, we love them.  But when the only work being acknowledged is someone else’s, we become jealous.

What exactly is the relationship between love and jealousy?

I believe it’s a battle between our human/sinful nature and a life that is fully devoted to God.

“The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: …jealousy…But the fruit of the Spirit is love…Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:19-25)

Which side is winning in your life?