THE KUKMIN DAILY

The Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK - Tonghap) has declared once again that homosexuality is wrong according to the Bible and that the denomination clearly opposes it. At the same time, PCK Tonghap has emphasized that its churches will pray for the salvation of homosexual persons, not hating or excluding them, but embracing them with love. The message is that they will patiently help homosexuals toward cure and recovery.

On July 17, the PCK Tonghap general assembly’s countermeasures committee on social issues (homosexuality) held a seminar on “Our position and task with regard to homosexuality.” Formed by pastors and theology professors, this committee has been studying the homosexuality issue intensively for the last nine months. Based on this study, the general assembly has produced a 20-page booklet explaining the denomination’s position and is distributing it to regional presbyteries and churches.

In his sermon during the opening service, Rev. Rim Hyeong-seok, vice-moderator of PCK Tonghap, said, “God loves homosexuals, too, but that does not include those who don’t repent. We should not dislike or hate homosexuals. They have to take hormone pills all their lives, can’t have children, and suffer from perverted homosexual activities.”

Rev. Rim expressed worry about the current social atmosphere, in which people hesitate to voice opposition to homosexuality. He said, “The reality is that if a CEO of a U.S. corporation speaks out against homosexuality, that CEO will face reverse discrimination such as boycotts. Fairness would mean guaranteeing the freedom to either support or oppose.” He concluded, “To preserve our faith values, and in order not to attack homosexuals, we’ve adopted the stance of persuading, not excluding, homosexual persons, even though we oppose homosexuality.”

Prof. Lee Sang-eun (speaker in photo) of Seoul Jangsin University introduced the Biblical grounds for belief that homosexuality is a sin. According to Genesis, God created man and woman separately, and God’s command is to form families based on heterosexual love, bear children, and flourish on the earth. He quoted Leviticus 18:22, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination,” and said that the Bible defines homosexuality as an ethical sin.

The committee’s conclusion was that homosexuality is clearly a sin, but that the attitude towards those who commit the sin must be differentiated from the sin itself. The committee called upon the church to remember John 8:7, in which Jesus says to the crowd trying to punish a woman caught in adultery, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” The committee resolved, “Before condemning homosexual persons, we declare the love of God, who hopes for their salvation and cure… We pursue the establishment of a healthy family culture and the formation of a Bible-based sexual culture.”

Rev. Goh Man-ho (Yeosu Eunpha Presbyterian Church in South Jeolla-do) claimed, “Even though homosexual persons are the object of salvation, homosexual thought is heretical.” Rev. Park Jin-seok (The Joyful Church in Pohang, North Gyeongsang-do) commented, “The ‘ae’ (愛) in ‘dongseongae’ (同性愛, the Korean word for homosexuality) means love and connotes an elegant, noble feeling. The term therefore is inappropriate. We should call it ‘the sexual ethics issue,’ rather than ‘dongseongae.’”

Reporter Woo Sungkyu (mainport@kmib.co.kr)
Photo by senior reporter Kang Min Seok

Original Article in Korean:
“동성애는 성서에 어긋난 죄악… 배척 않고 설득”: 예장통합 총회 ‘동성애 세미나’ 열고 반대 입장 천명