| |
 |
|
Menu |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
| |
News Articles
Missionary's calling not all 'peaches and cream'
by Jane Cooper |
[May 10, 2006]
On this day in 1972 Tim Peters walked out of a university
tutorial on Shakespeare and made a decision that changed his
life.
To the confusion of his professor who thought the tutorial went
well, he never went back to study at Michigan State University.
But he wasn't an ordinary dropout - it was a "profound religious
experience" that led him to dedicate his life to missionary
work.
That calling brought him to Seoul where he is now the
coordinator of an underground railroad that helps North Korean
refugees escape. In China, the refugees live in constant fear of
being repatriated to North Korea where they face internment in
prison camps or even execution for trying to escape. A "strike
hard campaign" by the Chinese authorities means that Peters'
work has become more difficult, and those helping North Koreans
risk being thrown into Chinese jails.
"Never underestimate the power of prayer," he told The Korea
Herald.
And in the South, there are those that are hostile to his work,
"I don't want to dwell on that," he said, explaining that if you
are prominent and take a stand on a sensitive issue "you've got
to expect it's not going to be peaches and cream."
For years as an underground activist he was a voice in the
wilderness, but now people are taking notice. Last week Time
magazine dubbed him a "Seoul Saver" and splashed his image
across the cover of its Asia edition.
"I guess the days of me being underground are long gone," he
joked. "It's out there, you can't put the worms back in the
can!"
Like his apartment, he explained, he was half underground
anyway, "But this takes visibility to a whole new level," Peters
said.
While that exposure means that he has to be more careful in
choosing his trips to China, he is glad that the plight of North
Koreans is being "put on the radar."
Now his days are taken up giving interviews, writing speeches
and raising the profile of his work. He describes himself as a
"facilitator, an appropriator of funds." During the interview
with The Korea Herald, he spoke of a successful rescue that
happened the day before. For that individual North Korean to be
"delivered" to a safe haven, he didn't need to be there in the
"battlefield" himself. Instead, he coordinated the effort
through his Asian partners.
Peters founded Helping Hands Korea in 1996 on his third stint in
Korea. At that time there was a famine in the North and he
realized that his mission was to help "North Koreans in crisis."
Now that his organization is gaining recognition, he says the
credit should go to his wife. He describes her as "unique
person" for being able to put up with the challenges of being a
missionary's wife. "My wife is a saint," he said. During their
marriage, he estimates that they have had to move house 50
times. During other periods, they had to do visa runs every 90
days with all five children in tow.
"She could have so easily given up on me in the last 30 years,"
he said, adding that she has sacrificed and endured so much. He
said that she always had a deep respect for his calling and
probably bit her lip every time she doubted what they were
doing.
He first arrived in Korea in 1973, a year after first making the
life-changing decision to be a missionary. During the Chun
Doo-hwan administration he was thrown out of the country for
distributing leaflets that were critical of the government's
stance on human rights.
Today, he faces a battle in getting the spotlight on the issue
of North Korean human rights. When asked if there are people who
are out to discredit him or even threaten his life, he gave an
answer related to his calling, how he wants his work to glorify
God and his critics will be proven wrong with the evidence.
"But I do lock the door at night." And he keeps his back to the
wall in restaurants so he can "watch the door" and doesn't stand
close to the edge of the platform in subway stations. Asked if
he thinks there are North Korean agents watching him or if
someone would want to push him over the edge of the platform, he
said "it's in the realms of possibility."
He assumes his phone is tapped and the organization takes basic
security precautions such as operating in a cell structure so
that he doesn't know all of the people involved.
"You have to be aware as you can. And pray," he said.
(jane@heraldm.com)
>> Go back to main News Article page
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
