SEOUL, South Korea – With broad applause for the host – the Korean Methodist Church – attendants of the 19th World Methodist Conference said their final prayer of peace as a world body on Monday at Kum Nan Church.

Thousands of Methodists closed the five-day global conference with the instalment of new officers for the next five-year period and a greater sense of pride as Wesleyan followers.

“I really think this is one of the best [conferences] I’ve attended,” said Dr. John C. A. Barrett, newly elected chairperson of the World Methodist Council.

Considered a great success, the conference placed the spotlight on the host country – the one country not united, as Barrett pointed out. With stalled six-party talks and amid missile tests from North Korea, reconciliation took on a greater sense of urgency among the Christians now a little more aware of the divided peninsula.