What Religions are there in North Korea?
North Korean government's stance on religion
The North Korean government promotes the guarantee of religious freedom, but in reality, it is cracking down on religious activities other than authorized religious organizations and strictly punishing them. It is known that shamanic beliefs remain among residents except for the activities of certified religious groups.
Religions in North Korea
In fact, in North Korea, foreign religions such as Protestants were originally spread before the current Republic of Korea, and at the time of liberation, the size of North Korean Protestants was more than twice that of South Korea. The activities of Cheondogyo, an indigenous religion, were also active, with about 1.5 million believers, more than Protestants and Catholics. The Soviet military government and the North Korean government supported the establishment of pro-government religious organizations such as the Joseon Christian Federation to include at least some of the religious people.
However, the confrontation with anti-communist forces in each religion, which began during the Soviet military regime, led to the North Korean government's full suppression of religion immediately after the Korean War. During the Korean War, many of the religious facilities were destroyed by bombing or shelling during the war, and many others were closed by the government.
Within a few years of the end of the Korean War, even pro-government religious groups became inactive. However, several pro-government religious figures, including Kang Liang-wook, only engaged in political activities as politicians. In the case of Kang Ryang-wook, he once mentioned that he was a Christian while delivering a congratulatory speech as the chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea at the 5th meeting of the Rodong Party.
North Korea's persecution of religion
North Korea was particularly persecuted for Catholicism. Catholic priests who remained in North Korea after the division of the two Koreas in 1945 were purged after the establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in 1948. In particular, it is known that during the Korean War, the Republic of Korea and the United Nations forces crossed the 38th parallel and slaughtered the remaining Catholics in North Korea. North Korea still maintains a massive crackdown on Catholicism. Except for one building called Jangchung Cathedral.
Religious groups operating in North Korea
Although the names of pro-government religious groups, including the Korean Christian Federation, reappeared in the 1972 Yushin Constitution and a statement criticizing the Park Chung-hee administration, public domestic activities of pro-government religious groups have yet to be seen. The Chosun Christian Federation, headed by Kang Liang-wook, opened the Pyongyang Theological Seminary in 1972, which was not known until later abroad. Through this seminary, several senior members of the Joseon Christian Federation, who were Protestants even before liberation, including Go Ki-jun, were ordained as pastors.
Recent Changes in the North Korean Government's Position on Religion
Since the 1980s, North Korea has publicly allowed limited but pro-government religious groups to engage in domestic activities and disclosed them to overseas Koreans and foreigners in accordance with the need for external propaganda and internal reconciliation. Bongsu Church and Chilgol Church were established in 1988 and 1989, and worship was held here, and North Korean media and books introduced it in a positive tone.
In addition, the service at the Protestant Home Worship Center, which was implicitly allowed for church members and their children before the war, was positively introduced through the media and books, and the service was opened to foreigners and overseas Koreans. In addition, religious people such as Pastor Son Jeong-do, who had a good relationship with North Korean authorities, were also known to North Koreans.
In 1992, the phrase "freedom of anti-religious propaganda" disappeared from the provisions of the North Korean Constitution, and the negative description of religion in the "Last Joseon Dictionary" was changed to a neutral description.
However, religious activities outside pro-government religious groups are still severely punished. If you are caught doing unofficial religious activities, you can go to the management center as well as the Rodong Training University or Gyohwa Station. Activities within pro-government religious organizations are also frequently pressured through one method or another.
One example is "guidance" not to worship or other gatherings at national anniversary events. Therefore, it is said that services are not held at churches and home worship centers during national anniversary events that mobilize people on a large scale, such as September 9th. It is said that there is often tangible and intangible pressure on members of pro-government religious groups not to advertise to others.
Statistics on the number of religious people in North Korea
According to an official announcement by the North Korean government, the number of religious people in the country is around 15,000 Cheondogyo, 12,000 Protestants, 10,000 Buddhists and 3,000 Catholics. Religious organizations recognized by the North Korean government include the Joseon Christian Federation, the Joseon Catholic Church Association, the Joseon Orthodox Church Federation, the Joseon Buddhist Federation, and the Joseon Catholic Church. As a consultative body of these authorized religious organizations, there is the Joseon Religious Association.
The first chairman of the Korean Religious Council was Choi Deok-shin, who defected to North Korea in South Korea. In any case, among North Korean authorized religious organizations, the Joseon Christian Federation is the most active among North Korean religious organizations, and its activities are relatively well known to the outside world. In addition to the activities of Bongsu Church and Chilgol Church, the activities of family worship centers in Pyongyang and local areas have been known to the outside world.
Religious facilities in North Korea
Representative religious facilities in North Korea are as follows.
1. Protestantism: Beacon Church, Chilgol Church
2. Catholicism: Jangchung Cathedral
3. Orthodox Church: There's a temple called the Holy Trinity Cathedral. It belongs to the Russian Orthodox Church.
4. Cheondogyo: It is known that there are 52 churches. It is the best-treated and most religious religion in North Korea, which emphasizes ethnicity, and there is a political party called Cheondogyo Cheongwudang, and Kim Il-sung has already praised Cheondogyo in his autobiography century
5. Buddhism: There are 64 temples nationwide. Since the early 1980s, public activities such as the Buddhist Association of Korea, including Hong Hwa-doo and Park Tae-hwa, have resumed, focusing on officials of the Korean Buddhist Federation who were monks before the Korean War. However, Buddhist temples are more like preserved and promoted as cultural heritages than as religious facilities.
However, on major Buddhist anniversaries such as Buddha's Birthday, a Buddhist meeting is held under the supervision of the Joseon Buddhist Federation. In the case of Bohyeonsa Temple in Myohyangsan Mountain or Gwangbeopsa Temple in Pyongyang, executives of the Joseon Buddhist Federation read aloud in the temple hall whenever foreign tourists want. The North Korean government has focused on reconstructing famous Buddhist temples such as Pyo Hun Temple since the Korean War, as it tries to curb religion but values national cultural heritage due to its unique nationalistic nature.
6. Islam: There is a mosque near the Iranian embassy in Pyongyang. It appears to be for Iranian embassy officials. In addition to Iran, Islamic countries with embassies in North Korea include Indonesia, Pakistan, Syria, Egypt, and Palestine, and India and Nigeria are countries where Islam is so strong that it cannot be ignored.