The 2022 Nationwide Pathfinder Bible Experience was held on Sep. 25, 2022, at Hankook Sahmyook High School in Korea, hosted by Youth Ministries department of the Korean Union Conference (KUC) and organized by Youth Ministries department of the West Central Korean Conference. The event was attended by 114 participants from 24 clubs that had passed regional preliminaries. This year’s competition covered the book of John.
This onsite competition was held for the first time in three years. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the tournament has been postponed or held online. As it was opened face-to-face after a long time, the heat of the field was even hotter. In the audience, teachers, family members, and pastors and church members of the club joined in cheering.
Dressed in Pathfinder uniforms neatly and seated by clubs, the participants wrote down the answers to the questions asked through the video. Difficult problems were discussed and collaborated with team members. Any objection to the correct answer was reviewed through the supervisor. As a result of the final scoring, 15 teams received grade 1, and 6 teams and 3 teams received grades 2 and 3, respectively.
The Pathfinder Bible Experience (PEB) is the official Pathfinder Bible study program of North American Division. It allows Pathfinder members to deepen their understanding of God’s word from an early age by studying and memorizing the Bible, and to build a personal spiritual relationship with Jesus. KUC introduced it since 2015 and has been running it every year.
The contest examines the Bible knowledge of team members on a specific scope of the Bible. It is a team-based program, not individual. Participants are not ranked because it is a Bible study, not a competition. There are preliminaries in regions or local conferences. Based on the highest score, a team that achieves 90% or more of the team’s score will receive a Grade 1, 80% or more will receive a Grade 2, and those with less than 79% will receive a Grade 3. Because participants get a grade as much as they study, they can get a sense of accomplishment and acknowledge your results. Participants are given pins for participating in a program and for receiving a grade.
At the dedication service, Pastor Kim HyunTae, director of the KUC Youth Ministries said, “The more important thing than getting Grade 1 is to study the Bible. We must always live a life of obedience to God who comes through the word. God will appreciate your heart and will use it greatly for the gospel work in the future.”
Next year, Pathfinders in Korea will be challenged again to win the competition with the books of Joshua and Judges.