THE KUKMIN DAILY

The World Mission Society Church of God (WMS COG, formerly known as Ahn Sahng-hong Witness Society) recently sued Kukmin Daily, claiming 440 million won in damages. WMS COG is a group that believes in “Ahn Sahng-hong God the Father” (Ahn lived from 1918~1985) and “Jang Gil-ja God the Mother” (age 71), and is identified as heretical by major Korean church denominations and ecumenical organizations.

Kukmin Daily has reported about problems and harm caused by WMS COG, according to its statement of purpose: “To prevent harm by heretical or pseudo religious groups, and to protect and speak on behalf of the 60,000 churches, 100,000 church workers and 12,000,000 Christians in Korea.” In its lawsuit, WMS COG raises challenges to Kukmin Daily’s critical reports, and claims that Kukmin Daily has defamed its organization by calling it a heretical group. This legal case is understood as an attempt by WMS COG’s to gag Kukmin Daily and the entire Korean church, which up to now have been safeguarding their churches and their faith from heretical groups.

WMS COG recently filed a series of lawsuits with Seoul Southern District Court, demanding news corrections, reporting of counterarguments, and compensation for damages.

It listed three news articles as problematic: “Beware of WMS Church of God, the Heretical Group, If You Are Approached With These Phrases” (April 18, page 30), “Sinking of Sewol Ferry Is a Tragedy Caused by Immoral Values of a Social Club” (April 25, page 33 and 34), and “WMS Church of God Constructs a New Building While Misleading People That ‘It’s the End of the World’” (May 2, page 26). WMS COG is demanding 200 million won compensation for the first article, and another 240 million won for the other two.

During conciliation examination procedures at the Press Arbitration Commission, held prior to the lawsuit, the Kukmin Daily made its position clear: that it would reflect on the counterarguments of the WMS COG according to the related laws. Conciliation failed, however, due to WMS COG’s rejection of this position. Without any further request for conciliation, WMS COG filed a lawsuit directly with Seoul Southern District Court, referring to the news reports of April 24 and May 2.

The news article dated April 25 reported an interview with Jeong Dong-seop, former professor of the Department of Counseling and Psychology at Korean Baptist Theological University and Seminary. Jeong asserted that the Sewol tragedy, through which the truth of the Salvation Sect of Yu Byeong-eon was revealed, should be taken as an opportunity to legislate a “False Religion Regulation” to strictly control false religions such as Shincheonji and WMS Church of God. The article on May 2 dealt with WMS COG’s contract with Sebang Corporation to rebuild the WMS COG headquarters building in Seongnam Imaedong, Gyeonggido by September 2000, while propagating to its members that the end of the world was coming in 1999. The news report on April 18 was written in order to protect Korean church members from WMS COG, whose members were approaching people with comments such as, “The Sunday worship service of the Korean church is a fake,” “Have you ever heard of God the Mother?” or “You should observe Passover to avoid disaster.”

WMS COG pleads strongly that Kukmin Daily should correct its three “false reports,” insisting that (1) WMS COG is not heretical, (2) WMS COG has never made any end-time apocalyptic claim, and (3) No women members have divorced, left home, or offered their entire possessions and property to the WMS COG.

WMS COG’s Claim #1: “WMS COG is not heretical."

In its lawsuit, WMS COG describes itself as a religious group consisting of believers in a faith based on “Ahn Sahng-hong God the Father and Jang Gil-ja God the Mother,” and introduces itself with the statement, “As of 2014, there are more than two million registered members in 2,500 churches in 175 countries around the world.” The lawsuit continues, “Pointing to the very essence of the WMS COG, that is, our belief and standing in awe of Ahn Sahng-Hong God the Father and Jang Gil-ja God the Mother, as heretical, is not a fair criticism of a religion but a unilateral rebuke.” It strongly insists, “It is only some Protestant denominations that have pointed unilaterally to WMS COG as heretical… (we) are not heretics who pose as a religion to conjure up trouble or harm.”

