Mission life: THE KUKMIN DAILY

Church of God Illegally Copies from Books of Major Christian Publishers

2014-04-28 17:19


It has been revealed that the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG), a religious sect identified as heretical by the major Korean church denominations, illegally inserted selections from numerous publications of major Christian publishers in its core booklet used for proselytizing purposes.

Kukmin Daily obtained exclusively on April 22 WMSCOG’s booklet for proselytizing, titled “Evidence Book,” which includes sections 2~8 pages in length, copied exactly from books and articles published by Korean Bible Society (KBS), Christian Literature Society of Korea (CLSK), Word of Life Press, Agape Publisher, Nachimvan Publishing Co., Bible Study Textbooks Publisher, Kukmin Daily, and others. This 248-page book was first published in 1995 and so far has gone through 9 editions. It is sold for 14,000 won.

Representative Kang Geun-byeong of “Zionism,” a group of persons who have withdrawn from the WMSCOG, explained, “Every member who newly joined since 1995, and all evangelists, are required to purchase this book. Accordingly, it is estimated that more than 800,000 copies have been sold, 40,000 copies every year. This book is necessary to explain central concepts such as ‘God the Mother’ and ‘Passover,’ so it is equivalent to the Bible of the traditional Christian church.”

The related organizations announced that they would respond legally. A person related to KBS said they had never permitted WMSCOG to publish the Bible and that they will take strong countermeasures through a consulting lawyer. A person related to Word of Life Press said as well, “They printed ‘The Church History Handbook’ and ‘The Elements of Christianity’ without permission. It is unbelievable that our books are used for proselytizing by a heretical group. We will take joint countermeasures through the Korean Christian Publication Association.” A person related to CLSK, too, announced, “They seem to be taking advantage of the public trust of these organizations, but we will take strongly legal countermeasures.”

Christian law professionals advised that the WMSCOG's illegal proselytizing activities be banned through legal steps. A person related to the law firm Logos said, “This anti-social group is violating intellectual properties and abusing them for its own proselytizing. The affected parties should submit claims for damages and file for an injunction to ban the publication, printing and distribution of the WMSCOG booklet, as well as its previous problematic books.” WMS Church of God stated only that they will give an official response on the matter soon.

Reporter Paek Sang-hyun (100sh@kmib.co.kr), with Yeara Ahn-Park (yap@kmib.co.kr)


Click here for the original article in Korean

박여라 기자 yap@kmib.co.kr

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