All Nations Baptist Church

All Nations Baptist Church
Map
40°40′05″N 73°59′20″W / 40.6680°N 73.9888°W / 40.6680; -73.9888
Address251 12th St, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Language(s)Russian & Korean
DenominationBaptist
Websitewww.anbc12.com
Architecture
Years builtsince 2002
Clergy
Pastor(s)Leonid Kim

All Nations Baptist Church (Russian: Баптистская церковь Всех Наций) is a Russian-language Baptist congregation in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City, United States. It shares facilities with the Park Slope Community Church.[1] The congregation is often associated with Koryo-saram: ethnic Koreans of the mainland former Soviet Union.[2][3] It has been described as the only such Koryo-saram church in New York City.[3][2]

Description

The founding leader of the congregation is Leonid Kim. Kim was born in Uzbekistan. His grandparents were Koreans who lived in the Russian Far East and were forced to move to Central Asia in 1937.[2] Kim was first introduced to Christianity at age 41,[4] when he still lived in Uzbekistan, by a Korean-American missionary from Texas. Despite Soviet discouragement on religion, he converted and became devout.[2] After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, he openly approached Korean missionaries, learned Korean, and openly attended church.[4] He emigrated to the United States in 1995 at the invitation of the American Baptist College.[2][4] From 1997, he worked as a missionary in Ukraine.[4]

He started the congregation in 2002.[2][5] Initially, the congregation had four members: Kim, his wife, his son, and one other woman.[4] By 2008, it had over 100 members.[5] During this time, the Korean American Christian community continued to send missionaries to Central Asia in order to convert and bring more Koryo-saram to the United States. After arriving, these immigrants often needed communities and assistance, and found churches such as these to be helpful with that.[5]

According to Kim, the congregation serves some function as a community center for Koryo-saram. Some join the congregation initially because they come to ask for help on immigration issues, but end up staying for the community.[3][1] In 2017, it was reported that the congregation was 60% Koryo-saram.[2] In 2022, the demographics were reported as 30% Koryo-saram, 40% Ukrainian, and 20% Russian.[4] The congregation has also been known to collaborate and host joint events and services with other local Korean American churches.[6][5]

According to Kim, the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine initially caused some strife in the community that eventually healed. In 2022, the congregation collected donations and funded Kim to visit Ukraine to offer donated goods and funds, as well as his assistance.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Fuchs, Chris (August 21, 2017). "In Brooklyn, a Korean pastor leads a Russian-speaking flock". NBC News. Archived from the original on February 25, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Seo Seung-jae (August 25, 2017). ""1，000여 고려인들 위한 유일한 교회"" [The only church for more than 1,000 Koreans]. The Korea Times (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c 뉴욕의 '까레이스키 교회'를 아시나요? [Do you know of the 'Kareyski Church' in New York?]. NEWS M (in Korean). June 30, 2010. Archived from the original on March 31, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g 열방교회 레오니드김 목사 인터뷰 [Interview with Pastor Leonid Kim of Yeolbang Church]. www.kidoknews.net (in Korean). May 7, 2022. Archived from the original on April 1, 2024. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d 구, 재관 (November 21, 2008). 고려인 정착.융화 돕는다. The Korea Times (in Korean). Archived from the original on April 1, 2024. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  6. ^ Lee Hwa-young (March 29, 2008). 뉴욕주양장로교회, 고려인교회와 부활절 연합예배 드려 [New York State Presbyterian Church, Korean Church and Easter United Service]. 미주 종교신문1위 : 기독일보 (in Korean). Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  7. ^ Hahn, Emanuel; Premiyak, Liza (January 17, 2020). "How do the descendants of Stalin's mass deportation maintain their mixed cultural heritage in the United States?". New East Digital Archive. Retrieved March 30, 2024.