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Four months ago, South Korea basked in international praise for containing the coronavirus pandemic. But now it is on the verge of a second serious outbreak, and much of the blame is being shifted back to the evangelical churches of the country.
Health authorities say a recent uprising in cases traced to Sarang Jeil, an ultra-conservative church in Seoul, has contributed to an outbreak that is now affecting major cities in the country. Some members of their community also attended a major anti-government in the capital last weekend that officials believe the virus could have helped spread.
Fear fears that South Korea is on the verge of a major outbreak were supported by data released on Sunday showing the largest number of daily cases for months, with the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention reporting 397 new infections , the highest since March 7. The national total rose to 17,339, with 309 dead.
The rise in coronavirus cases, reported in all major cities of the country, prompted the government to increase social distance limits and close nightclubs, karaoke bars, buffets and cybercafes in the greater Seoul region.
Indoor gatherings are limited to less than 50 people, and up to no more than 100 outdoors, while spectators are again prohibited from attending football and baseball games. The city government of Seoul restricted demonstrations in the city to less than 10 people from Friday until the end of the month.
Similar measures will implement other areas in the country from Sunday, although they will not be mandatory in areas with relatively few infections.
With personal church services also banned, the clash between public health measures and the evangelical churches of South Korea presents Moon with its most difficult political challenge of the pandemic, months after more than 5,000 cases were traced to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a secret Christian sect that some scholars call a cult, based in the southeastern city of Daegu. Lee Man-hee, the 88-year-old leader of Shincheonji, was arrested for allegedly giving inaccurate records of church meetings and false lists of her members to health authorities.
‘Very serious situation’
South Korean Deputy Health Minister Kim Gang-lip warned that the country was facing a “very serious situation”, adding that authorities were trying to track down and track down people who had attended the anti-government.
While clusters have been traced to restaurants, schools and call centers, many of the new cases are linked to Sarang Jeil, whose far-right judge, Jun Kwang-hun, is an outspoken critic of the president, Moon Jae-in.
Francis Jae-ryong Song, a sociology professor at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, noted that some of South Korea’s evangelical churches have followed government guidelines on virus prevention, but said others, including Sarang Jeil, frequently stayed , to maintain packaging services.
But seeing the large number of people gather in Seoul for last weekend’s protests – including a vigil after the death of Seoul’s mayor, Park Won’s son, and performances of Phantom of the Opera, Song warned against church members only to be responsible kept for the recent emergence infections.
“However, that may leave the authorities open to criticism that they are politicizing the coronavirus situation in some witch hunt,” Song said. “The government and the media must be careful that the latest measures against church congregations do not turn into an attack on religious freedom.”
Jun, who shared a microphone with other speakers at the rally, was even admitted to hospital on Monday after testing positive for Covid-19. At least 60 infections have been linked to the protest, while 796 cases have been traced to his church since Saturday.
Hundreds of Sarang Jeil’s followers refused to testify, according to local media, while the church provided an inaccurate membership list to health authorities, prompting the Ministry of Health and the Seoul city council to file criminal charges against Jun.
Members of Sarang Jeil claim that they are the victims of a deliberate “virus attack” from outside, and that Moon is using public anger against the church to refute criticism of his shaky attempts to deal with Seoul’s housing.
“We believe in freedom of speech and worship, and thought these freedoms were enjoyed by all South Koreans until the government decided to use us as scapegoats,” Kim Young-Soon, a Sarang Jeil member, told the Guardian. “It is irresponsible for us to be persecuted in this way.”
Church members reject Covid links
The Protestant churches of South Korea were heavily influenced by American Presbyterian and Methodist missionaries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, while Christianity flourished during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula and the 1950-53 Korean War.
The conflict resulted in a deep distrust in North Korea that finds expression among the conservative churches of today in criticism of any South Korean leader who, like Moon, is seen as “soft” on North Korea.
“Most evangelical churches, including Sarang Jeil, share that ideology and believe that the Moon administration is explicitly pro-China and pro-North Korea,” Song said.
Kim’s friend and colleague, Park Jun-il, dismissed reports linking the virus to church services. “No one has proven that worship in large numbers has caused the virus to spread,” Park said. ‘I refuse to believe it. There are large numbers of people packed to beaches like sardines, but not a single case has been reported. How is that possible? “
Paul S Cha, an assistant professor of Korean studies at the University of Hong Kong, speculated that conservative churches such as Sarang Jeil believed the Covid-19 pandemic was “false news.”
“They do not trust the government, and many of these churches are organized in a hierarchical manner, with the chief pastors having tremendous power,” Cha said. “If the pastor explains that church members should meet and not wear masks, then the congregation will generally comply.
“For some of the more evangelical denominations, there may be a belief that wearing masks or exercising social distance is a sign of a lack of confidence in the protective power of God.”
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