Posted on 03/10/2014 7:33:49 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Posted By Rick Moran On March 9, 2014 @ 1:06 pm In Politics | 34 Comments
They’re being charged with attempting to overthrow the regime, but their real crime is that they were working with jailed South Korean Christian missionary Kim Jung-wook to set up 500 underground churches in North Korea.
They are not being “executed.” Using that word would lend some legality and moral framework to Kim’s action. This is nothing less than a massacre of innocent human beings — a slaughter that should raise an outcry in every civilized nation of the world.
Thirty-three North Koreans face execution after being charged with attempting to overthrow the repressive regime of Kim Jong-un.
The Koreans have landed themselves in hot water after it emerged they had worked with South Korean Baptist missionary Kim Jung-wook and received money to set up 500 underground churches. It is understood they will be put to death in a cell at the State Security Department.
Experts believe the North Koreans are being punished more harshly than usual as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un combats a wave of dissatisfaction at the regime’s isolationist “juche” doctrine.
Missionary Kim Jung-wook was arrested and jailed last year for allegedly trying to establish underground churches. Last week he held a press conference at which he apologized for committing “anti-state” crimes and appealed for his release from North Korean custody.
He told reporters that he was arrested in early October after entering the North from China and trying to make his way to Pyongyang with Bibles, Christian instructional materials and movies.
Kim Jung-wook said he had received assistance from South Korea’s intelligence agency.
“I was thinking of turning North Korea into a religious country, and destroying its present government and political system,” he said at the time.
“I received money from the intelligence services and followed instructions from them, and arranged North Koreans to act as their spies. And I also set up an underground church in China, in Dandong, and got the members to talk and write, for me to collect details about the reality of life in North Korea, and I provided this to the intelligence services.” p>A South Korean intelligence source in China took issue with Kim’s account, saying that the missionary did not enter North Korea voluntarily, but was kidnapped by agents of the Pyongyang government in China.
During Kim Jung-wook’s press conference, North Korean officials also showed video of North Koreans who confessed to coming into contact with the missionary.
The North Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported that they said that Kim told them to build a church on the site where a massive statue of North Korea’s founder, Kim Il-Sung, stands in Pyongyang whenever the regime falls.
Anyone who believes those coerced “confessions” should be institutionalized for having lost touch with reality. The question now is whether Kim will carry through with his bloodthirsty plan. Or will he demonstrate his “mercy” by commuting the sentences to something less than death?
Kim is liable to make the same mistake Roman emperors made when they tried to stamp out Christianity, as I’ll explain on the next page.
The Roman emperors dealt with Christianity by trying to send a message that it was dangerous to follow the teachings of Christ. Particularly brutal public executions were designed to make anyone think twice about joining the sect.
But the unintentional consequence of the emperor’s reign of terror was that the public executions of Christians set a shining example of grace and courage that many Romans admired — as much as they admired such attributes in the arena or in their army. Rather than snuff out Christianity, the brutality caused a flood of new converts.
Kim may not have bargained for something similar happening here. The types of people who will defy Kim’s anger are exactly the types most able to spread the Good News and give courage and hope to others.
In the meantime, I await the cries of outrage from western governments, whose very existence and animating ideals can be traced directly to the Christian church. Recently, it seems that most western countries are fleeing their foundational past rather than rediscovering the moral underpinnings of their beginnings that made their societies the richest, and the freest, in the world.
Time to remember them now.
SLA...Sandanese Liberation Army
Cultures which lack a basis in western civilization and Judaeo-Chrstian morality, are societies ripe for tyrants like the little turd who runs North Korea.
Wipe him from the butt of North Korea, and another will just replace him.
Peter denied Christ at the time of His greatest need, as did the other disciples. But as we recall, Christ forgave them all.
I think Christ will forgive this man as well.
Who knows what any of us would do under similar circumstances. The body can only take so much.
I pray for this man and his courage that none of us have displayed. He went in where he knew it was dangerous because he loved Christ.
What have we done?? Do we witness as work?? The gym??
Do we take a stand in the public square and open ourselves up to ridicule??
Unless we’re willing to put it all on the line like this man has, we best put down our stones and examine our own lives.
I agree. It ought to be a daily task for Christians to examine their conscience regarding martyrdom. “What would I do if I was faced with the threat of death - would I confess Jesus Christ as my Lord - or would I deny Him?” Believe me, it is a very humbling exercise. But, I think if we are honest, we really ought to do this exercise daily, and then ask God for strength from the Holy Spirit.
One more thing - the last part of the “Our Father” prayer is ‘deliver us from evil”. We should not ignore that part of the prayer. A plea for God’s help and His mercy is always needed in life.
God Bless.
The UN just announced that it was diverting the human rights task force from the Congo Republic to Korea immediately.
Crazy isn’t it?
Anybody else remember in grade school playing “Smear the Queer”, the game was played during recess at our public school, it was simple: a football was carried by an individual who tried to evade getting smeared (severely defeated) smashed and pummeled by the rest of the players, when he’d had enough he’d toss the ball in the air and the next brave soul would then make a run for it.
I miss the game, if for no other reason than grade school aged boys inherently knew that being a queer was not something they ever wanted to be mistaken for.
I meant to reply to both of you.
Amen!
It’s Christians so it’s all good, but god forbid he massacre Muslims, be hell to pay from the US.
I'm definitely not judging him. I don't know what really happened and his apology does not explicity deny the LORD. I assume he was tortured and broken. I would certainly vote for forgiveness and mercy. Any of us could fail under those circumstances. We are supposed to give up our life rather than deny the LORD. God grant us deliverance if we are ever tried in this manner. Lots of folks keep searching for the roots of the faith. This is it.
Agree.
Btw...this was meant as a question of your motive toward the man.
NK is utopia so of course it is hell on earth
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