[Hyojeong Report]
Presenter: Sung-Jong Seo, Vice Director of the Mission Bureau, World Mission Headquarters
Respected and beloved Cheon Il Guk leaders and Blessed Family members around the world, good day! I am Sung-Jong Seo, Vice Director of the Mission Department at the World Mission Headquarters.
I extend my heartfelt greetings to all of our family members who, with unwavering devotion and single-minded hearts toward Heavenly Parent, are offering night-vigil jeongseong today—both at the main Cheonsimwon and in all corners of the world.
Today, under the immense grace of Heavenly Parent and True Parents, I would like to share with you the progress report for the first half of 2026 and the plans for the second half regarding the “Practical Ministry Education 2026” designed to empower and strengthen pastors worldwide.
1. Background and Purpose of the Education
In October 2025, the World Mission Headquarters conducted a survey among pastors around the globe to identify the key challenges faced in the mission field. The survey revealed that the most urgent issue requiring attention was the “lack of opportunities to build pastoral capacity.” Currently, the number of newly appointed pastors across all continents continues to rise. However, outside of Korea, Japan, and the United States, there was a desperate need for a systematic platform where these leaders could train themselves and grow professionally.
To respond to this earnest call from the field, we developed the “Practical Ministry Education 2026.” The primary goal of this program is to deepen the practical ministry knowledge of pastors worldwide. Rather than enforcing mandatory participation, we created a self-directed learning environment and translated the lecture materials into six languages to distribute to pastors across the globe.
2. Main Educational Content and Theme Selection
The first-half practical ministry education took place online across 8 sessions (90 minutes each) during March and June. Encouraging voluntary participation among pastors worldwide—excluding Korea, Japan, and North America—an average of 352 pastors proactively joined each session from the 1st through the 8th module.
During the first half, we covered four essential pillars required to build healthy and sustainable churches, Tithing and Financial Education (March). Because transparent financial management is vital to building a trusted faith community, our first topic focused on finances. Featuring Soon-Goo Kwon (Subregional Director of the Cheonwon Special Subregion) and Habangza Kisele (Pastor of the Chicago Church, North America), we studied the significance of honest tithing based on biblical models and learned how to establish a vision-centered, long-term financial roadmap.
The second topic was “Church Management and Growth Strategies.” Young-Hwan Gil (Director of the Cheonbo Training Center) and Julius Malicdem (Subregional Vice President of the Heavenly Asia-Pacific Region) served as our guest lecturers. We explored methods for introducing relationship-centered “coaching leadership” to foster community maturity, as well as strategies for establishing organizational management systems to prevent pastoral burnout.
Moving into June, our third topic was “Worship and Preaching.” Joined by Miki Abe (Heavenly Japan) and Gani Roshi (Subregional Director of the Balkan Subregion), we revisited the core foundations of pastoral ministry: worship content and missional approaches. Moving beyond strictly doctrinal admonitions, we learned heart-centered sermon structures designed to offer emotional comfort, spiritual transformation, and renewed hope to our family members.
The fourth topic focused on healing wounded hearts through “Counseling and Pastoral Visiting.” Guided by Kyu-Young Oh (Professor Emeritus at Sun Moon University) and In-Young Song (Senior Pastor, Heavenly Korea), we professionally studied systematic pastoral counseling methodologies suited for the era of the Home Church. We acquired practical communication techniques, such as active and sincere listening, along with solution-focused brief therapy that centers on an individual’s strengths and internal resources.
3. First-Half Education Overview and Operational Approach
To overcome language barriers and enable self-directed learning, video lectures and educational materials were provided in six languages. Furthermore, to apply these lessons directly to the field, participants used breakout rooms by subregion—led by their respective Subregional Directors—to engage in deep discussions on how to translate theory into action. This collaborative space served as a meaningful catalyst for Subregional Directors to guide and mentor their pastors even more proactively.
4. Field Transformations and Participant Testimonies
Through this training, inspiring testimonies have poured in from the field, demonstrating transformed mindsets among pastors and a revival of heart in how they care for family members. I would like to share two of these testimonies with you today.
First is the reflection on financial education from Jin-Sung Wantete, National President of Senegal:
“One of the most impactful lessons was the emphasis on financial transparency and accountability. Trust is built when leaders openly share how resources are utilized and involve the community in major decisions. Financial honesty is, in itself, a powerful testimony. In many ways, honest financial leadership speaks even louder than words.”
Next, Miki Takemoto, National President of Romania, shared her reflections after the lectures on worship and preaching:
“These were brilliant insights and information that I truly needed. Since becoming the National President of Romania four years ago, there was no one available to guide me on this topic. Up until now, I had been trying to find my own direction simply by reading True Parents’ words on preaching.”
“On one hand, I felt relieved knowing that my understanding of preaching based on True Parents’ words was on the right track. On the other hand, I felt a deep desire to further develop my preaching according to the teachings from today’s training. I offer my heartfelt gratitude for these wonderful lectures!”
Please give a warm round of applause to these two leaders for sharing their inspiring reflections!
I would also like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all the guest speakers who graciously gave their time despite their busy schedules.
5. Second-Half Education Schedule
Starting this coming September, we will embark on the second-half education program.
- Witnessing and Mission (September 3 & 10):
Featuring Koichi Sasaki (Subregional Vice President of Heavenly Central and South America) and Anna Kalmatskaya (Subregional Director of Central Europe), we will address the most essential mission in the field: witnessing and evangelism.
- Spiritual Training and Character Development (September 17 & 23):
We will welcome Yoo-Sang Jeon (Education Bureau Director at the HJ Heaven and Earth CheonBo Training Center) and Kwang-Myung Cho (President of the Professors World Peace Academy) to lead these vital sessions.
We kindly ask for the continued interest and active participation of all pastors and leaders around the world.
6. Closing Remarks and Resolution
Respected Blessed Family members worldwide!
The true spiritual revival of the church is possible only when spirit and truth come together as one. The World Mission Headquarters will continue to extend unwavering support to our Cheon Il Guk leaders serving on the frontlines of mission work.
At the same time, these fruitful results must be grounded in the earnest jeongseong offered by family members across the globe, uniting their hearts through Cheonsimwon. Working in oneness with Cheonsimwon, the World Mission Headquarters will roll forward the two wheels of spirit and truth, doing our utmost to ignite a marvelous work of the Holy Spirit and bring revival to every mission field.
I earnestly pray that the tearful night-vigil jeongseong you offer tonight will bear fruit in great victories across all fields globally.
This concludes my report.
Thank you very much.