Jeonju Church where group infection occurred… ‘Healing·Gift Meeting’ Event
Probability of Protestant Coronavirus Spread
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[아시아경제 한승곤 기자] As the corona19 group infection occurred in a church in Jeonju, Jeonbuk, the anxiety about the spread of Corona 19 from the church is growing again.
In the past, the corona 19 spread around some churches, and controversy is expected as the deteriorating public opinion, such as the apology of the religious world, has started to evolve.
According to the Jeonbuk-do health authorities on the 4th, a meeting was held on the 25th to 26th of last month at a church on the 3rd floor of a shopping mall in Jeonju. The meeting was known as a healing and gifting meeting. As Jesus did in the Bible, it is one of the Protestant gatherings where members of the church gather to heal diseases.
The congregation in which the meeting was held is small enough to allow about 10 members to gather, but it is reported that more than 30 attendees gathered on this day.
Provincial health officials expressed concerns about the spread of Corona 19 through a media. An official said, “If I had worn a mask or distanced myself, this situation would not have occurred.” He added, “Because the list of attendees could not be made, we requested a list from the organizers.”
The authorities plan to close the religious facilities and continue to conduct additional inspections and risk assessments of members.
On August 15, 2020, Pastor Kwang-Hoon Jeon Sarang First Church speaks at a rally held in front of the Dongwha Duty Free Shop in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the condemnation of the government and the ruling party. /yunhap news
◆ How long will Protestants threaten COVID-19 quarantine rules?
Prior to this, corona19 confirmed cases were poured out, centering on Protestants. The stagnant corona 19 confirmed case also exploded due to the so-called Protestant Corona 19 spread.
Knowing the location has also been a problem. According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government at the time, the Corona 19 test results announced by a church on the website revealed that 12 protons and 1 withheld were announced, but they confirmed that they were not actually active in Seoul, causing confusion over quarantine.
Prior to this, many members of Sarangjeil Church, whose senior pastor is Pastor Kwang-Hoon Jeon, also participated in the’Liberation Day Rally’ on August 15, 2020, causing social criticism.
As a result, citizens’ anxiety and anger are growing. Mr. Kim, a 40-year-old office worker, said, “Is it Protestant again, I’m really sick of it,” and raised his voice, saying, “I can quickly become 1000 confirmed cases.”
Another 30-year-old office worker, Park Mo, said, “If you forget, the corona will erupt from Protestants.”
◆ Possibility of worsening public opinion despite aggressive apology, further spreading to local communities
Because of this, in January of last year, allied organizations and civic groups such as the Korea Christian Church Association (NCCK), the Korea YMCA National Federation, and the Korea YWCA Federation held a joint press conference at the 100th Anniversary of the Korean Church and said, “I’m sick of just being a church.” Has apologized, saying, “I feel a devastating sense of responsibility in front of public sentiment.”
However, it was investigated that the credibility of the Korean Protestant church fell significantly amid the Corona 19 crisis. According to the results of the’General Citizen Evaluation Survey on the Corona 19 government quarantine measures’ conducted by the Ministry Data Research Institute, a Protestant polling agency in January of the same year, 76% of respondents said they’do not trust very much or at all’ in Korean churches. Only 21% of respondents said that they are’very or slightly trusting’. The survey was conducted online for four days with 1,000 people in general.
Dividing the response of’trusting’ into Protestant and non-Protestant, 70% of Protestants said they trusted, but only 9% were non-Protestants, showing a marked difference. When asked if the state can restrict religious freedom for the public good, respondents said that 86% could “restrict it”.
Meanwhile, in Jeollabuk-do, 29 confirmed cases were added, including 17 who came out of a religious gathering for two days. However, it is not possible to exclude the possibility of further spreading to the local community as the current status of all participants in religious meetings has not been identified.
Reporter Han Seung-gon [email protected]