What is clear, however, is that it is the Korean church as a whole that defines WMS COG as a heretical group. It is not “some Protestant denominations,” but rather ecumenical organizations and major denominations such as the Christian Council of Korea (2000), Daejeon Christian Council (2007), Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK Tonghap) (2002), PCK Hapshin (2003), and PCK Hapdong (2008), that have concluded WMS COG is a heretical group.

Moreover, in November 2004, the Supreme Court of Korea issued a written judgment in a lawsuit related to a WMS COG member, saying, “The World Mission Society Church of God, also called Ahn Sahng-hong Witness Society, is a sect coming out of the Seventh Day Adventist Church, which worships leader Ahn Sahng-hong as a returned Jesus, and Jang Gil-ja as God’s bride, regards Saturday as the Sabbath, and emphasizes eschatology, and thus has been regarded as a pseudo religion by existing Christian churches.”

WMS COG’s Claim #2: “WMS COG has never made any end-time apocalyptic claim.

Another court sentence reveals that WMS COG has insisted on end-time eschatology. In 2002, WMS COG filed a lawsuit against “Hyeondae Jongkyo” publisher Tark Ji-weon for “defamation of WMS COG by describing false information about it in ‘Fact-Finding Survey and Research of Korean New Religions 2002 Vol. 1 (Subtitled: Self-Claiming Returned Korean Lords).’“ Although a trial was held because the public prosecutors decided to make an indictment in the case, the Supreme Court declared Director Tark innocent in April 2006. In its written judgment, the court stated, “WMS COG produced a book propagating that the end of the world would come in 1988, three years after the death of Ahn Sahng-hong; carried out a survey of its members in 1999 about Y2K and the prediction of the end of the world; and as a matter of fact claimed or suggested the coming of the end of the world in 2012… (Fact-Finding Survey and Research) may have contained incorrect expressions in its description of this end-time eschatology or exaggerated it in part, but it cannot be concluded that the whole article is false.”

WMS COG’s Claim #3: “No women members have divorced, left home, or offered their entire possessions and property to the WMS COG.”

WMS COG also denied that, contrary to Kukmin Daily’s report, it never used end-of-the-world eschatology to request offerings of possessions from its members, or destroyed happy families.

On the contrary, however, it is victims’ common witness that they were asked to offer possessions, and suffered destruction of their families; and this is clearly written in court sentences as well as in the public prosecutor’s decision not to grant a trial. In November 2004, the Supreme Court stated in a written judgment in a trial related to a WMS COG member, that this member “...withdrew not a small amount of money from (his/her) bank account to give offerings to WMS COG, and purchased an emergency kit, introduced by WMS COG, for nearly 5 million won due to belief in WMS COG’s end-time eschatology…, persisted in this faith, repeatedly left home, and continued an abnormal faith life.”

When WMS COG took a former follower to court for putting an article critical of WMS COG on the Internet, Seoul Northern District Court also reached a verdict of not guilty, explaining, “It appears to be true that the victim’s family discord derived from the victim’s attendance at WMS COG, and that it affected the victim’s divorce.”

Together with the Korean churches, the Kukmin Daily will respond fully in this matter.

Kukmin Daily understands this legal action of the WMS Church of God as an attempt to block all rightful criticism by the Korean church and the media against heretical groups, and it will adopt strict countermeasures. Further, to protect the Korean churches and believers, it will adhere to a policy of standing up against apocalyptic groups that deify sect leaders. To this day, Kukmin Daily has done its best to protect the Korean church, through its investigation of the Korea Institute for Religious Freedom (KIRF), which has been derogating Christianity, and Shinchoenji ('New Heaven and Earth'), which has been demolishing church communities by dispatching its “harvesters.” This is the time, above all, when the Korean church needs to pray and encourage the Kukmin Daily to be strong and continue carrying out its holy mission.

General Secretary Kim Cheol-yeong of the World Holy City Movement said, “The Korean churches at the denominational level, ecumenical organizations, and Christian legal circles should come together to save Kukmin Daily, which has been protecting the Korean church against heretical groups… our World Holy City Movement will also support Kukmin Daily.”

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

Photo by intern photographer Heo Ran


Click here for the original article in Korean

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