“Coercive conversion because of being a member of Shincheonji Church in Korea”

Coercive conversion 

because of being a member of 

Shincheonji Church in Korea

What is the reason why the families of the members who attend Shincheonji Church have an antipathy toward Shincheonji?

According to the testimony of a number of victims, the cause can be found in the program materials and lecturers that coercive conversion pastors teach to  the families.

The data that they offer are full of slander and defamation claiming that Shincheonji is a group that causes big problems. Victims who are Shincheonji members pointed out that the swear words and personal aggression comments were far from the Christian spirit of “Love even enemies”.

Because he wants to continue attending Shincheonji Church, the mockery and personal aggression judgments that the victims had to hear left an indelible scar on the victims' hearts. So did Ahn Ho Jun (pseudonym, 35, male, Dal-dong, Nam-gu, Ulsan) and Ji-yeon Park (pseudonym, female, Nam-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City).The following is the full text of the appeals of Mr. Ahn and Ms. Park

◆ “Coercive conversion program conducted at sister's house’

I'm Ahn Ho Jun, 35 years old living in Ulsan. First of all, thank you for your valuable time reading this article. The reason why I am writing an appeal is to let people know what I've experienced in Korea where human rights are guaranteed and freedom of religion is available.

On Feb. 20, 2015, I went to Busan to have dinner with my family. We went to Myeong Ji Dong in Busan to have dinner and slept at my sister's house after the dinner as usual. When I opened my eyes in the morning, my mother came next to me and said "A pastor will come and I want you to listen to what the pastor says for three days."

My mother knew that I practice Shincheonji church farith and heard bad rumors ending up having a bad idea about my faith only because it was Shincheonji. I felt anxious because I guessed it was a coercive conversion program. I said "I'm not going to listen to what the pastor said." and tried to find my cell phone to contact my friend at church. But, I couldn't locate my phone.

The fact I found out later was a pastor who conduct a coercive conversion program in Busan made mother to hide my cell phone and wallet so that I couldn't go outside and couldn't contact anyone outside.

So I was stuck at home and received a coercive conversion program in front of my family members. Pastor A carried out the program showing various slanderous materials about Shincheonji and those materials were enough to make anyone believe Shincheonji as a pseudo-group.

When my family saw that, they thought I was in a pseudo-religion. My family said "The devil is in you. You are out of your mind." getting angry at me. My credibility which I never had any kind of trouble from childhood with my parents collapsed due to Pastor A's program and my parents no longer wanted to listen to me.

After arguing for a while, we couldn't reach any solution. I came back to Ulsan and now I don't go to Busan anymore. The gaze and criticism from my family are unbearable and the anxiety due to a coercive conversion program prevent me from going to Busan.

Please punish Pastor A who gave indelible wounds destroying the trust of my family and making each other enemies only for the purpose of making money so that there will be no victims like me again.

◆ “31 days of confinement at Hwa Sun pension, coercive conversion’”

Greetings to all of you, I am writing to inform the Korean government, the people and the judiciary about the human rights damage due to a coercive conversion program and to appeal for the religious fraud conversion pastors to be legally punished.

Korea is a country under the rule of law that guarantees freedom of religion. However, conversionist who runs conversion program for business are not legally punished. The reason is that they program good families thoroughly in advance, making them to kidnap, detain, force and assault. The conversionist only gives directions. In Feb. 2015, I was also kidnapped and imprisoned for 31 in a motel in Hwa Sun. My cell phone was taken away and had to receive unwanted a coercive conversion program from assistant of church B in Gwang Ju.

At the conversion program place, my parents saw me next to me and the program lasted for 3 hours a day. Assistant C threatened my parents that he would not run the program unless I admit their doctrine so that I had to suffer from domestic violence. My parents met a coercive conversion pastor and heard a false personal attack on Shincheonji ending up my family changed completely.

I hold my family that I would no longer go to Shincheonji church. But, the conversion pastor told my parents that I needed to know more about Presbyterian doctrines. So, they moved the detention place to a studio near B church for another seven days. I received another coercive conversion program from Pastor D of B church. The family who understood and trusted each other has become unreliable since the pastor of B church was involved.

My parents who kidnapped and detained their child after being deceived by the lie of a coercive conversion pastor and I who attend Shincheonji church are not guilty. My heart aches so much when thinking of the grievances of many people who have been hurt by a coercive conversion program that have damaged due to the vicious and sly acts of a coercive conversion pastor.

The media, the Korean government and the judiciary, please reveal the truth about those who are doing conversion program for the purpose of making money. I sincerely ask you to punish religious fraud coercive conversion pastors ASAP, so that human rights in Korea can stand upright and resolve the resentment of the victims.

Reference: http://bit.ly/3hGhT4r

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