When I searched for an important article on religion, the issue of Christians acting as border smugglers for North Korean defects was a common result. North Korea, the reclusive country on the Korean peninsula does not allow freedom of religion, so Christianity is not legal there. Many Christians are working hard to get Christianity into the country through sending Bibles and other things across the border; however, the most interesting part of this topic is its affects on international politics.
The first story I read was on a North Korean website and entitled, “Paying to God under the Kim’s portrait.” The story discusses the case in the news of South Korean missionary named Kim Jeong-Wook, who was recently arrested in North Korea for trying to spread Christianity. The article sets out its investigation from the ouset with a simple question, “what motivates an increasing number of people to risk delivering a message of spirituality to North Korea?” The article investigates different people and why they may choose to go to North Korea. According to the article many of them feel a sense of spreading Christianity to a last frontier where it is still practiced. Another component of the story is that many of missionaries are not just trying to spread Christianity but are playing active roles in the discussion of human rights violations by the North Korean regime. The article discusses this long history and how the third member of the Kim family is now in power. According to many of the missionaries, Pyongyang once had a great history of Christianity and with all of the issues going on in North Korea, it was felt their duty to restore it to its old greatness. The article argues that as missionaries continue to get so much attention in the media for the sacrifices they are making that it will continue because of the Christian idea of sacrifice and suffering God.
Another article on this topic was on the Telegraph and entitled, “Spreading the Gospel in North Korea.” This story focuses on the case of Kenneth Bae, a Korean Christian, who was arrested a while ago while on tour in North Korea. Bae has been sentenced by the North Korean court system for fifteen years of hard labor. According to article Bae was on a tour in North Korea and started to spread the Christian gospel. In North Korea where religion is illegal, this landed him hot water. According to the article while traveling in North Korea, people are mandated to be followed by a minder who listens in on their conversations on behalf of the government. While traveling, Bae would do things like sing Christian hymns. They said that they also met members from other countries, such as a person from Ghana, and Bae’s group asked them to pray for them. This article discusses how much good Christians are doing by getting arrested in North Korea, but much money has been poured into refugee’s communities by churches, so they do a lot of good.
The articles were very interesting and show how important religion is in regions of the world that are politically volatile. The issue of Christianity and communism seems to be an on-going affair.
Praying to God under Kim’s Portrait.” June 2014. North Korea News. http://www.NorthKoreaNews.com/Kim/Portait.
“Spreading the Gospel in North Korea.” Feburary, 2014. The Telegraph. http://www: telegraph.co.uk/north-east/asia/spreading.
