Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), is operating in the streets, distributing printed materials that cleverly attack the Korean church without disclosing its own true nature.
On November 27, Shincheonji distributed several hundred pamphlets titled “Benefits of Tomatoes” in front of a church in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. A woman in her twenties handed out the pamphlets to church members heading home after Sunday worship. She said to them politely, not revealing her identity, “Please take a look at this.” In the pamphlet was the statement: “Clergy belonging to the Christian Council of Korea are distorting the meaning of God’s words of promise and are making up and teaching lies.” It also included a landline telephone number and a mobile phone number.
A Mr. Gwon, unwittingly receiving one of the A4-size leaflets, was taken aback to find in it a picture with the sentence, “Pastors belonging to the Christian Council of Korea will be punished in the time of great catastrophe.” There was not a single mention of Shincheonji in the pamphlet, but looking at its fierce criticism of the Korean church and pastors, he was sure it was Shincheonji.
“How many people will object to receiving a leaflet telling them the benefits of tomatoes, if it is handed to them by a neatly dressed woman outside a church on Sunday?” Mr. Gwon asked rhetorically. “People who have no idea about the essence of Shincheonji may look at the Bible verses written in the leaflet, feel curious, and phone one of the listed numbers.”
Reporter Paek Sang-hyun (100sh@kmib.co.kr), with Marion Kim (marionkkim@icloud.com)
Photo by senior reporter Kang Min Seok
Full Story in Korean:
이런 유인물 나눠주면 ‘신천지’가 맞습니다: 정체 숨긴 채 한국교회 공격 문서, 정통교회 앞에서도 버젓이 살포
If Someone Is Handing Out This Kind of Material, It’s “Shincheonji”
2016-11-30 14:02
