Branding, Enduring Racial Logic, and Creation of Liturgical Places: Better World Logo as Heuristic Case Study

Abstract

Better World, an international development NGO with UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) status, helps “global neighbors suffering from poverty, disease, and disasters to make better villages around the world.” They take holistic approaches to working with locals to nurture healthy socio-economically and environmentally sustainable communities. The “village” language takes cues from Park Jeong-Hee regime’s modernization initiative “Saemaeul” (New Village) movement of the 1970s that promoted the industrialization of poverty-stricken rural villages of Korea. The NGO takes steps toward fulfilling their hope of a better world one village at a time. Partnerships with local government and village constituents unfold through the umbrella of “Clean Village,” “Healthy Village,” and “Wealthy Village” programs. According to their website, Better World has assisted 98,734 persons through their Clean Village programs that assist with waste management, fostering access to public hygiene, and developing sustainable energy solutions. The Healthy Village program aided 86,227 persons by constructing medical facilities and resourcing prevention medicine as paths toward elevating levels of public health. The Wealthy Village programming addresses housing needs, finances road, and bridge infrastructure, and provides occupational training. The sensibility of the word translated into English as “wealthy” aligns closer to “abundant” and “flourishing.” Over the course of its 10 years of existence Better World considered the people of 22 villages in 18 nations their neighbors and held them in the sightline of love. Better World NGO held its 10th Anniversary Celebration Worship Service in 2020. Preaching on the Good Samaritan story (Luke 10:33–37), Rev. Jae Hoon Lee, head pastor of Onnuri Church in Seoul, Republic of Korea, and Representative of the NGO, reiterated Jesus’ teaching regarding the nature of neighborliness. According to Lee, the scribe as well as the contemporary elites of today intellectualize the issue of extending compassion. “Who is my neighbor?” the powerful ask. Yet recognizing a neighbor in need is not a matter of proper intellectual discourse; it is a matter of the heart. Addressing those gathered to celebrate the accomplishments of Better World, Lee emphasized that those who only deliberate categories will fail to recognize another as a neighbor. In their gatekeeping, they will fail “not because they don’t know who their neighbor is, but because they lack love.” Lee continued by sharing a saying: “Love, instead of stirring our hands to action, will first open our eyes.” According to Lee, the power of love lies in the opening of perception. Lee explained that the work of the NGO would be impossible without love. It is through love that “we orient ourselves to those we don’t see, those who are—for us [Koreans]—at the ends of the earth. Of course, through photography and videos, we see them in limited ways, but without living there, there are