The South Korean government has been commended by the international community for its response to the COVID-19 pandemic since the first confirmed domestic case in January 2020, with immediate intervention by health authorities and stringent steps taken to curb the spread of the virus.
However, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea by churches has been markedly different. Following the first confirmed case in Daegu of a congregant of Shincheonji Church of Jesus (Shincheonji Church) on 18th February 2020, Shincheonji Church closed all 1100 churches and affiliated buildings nationwide and moved worship services and meetings online. Shincheonji Church was quickly made subject to vicious, unfounded criticism by Korean (and quickly global) media agencies and Protestant circles amid the subsequent rise in cases in Daegu. In reality, 'patient 31' (as media crudely labelled her) had been hospitalised and misdiagnosed with a common cold, was sent back home on February 9th, and unknowingly spread the virus at later indoor church gatherings and worship services. Nevertheless, Chairman Lee of Shincheonji Church held a press conference, expressing his regret for the cluster outbreak in Daegu, and announced his full cooperation with health authorities. The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) soon praised Shincheonji Church's swift response as did certain government officials.
One would have presumed, therefore, that other Christian groups would heeded government guidelines and restricted their services and meetings to online only. Yet the reality has been very different, as has been detailed in my previous blog (link below). Since the initial outbreak in Shincheonji Daegu Church and amid a rise in cases nationwide, the vast majority of Protestant churches have continued in-person worship services and gatherings, defying government orders. A second outbreak ensued in Seoul on August 2nd 2020 at the 'Holy Spirit Explosion Conference' hosted by the Protestant Sarang Jeil ('Love First') Church, which was protesting against government quarantine regulations on grounds that these directives violated religious freedoms and opposed Biblical teachings. 14 days later, there were 200 related Covid cases confimed in Seoul alone with cases spreading like wildfire in the provinces of Gyeonggi, Incheon and Chungnam. The lead pastor of Sarang Jeil Church, Gwang-Hoon Jeon, who is also Chairman of the notorious Christian Council of Korea (CCK), charged on as he led a church revival to his 10,000-strong followers on August 15th 2020 in celebration of the National Liberation Day of Korea where he dismissed government orders as a "political stunt". From November to December 2020, there were more than 100 confirmed cases at the Protestant Hongdae Sae Church and Seongseok Church in Seoul and cases in Jinju International Prayer Center where dozens of prayer meetings had been led by head pastor Jin-Hong Kim throughout the months of September-December 2020. Masks were off as the pastor and congregants sang and worshipped. Children were also known to have contracted the virus there.
In the most recent report produced by Cheonji Ilbo (Cheonji Daily - link below) on 11th May 2021, it has been confirmed that, out of the 54 outbreaks of Covid-19 among all places of worship (regardless of faith) since May 2020 in Korea, 51 of them have taken place within the Protestant Church. In contrast, since April 2020, there has not been a single confirmed case involving a Shincheonji Church congregant. Yet in spite of the callous scapegoating by media, instigated in no small part by the Protestant Church, Shincheonji Church did not resist police search-and-seizure, prosecution investigations or even the arrest of Chairman Lee - the then 89-year-old veteran of the Korean War - and other Shincheonji Church representatives. No doubt the heavens are witness to this.
To date, 3741 recovered members of Shincheonji Daegu Church have donated their blood plasma for the development of blood treatment with Mr. Jun-wook Kwon, Deputy Head of the KDCA, having expressed his gratitude to donors in person in November 2020, saying, "This blood plasma donation by believers of Shincheonji Church, who have now recovered from COVID-19, will make an indelible contribution to overcoming this pandemic and, eventually, eradicate it. We hope that the voluntary and active example set by Shincheonji Church members today will serve as an example to all citizens". The KDCA has recently confirmed that it is expected to secure blood plasma treatment by the end of 2021; a step that could potentially alleviate the suffering of many Covid sufferers in Korea and beyond.
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Related Blog
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Global Media Reports on Shincheonji Church's Blood Plasma Donations
Initial donation by 500 recovered Daegu congregants, July 2020 (video at the end)
Second donation by 1100 recovered Daegu congregants
Third donation by 4000 recovered Daegu congregants
From mid-2020, 231 reports published in 69 countries on intended 4000 donation
Shincheonji Church's official response to all allegations:-
“This is our earnest request: please stop the cursing and hatred towards Shincheonji. And we ask some media outlets that are slandering and suppressing Shincheonji using unconfirmed information and fake news to stop immediately.”
Official Statement by Shincheonji Church
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Further Global News Reports on Shincheonji Church (COVID-19)
Lies regarding the Coronavirus about Shincheonji ì‹ ì²œì§€ (03/03/2020)
Quarantine Official: "Confirmed case of COVID-19 in Daegu had existed before ‘patient 31’" (Daum News 22/03/2020)
Quarantine Official: "Confirmed case of COVID-19 in Daegu had existed before ‘patient 31’" (Naver 22/03/2020)
Shincheonji Church of Jesus in S. Korea Responds To What It Believes Are Erroneous Media Reports (Cision PR Newswire, 01/03/2020) ▶https://prn.to/3hDu3uo
"Shincheonji didn't lie about membership figures." (The Korea Herald 17/03/2020)
'Shincheonji members who survived COVID-19 volunteer en masse to aid vaccine development' (Religion News Service 26/06/2020)▶https://religionnews.com/2020/06/26/shincheonji-members-who-survived-covid-19-volunteer-en-masse-to-aid-vaccine-development/
South Korea church hit by COVID-19 says members to give plasma for research (Today Online 23/06/2020)▶https://bit.ly/3dxDTup
South Korea church hit by COVID-19 says members to give plasma for research (Jakarta Post 24/06/2020)▶https://bit.ly/2CBY5if
Official COVID-19 Response by Shincheonji Church of Jesus
•0307 Chairman Man Hee Lee asks "all congregants to fully cooperate for disease control" in a special announcement
•0302 Statement at Press Conference of Shincheonji Church of Jesus Regarding COVID-19
•0302 Regarding COVID-19 Testing of Chairman Lee, Man-hee of Shincheonji Church of Jesus
•0301 Letter of Appeal to Political Leaders
•0228 Letter of Appeal from Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Regards to COVID-19
•0226 Shincheonji Church of Jesus Provided a List of All Members to Public Health Authorities
•0223 Statement of Shincheonji Church of Jesus Regarding COVID-19
•0222 Over 1000 Shincheonji Church of Jesus Locations Disinfected and Closed Down in Korea
•0221 Shincheonji Church of Jesus Closed Down Its Churches and Affiliated Buildings from 18 Feb
•0220 Statement of Shincheonji Church of Jesus Regarding COVID-19 Countermeasures and Fake News
•0219 Statement of Shincheonji Church of Jesus Regarding the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)
•0218 Notice on the Worship Service of Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Regards to COVID-19
COVID-19/Fact Checker: Q&A on Shincheonji Church of Jesus Regarding the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)
Personal Blog
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500 cured congregation members of Shincheonji Daegu Church Donate Blood Plasma
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