Jane Yoon, a congregant at Korean Central Presbyterian and a year-old high school junior in nearby Marietta, said she increasingly worries for her family, which is of Korean descent, and was shocked by the killings. It also hit home on a very personal level: Last week, she said, she was in a car accident and another driver punched her in the face and body before she was able to call Following that incident, she has been getting spiritual guidance and counseling from the congregation.
In the Atlanta suburb of Roswell, the Rev. Catanus, the lead pastor, who is Filipino American. But he said much works remains to be done in faith communities and called on religious leaders to denounce anti-Asian racism from their pulpits. The AP is solely responsible for this content. Manage Newsletters. Click to Read More and View Comments. Click to Hide. Bae has acknowledged being a missionary and said he conducted services in the North, according to an audio sermon and note posted on the website of a Korean Presbyterian church in St.
Louis in the United States. Bae said he had been moved by his faith to preach in North Korea, ranked the most hostile to Christianity by Open Doors International, a Christian advocacy and aid group, since the late s. Church officials declined to comment on the contents of the website. The recording has since been removed. In previous cases of Americans being imprisoned in North Korea, their release has been secured by high profile visits as the two countries do not have diplomatic relations.
Two U. He declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the case. Bae moved to the Chinese border city of Dandong in and carried out his own mission work inside North Korea, according to the St Louis church web-page. North Korea has religions denominations including Protestant and Catholic churches but services and activities are strictly under state control and there is no freedom of worship, Christian groups say.
The two Protestant churches in Pyongyang are viewed as showcases where North Korea takes visitors to advertise its claim to religious freedom. Unlike other Americans, largely of Korean descent, who have been arrested for entering North Korea illegally, Bae was a legitimate visitor with an official invitation at least in , according to his audio recording on the church website.
The Christian source described Bae as a devoted Christian missionary with good intentions.
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