Pilgrims of Peace, Trust and Hope
Last week, President-elect Rev Dr Paul Goh gathered with the global ecumenical community to discuss the Church's role in speaking for peace, justice and hope amid the wounds of division
September 14, 2026
Subscribe to our newsletter
If you want to get the latest news from the Uniting Church in Australia then subscribe to our weekly newsletter delivered to your inbox.
Uniting Church President-elect Rev Dr Paul Goh has reflected on the Church’s vocation to peace and reconciliation after attending the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation in Seoul last week.
The gathering – organised by the World Council of Churches, Christian Conference of Asia and National Council of Churches in Korea – brought together Christians from around the world to consider the Church’s role in peacebuilding amid war, division and growing geopolitical conflict, with particular focus on the Korean Peninsula.
The convocation marked 40 years since the historic Glion Consultation, where Christians from North and South Korea met and affirmed that their identity in Christ could transcend political division.
For Rev Dr Goh, who represented the Uniting Church President’s Office, the gathering was also a deeply personal return.
In 1988, as a university student, he attended a service adopting the Korean Church’s “88 Declaration” on national reunification and peace.
“Returning 38 years later, I realised I had not simply come back to where I began; I had been travelling,” he writes in his reflection on the convocation.
That journey, he adds, resonates with the Uniting Church’s Basis of Union as a “pilgrim people, always on the way towards a promised goal”.
“The pilgrimage of the Uniting Church and the pilgrimage of the worldwide ecumenical movement meet whenever Christians cross boundaries to listen to the wounds of the world and seek together the things that make for peace,” he added.
The gathering confronted participants with some of those wounds.
Rev Dr Goh visited the National Museum of Korean Democracy, a former Anti-Communist Interrogation Office where democracy activists were detained, interrogated and tortured. There he encountered the photograph of a university student, almost exactly his own age, who died after being tortured there 39 years ago.
The experience reinforced a challenge from keynote speaker Rev Dr Mitri Raheb, who urged Christians to “touch the wound” rather than speak about peace only through declarations and conferences.
Rev Dr Goh says peacebuilding must be grounded in justice, truth and proximity to those who suffer.
“Reconciliation without justice can become another way of asking wounded people to remain silent,” he writes.
A highlight of the gathering was a peace pilgrimage along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Rev Dr Goh was one of four participants who walked the Peace Trail, while others walked an Eco Trail alongside them, separated by a barbed-wire fence. Yet the fence could not divide the sky, wind, fields or the table where the pilgrims would later share lunch.
“Perhaps there was a glimpse of God’s peace in that moment,” he reflected.
The convocation concluded with an Ecumenical Joint Worship for Peace and Reconciliation, building on the 2026 Seoul Peace Declaration adopted during the gathering.
More news from the Assembly
700 Fijian voices unite for climate justice in Fremantle
More than 700 members of the Uniting Church’s Fijian National Conference have joined their voices in a powerful call for climate justice from Fremantle. At the conclusion of the four-day conference, delegates unfurled a huge“Climate Justice Now” banner, standing in solidarity with Pacific churches and communities and calling on Australia to listen to Pacific leadership…
Faith, culture and hope fill Fremantle with the Fijian National Conference
Fijian communities from across the Uniting Church gathered in Fremantle/Walyalup for the 2026 Uniting Church in Australia Fijian National Conference, celebrating faith, culture, fellowship and hope. The Conference opened on Thursday evening with a Welcome to Country from Rev Mitchell Garlett of UAICC WA, followed by worship led by Rev William Lucas. Rev Dr Paul…
Waves of Hope: weaving new stories across Oceania
President Rev Charissa Suli has joined theologians, church leaders and practitioners from across Oceania in Fiji for the Association of Practical Theology in Oceania (APTO) Conference last week. Gathered around the theme “Waves of Hope: Storied Theology for the Whole of Life,” the Presidnet delivered an international keynote, “Building Community; Creating a New Story in…
Held Together begins with listening
Held Together begins with listening President Rev Charissa Suli and leaders of the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress gathered on Ngarrindjeri Country to commission an artwork that will speak to the heart of the upcoming conference.“May it be a blessing. May it tell a story. May it build relationship. And may it help…
Call for nominations for President-elect and 18th Assembly representatives
The Uniting Church in Australia is beginning an important process of discernment to identify the next President-elect of the Assembly. Ahead of the 18th Assembly, the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC), Presbyteries and Synods have the privilege and opportunity to identify people who may be nominated for election as President-elect (Reg. 3.6.4.1). Nominations…
Celebrations and stories of healing in Alice Springs
Stories of Healing: Alice Springs marks 100 years of Adelaide House and 70 years of the John Flynn Memorial ChurchIn the red centre of Australia, members of the Uniting Church community gathered on 12–13 September to honour two milestones of faith, care and resilience: the centenary of Adelaide House and 70 years of the John…
Pacific women call for climate action that begins with their communities
Pacific women call for climate action that begins with their communities From Tuvalu, Pacific women are calling on world leaders to listen deeply, strengthen community leadership and pursue climate action grounded in local experience and wisdom.For the women who gathered in Tuvalu this September, climate justice reaches into the everyday work of keeping communities safe.…
Bearing witness to Palestinian Christian voices
Bearing witness to Palestinian Christian voicesAs World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel takes place this week, the Uniting Church is invited to listen, pray and stand in solidarity with communities longing for peace and justice. In July this year, the Uniting Church hosted two Palestinian Christians as part of the “Bearing Witness: Palestinian…