SEOUL, Nov. 13 (Korea Bizwire) – Religion and webtoons form an unusual pairing. Traditionally, religion is associated with solemnity and reverence, while webtoons are known for their light and humorous nature. However, in recent times, an increasing number of webtoons have ventured beyond merely borrowing the concepts of religious values, delving directly into religious doctrines, gods, [...]
SEOUL, June 23 (Korea Bizwire) — Individuals who prioritize religion over secularity tend to hold more negative attitudes towards sexual minorities, a study showed Thursday. A research team from the Department of Psychology at Sungshin Women’s University released an academic paper in which it conducted a Pearson correlation analysis of 308 non-sexual minorities aged from [...]
SEOUL, March 6 (Korea Bizwire) — Religious practice in South Korea has hit its lowest point since 1998, according to a survey conducted by the Korean National Association of Christian Pastors (KNACP). The survey, which interviewed 9,182 individuals aged 19 and above between February and November 2022, found that the share that identified themselves as [...]
SEOUL, July 22 (Korea Bizwire) — The state rights watchdog has ruled that mandatory church services at educational institutions constitute a violation of the freedom of religion. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said Thursday it has advised a local university to add an alternative course or project to replace mandatory church service. A [...]
SEOUL, Sep. 2 (Korea Bizwire) —Amid the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea, controversy is heating up over the government’s ban on in-person religious gatherings at churches. Some religious leaders, particularly those who are Protestant Christians with a conservative political ideology, are insisting that banning religious gatherings is a violation of the right [...]
SEOUL, Jul. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean Roman Catholic community is moving to notify the Vatican after a misandrist posted an anti-Catholic message showing an image of a mangled communion wafer, the local Catholic body said Thursday. An unidentified member of the misandrist online community Womad posted a photo of a Catholic sacramental [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 30 (Korea Bizwire) – Earlier this week, up and coming South Korean actor Park Bo-gum was embroiled in a scandal surrounding his questionable affiliation with the controversial Jesus Centered Church, after a post was uploaded on his Twitter account promoting an event tied to what many consider to be a religious cult. The controversy [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — The results of a survey of 505 Koreans’ thoughts regarding the taxation of “revenue” collected by religious denominations was released by research agency Real Meter on August 24. When asked whether the government should go forward with the intended implementation of taxation for religious leaders next year, 78.1 percent [...]
GWANGJU, Oct. 19 (Korea Bizwire) – The first verdict in a case of conscientious objection due to religious beliefs has been made at the Gwangju District Court of Appeal, with the judge declaring the defendant innocent of the charges. The ruling is expected to trigger controversy over the implementation of alternative forms of mandatory service. [...]
JEJU, May 9 (Korea Bizwire) – April 8 on the lunar calendar is Buddha’s Birthday. Converted to the solar calendar, this year’s celebration falls on May 14. To kick-start the festivities, lantern processions celebrating Buddha’s 2560th birthday took place in multiple cities across Korea on Saturday. According to a 2014 Hankook Research study, 18.1 percent [...]