Backlash against Korean Christians
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Time Magazine article: Korean Missionaries Draw Fire at Home
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1647646,00.html
A couple of interesting things I've noticed about this article. First of all, there seems to be more criticism from within Korea than anywhere else.
Secondly, there seems to be little coverage on this within the US. This story doesn't appear on Google News front page nor does it appear on CNN or USA Today.
Extracts from the article that I found interesting:...the Seoul government has had to ask Korean bloggers to back off from online attacks on the hostages. Critics were particularly incensed by photos posted of some of the young women missionaries posing in front of an Afghanistan travel advisory sign at Seoul's Incheon International Airport. Family members of the missionaries — as well as members of the Sammeul Community Church south of Seoul, which sent the mission — also issued public apologies for causing the country so much grief.
It seems there's a certain amount of pride related to the willingness to place oneself in harm's way in order to offer aid.But non-evangelical Koreans are still scratching their heads over why the Saemmul church group trotted off to such a volatile region, thumbing its nose at government warnings not to enter Afghanistan.
I also thought this paragraph was very telling"An unfortunate side to the evangelical movement in Korea is increased competition. Churches number in the tens of thousands here, and are competing so intensely for members that pastors feel pressured to engage in a kind of one-upmanship: sending congregants on as many overseas missions as possible. New markets and riskier missions tend to garner more publicity, which until now has translated into more kudos and ultimately more money for the pastor and the church.
I think we've all seen this kind of thing before - where your faith is measured by what you are willing to do or sacrifice. You are a 'better' Christian if you are willing to give up a greater percentage of your income to the Church. You are a better Christian the more time you spend doing Church activities. You are a better Christian if you only listen to Christian music and not secular music. So on so forth.
It reminds me of when I heard a pastor tell the congregation, "you are supposed to tithe 10% of your income. But that's the bare minimum. If you give the minimum to God, how can you expect God to do anything more than the minimum for you? If you want great things from God, you must first be willing to so great devotion to God."
Of course, 'devotion' here means cold hard cash."It will definitely lead to a purge at churches" on the peninsula, says Douglas Shin, a pastor involved in missionary activities with North Koreans. "People will wonder if it is worth the risk now, and donors will probably withhold more funds because they fear they could be causing someone harm." Though Shin believes the Afghanistan mission was sincere, he expects that what he calls "camcorder missions" — assignments that are more or less photo ops for groups looking money for supporters — to wane in the near future.
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korean culture quite jialat. i've been watching this korean show which my mum's addicted to.
jia you jin shun or something.
its terrible, the way they treat a woman who's divorced or have a kid from another marriage.
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I do agree they seem to be quite judgemental.Originally posted by dumbdumb!:korean culture quite jialat. i've been watching this korean show which my mum's addicted to.
jia you jin shun or something.
its terrible, the way they treat a woman who's divorced or have a kid from another marriage. -
Exactly, my mom watches that show too. I find it's unreasonable to treat someone differently (and often mistreating) just because they are different in terms of life experience, knowledge and beliefs (not just religion, but personal values). This may be due to Confucian values that have been so deeply implanted in the three most influential giants of Asia in the past: China, Japan and Korea. Not that it's a bad thing to have Confucian values, however, we need to re-evaluate them in the times of today. Some of them are no longer that relevant.Originally posted by dumbdumb!:korean culture quite jialat. i've been watching this korean show which my mum's addicted to.
jia you jin shun or something.
its terrible, the way they treat a woman who's divorced or have a kid from another marriage. I think we've all seen this kind of thing before - where your faith is measured by what you are willing to do or sacrifice. You are a 'better' Christian if you are willing to give up a greater percentage of your income to the Church. You are a better Christian the more time you spend doing Church activities. You are a better Christian if you only listen to Christian music and not secular music. So on so forth.
Honestly, the drivel some religious leaders spout. No one can tell you if you're a good Christian or not; only God can.
It reminds me of when I heard a pastor tell the congregation, "you are supposed to tithe 10% of your income. But that's the bare minimum. If you give the minimum to God, how can you expect God to do anything more than the minimum for you? If you want great things from God, you must first be willing to so great devotion to God."
Of course, 'devotion' here means cold hard cash.
The "donating-money-so-you-can-go-to-heaven" thing is another example of how religion is being used as a tool to manipulate the people. Distasteful. Devotion is money? The kind of materialism that has gripped the world these days, seriously. -
Devotion is not money. But money is the result of your work. When you give money, what you are really giving is your blood sweat and toil.Originally posted by SturmDerSchatten:Honestly, the drivel some religious leaders spout. No one can tell you if you're a good Christian or not; only God can.
The "donating-money-so-you-can-go-to-heaven" thing is another example of how religion is being used as a tool to manipulate the people. Distasteful. Devotion is money? The kind of materialism that has gripped the world these days, seriously.
I think most Christians would agree that only God knows if you are a good Christian. That's what drives many Christians. My friend gives I think more than 40% of his income to the Church every month. And that's just money. I think almost every waking hour outside his work, he spends on church related activities. To him, that's just putting God first.
I asked my friend (who is a member of City Harvest) if he ever felt uncomfortable. Why does God need your money? Why does God need you to give? Aren't you aware of all the scandals surrounding megachurches?
My friend told me that God doesn't need his money, but he needs to give to God. Giving money to the church is his way of putting God first. Spending countless hours every week working to "win souls" is another way he puts God first. As for whether the Church may be corrupt, it doesn't matter. God knows that he is sincere in his giving. If anyone in the church abuses the gift, that person will have to answer to god. -
your friend is sure die hard god fan.Originally posted by Phaze:Devotion is not money. But money is the result of your work. When you give money, what you are really giving is your blood sweat and toil.
I think most Christians would agree that only God knows if you are a good Christian. That's what drives many Christians. My friend gives I think more than 40% of his income to the Church every month. And that's just money. I think almost every waking hour outside his work, he spends on church related activities. To him, that's just putting God first.
I asked my friend (who is a member of City Harvest) if he ever felt uncomfortable. Why does God need your money? Why does God need you to give? Aren't you aware of all the scandals surrounding megachurches?
My friend told me that God doesn't need his money, but he needs to give to God. Giving money to the church is his way of putting God first. Spending countless hours every week working to "win souls" is another way he puts God first. As for whether the Church may be corrupt, it doesn't matter. God knows that he is sincere in his giving. If anyone in the church abuses the gift, that person will have to answer to god. -
You know, humans (especially Asians) are intensely competitive. We have this "MUST-HAVE-BIGGER-CAR/HOUSE/BANK ACCOUNT-THAN-NEIGHBOUR!!!" Syndrome.
Looking at the context, its not surprising that this particular bunch was sent to perhaps one of the most trouble-prone spots on Earth in order to beat the opposition in this game of one-upmanship.
Come on, if you genuinely want to do some good, send a mission to Africa or something. The people in some of the troubled spots there genuinely need foreign aid, and the local militias will usually refrain from attacking foreigners because they need to maintain their PR. Its a win-win = no one dies, you get to help people, and your church gets publicity. -
Yes. But he is a really nice guy and absolutely sincere.Originally posted by january:your friend is sure die hard god fan.