SEOUL, South Korea – Hundreds of Christians stepped foot near the world’s most heavily fortified border – the Korean Demilitarised Zone – on Sunday, sharing a deep concern for the divided peninsula and offering prayers of hope for a reunited nation.

In what Bishop Kyoung-Ha Shin, president of the council of bishops of the Korean Methodist Church, called “one of the most dangerous regions of conflict in the world,” Wesleyan followers from the 19th World Methodist Conference held their Sunday worship service and proclaimed it a region of peace and reconciliation.

“Today, by the power of God we will proclaim and claim all this area as the temple of reconciliation and love,” said His Eminence Sunday Mbang, World Methodist Council chairperson, in his sermon. “God will send away the hate and send Jesus Christ to be King of this area.”

Applause and “hallelujah’s” broke out from the crowd of seated worshippers under the hot sun on a day that forecasted rain.