"If Closed, We Will Go to Gwanghwamun" Sarang Jeil Church Forces Third In-Person Worship Service Already

Face-to-face worship forced on the morning of the 1st... Over 200 people identified entering
Church claims "We are following government quarantine guidelines"
Violated quarantine guidelines three times... Facility closure procedures underway

On the 1st, churchgoers are leaving Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, after an in-person worship service. Police and district office officials are documenting the scene. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, which has entered the facility closure process after repeatedly violating quarantine guidelines, has once again forced in-person worship services. This is already the third violation of rules since the social distancing level in the metropolitan area was raised to Level 4. The church maintains the position that "there is no problem as we are independently taking quarantine measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19."

Sarang Jeil Church held an in-person worship service in the main sanctuary from 11 a.m. to around 3 p.m. on the 1st. The church conducted temperature checks and visitor log registration starting around 9 a.m. before allowing congregants to enter the sanctuary.

Seongbuk-gu, along with the police, attempted to enter the church twice at around 10:35 a.m. and 11 a.m. to inspect compliance with quarantine rules, but the church refused, stating, "We are following government quarantine guidelines and are even taking additional measures," and "We do not agree to on-site inspections."

Failing to enter the church, the district office and police instead conducted on-site documentation at the church’s front and back gates to ascertain the number of worship attendees. The investigation found that about 200 people entered and exited the church during the service that day.

On the afternoon of the 25th of last month, the second Sunday after the implementation of 'Social Distancing Level 4,' which prohibited in-person activities at religious facilities, officials from Seoul City, Seongbuk District Office, and the police were conducting on-site inspections and documentation of quarantine rules for face-to-face worship services in front of Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Yonhap News

This is already the third time Sarang Jeil Church has ignored quarantine guidelines and forced a large-scale in-person worship service. Previously, on the weekend of the 18th of last month, the first weekend after the metropolitan area’s social distancing was raised to Level 4, the church held an in-person service attended by about 150 congregants.

At that time, a scuffle occurred as Seoul city officials tried to enter the church but were blocked by the church. The district office imposed a fine of 1.5 million KRW on the church and ordered a 10-day suspension of operations from the 22nd to the 31st of last month.

However, the church again forced an in-person worship service on the 25th of last month. At that time, Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church declared, "There is clearly malicious persecution of the church," and warned, "If Seoul city issues a facility closure order against our church due to holding today’s service, from then on, we will hold the 'nationwide Gwanghwamun worship service for the repentance of the Republic of Korea and the recovery of Korea' outdoors at Gwanghwamun Square, which has no cases of cluster infection and is the safest."

Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon of Sarang Jeil Church / Photo by Yonhap News

Amid this situation, on the 29th of last month, the district office notified Sarang Jeil Church of the "prior notice of facility closure and hearing guidance," proceeding with the facility closure process.

The legal basis for forcibly closing Sarang Jeil Church lies in the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act. Article 49, Paragraph 3 of the current Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act states, "If a person who has been ordered to suspend operations continues to operate during the suspension period, the closure of the relevant place or facility shall be ordered." This clause was newly established following a legal amendment in September last year.

Meanwhile, this is not the first time Sarang Jeil Church has violated government and local government quarantine guidelines to force in-person worship services. The church was reported last year in April for violating Seoul city’s gathering ban order by holding on-site worship services, and related trials are currently ongoing.

In August of the same year, a cluster infection occurred among congregants attending worship, with the cumulative number of confirmed cases reaching around 670. During this process, Pastor Jeon also tested positive and was hospitalized for treatment at a nearby medical facility.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.