[Sportschosun reporter Jo Yoon-sun] 'JYP' Park Jin-young directly addressed allegations concerning the denomination of Firstfruits, the religious group he leads.
On the 19th, the Firstfruits YouTube channel released a video titled "What Denomination Is Park Jin-young's Church?"
Park Jin-young began by saying, "There probably aren't many of you who came here feeling at ease today. Especially if you have people around you who attend church, they probably all tried to stop you."
He continued, "You probably heard things like, 'You shouldn't go there,' 'I hear it's a strange place,' 'I hear it's heretical,' or 'I hear it's a cult.' The thing you probably heard most often was, 'What denomination are they?'" He added, "Ultimately, asking what denomination something belongs to comes down to one of two things: whether it is connected to another organization, or whether it shares something doctrinally identical with it."
Park Jin-young appeared to be referring to the fact that some people are curious about whether Firstfruits is connected to a particular religious organization and which existing denomination has similar doctrines.
Addressing the issue, he said, "Firstfruits is not, contrary to what you might expect, a church without a lineage. It has clear roots and a definite lineage. The standard for distinguishing doctrines and denominations should be eternal life." He then cited chapters 5, 6, and 12 of the Gospel of John.
Park Jin-young said, "Our church has people who came from Catholicism, Presbyterianism, the Baptist Church, and Shincheonji. Just because our church has someone from a Shincheonji background, that doesn't make our church Shincheonji, does it?" He continued, "Denominations are distinguished based on doctrine, and doctrines can be distinguished by examining how they explain eternal life."
He added, "Our church teaches that eternal life is obtained through a mysterious and perfect faith, received as a gift only by those who have repented."
Park Jin-young was previously embroiled in religious controversy in 2018 after a media outlet reported that he was a member of the Salvation Sect and had led related gatherings. At the time, he denied the allegations, saying he was not a member of the Salvation Sect.
He later addressed the allegations again when he appeared on Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC)'s Radio Star in 2020. He explained that he had begun seriously studying the Bible after visiting Jerusalem, and that the study group he participated in grew in size and eventually developed into the church it is today.
Park Jin-young said, "I was reported as if I were connected to some religious organization, but that was completely untrue. We were simply a Bible study group made up of acquaintances with no ties to any organization. The media also found through its reporting that it wasn't true, but no one published a correction."
When asked about the denomination at the time, he drew a line, saying, "There is no denomination. It is still just a Bible study we conduct among ourselves."
This article has been translated by GripLabs Mingo AI.
