Is JYP Leading A Cult? Here’s Why Koreans Believe His “Bible Study” Is Dangerous

He’s been leading a Bible study, but that’s not all.
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Tegan Sweeting
Tegan Sweeting

Is J.Y. Park (also known as Park Jin Young, The Asiansoul, and JYP) leading a cult? Some Koreans are concerned.

Park Jin Young (left) pictured with Byun Gi Choon (right) at a meeting.

South Korean cults have become an increasingly hot topic recently. K-Pop album distributor Synnara Records has been boycotted since they have ties to the Aga Dongsan cult.

| Visit Korea

Actor Park Bo Gum even had ties to a controversial church and cult leader. He has since cut ties with them, though.

Park Bo Gum

They say this is a picture of Park Bo Gum, who attended the 7:00 service at Onnuri Church. I can’t believe I recognize that chair. I’m not sure if he visited during his time off, but it was crazy seeing him. Anyways, it was really good to see you at our church Bo Gum. I hope you sign up and keep attending for a long time.

— Netizen

Most recently, Netflix released the documentary series, In The Name of God: A Holy Betrayal, on March 3. It exposes the Providence Church‘s (also known as JMS).

Now, Korean netizens are voicing their concerns that J.Y. Park might be tied to a cult or even possibly leading one.

A Korean netizen on TheQoo shared a screenshot from YouTube for the channel FIRSTFRUITS, commenting that JYP is “constantly teaching the Bible on YouTube.” The channel’s tagline is “We invite you to the Bible seminar prepared by the first fruits,” and the thumbnails feature J.Y. Park prominently, and there are numerous videos that are nearly 1 hour duration.

First Fruits is a religious offering of the first agricultural produce of the harvest. In classical Greek, Roman, and Hebrew religions, the first fruits were given to priests as an offering to deity.

— Wikipedia

| TheQoo
  • [First Fruits] A Senior With Dementia Is Born Again
  • [First Fruits] Communication Skills
  • [First Fruits] The Donkey Being Used By God
  • [First Fruits] To Those Who Want To Believe, But Can’t (Includes Testimony)
  • [First Fruits] What It Means To Be Born Again
  • [First Fruits] The Rich Young Ruler And Children (Children Part)
  • [First Fruits] The Rich Young Ruler And Children (Rich Young Ruler Part)
  • [First Fruits] Errors In The Bible—How Should We Interpret Them?
  • [First Fruits] To See Vaguely, To See Clearly (Mark 8:22-25)
  • [First Fruits] Do You Know The Meaning of the “Lord”?
  • [First Fruits] Teachings for Children 1
  • [First Fruits] Teachings for Children 2

Netizens were shocked and honestly straight-up horrified by the sight of it. They couldn’t believe J.Y. Park had “fallen for something like this.” 

|  TheQoo
  • “I clicked on one of his videos out of curiosity, and… WTF. It blows my mind to think that JYP has fallen for something like this.”

Korean netizens find it extremely concerning that J.Y. Park is leading what appears to be a “Bible study.” Some are worried that he has fallen for something, while many are disturbed that a high-profile celebrity is using his influence to recruit others for an alleged cult.

|  TheQoo
  • “I looked this up, and it says JYP held a gospel seminar in Cebu, Philippines. LMAO. I mean, international K-Pop fans might have gone to check it out since he’s JYP, after all. He is SUCH a bad influence. WTF?”
  • “You know… I hate religion so much these days.”
  • “CULT.”
  • “It’s f*cking weird for celebrities to be so involved in cults. Like, I’m fine with him believing what he wants. But think about the influence he has… Sigh.”
  • “Seriously. I don’t think celebrities should be preaching their religious belief at all, cult or not.”
  • “The Sewol Ferry tragedy would not have happened had it not been for the cult crimes that went unsolved. All these ties and connections scare me and make me really sad.”
  • “Please, if you must join a Bible study, look for ones being held by official religious facilities or religious figures like pastors and nuns… DO NOT ENGAGE with Bible studies being held by strangers.”
  • “AHJUSSI, WAKE UP.”
  • “Ugh… I’m honestly worried about the artists under his management. What are we going to do?”534-543
  • “Is he on track to become some cult leader? This is frightening.”
  • “At his age, though, it will be impossible to break the belief he has already formed. No one is going to be able to talk him out of it. And his being so successful won’t help. He has too much conviction…”
  • “The worst case scenario unfolding as we speak…”
  • “WTF…”
  • “He continues to prove to be such a horrible person.”
  • “The more successful a person is, the less likely it is for them to believe they’re wrong at all. So…”
  • “I’ve been seeing a lot of misunderstandings about this, so I’m going to clarify. To become an official pastor, you must graduate from college and then go to grad school for a master’s in divinity. There are certification processes to be passed for someone to become a religious leader. There’s A LOT of studying involved, including languages like the Hebrew language. There are so many fake pastors and preachers who basically throned themselves without any real certification and ruin the reputation of the real pastors. So if you’re looking for a church, do the research and see if it has a legitimate pastor.”
  • “Looks like he’s basically locking himself up in his (flawed) logic. He’s not communicating. He’s preaching. He’s incapable of listening to anything except his own thoughts.”
  • “Oh, I had no idea becoming a pastor is so difficult.”
  • “What the hell… He’s using the power and fame he has to spread his cult beliefs to countries outside Korea?”

As some netizens mentioned above, J.Y. Park even traveled to Cebu, Philippines, to teach a Bible-based seminar. While it’s not uncommon for Christian ministers to travel for missionary work, it is apparent that people attended just because he’s a K-Pop celebrity, further proving that someone of his influence can seriously impact people.

@richieannecastillo

Day 2 JY Park Bible Seminar. Twice and stray kids??? #twice #straykids #jypark #jyp #bible #kpop

♬ original sound – Richie Anne Castillo – Richie Anne Castillo

@kebiinj

JYP 😱😭 #JYP #jypentertainment #twice #fyp

♬ Love You So – The King Khan & BBQ Show

The organization that J.Y. Park is tied to, FIRSTFRUITS, also has a website. It contains information regarding Bible seminars, Worship services, membership registration, testimonies, and more.

In their “What Do We Believe?” section, it’s a lot. Technically, in Christianity, which FIRSTFRUITS seems to claim, one is saved simply by confessing Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as their Lord and Savior. Yet, the details of what FIRSTFRUITS “believes” is so long that it’s more reminiscent of the Biblical Pharisees, that were “distinguished by strict observance of the traditional and written law, and commonly held to have pretensions to superior sanctity.”

Cults are also known to be incredibly strict and legalistic. So, this gives more reason to be concerned that J.Y. Park is associated with or leading one. Yet, that’s not all.

In 2018, Dispatch accused J.Y. Park of being associated with the Salvation Sect, a cult group linked with the Sewol Ferry tragedy. Dispatch also exposed details of a religious event held by JYP.

I rented this place with my own money for a Bible study session. Is this what you call a Salvation Sect?

100 people came to hear my lecture, and a few “Salvation Sect” members were in the audience because they wanted to hear my lecture. Is this a Salvation Sect meeting?

Am I really a part of the Salvation Sect, when I have no ties whatsoever to the businesses of the “Salvation Sect” – personally or through JYP Entertainment?

How will you ever take responsibility for the damage you’re causing to me and our company, by releasing such articles without any confirmation?

I’ve been getting together with a friend twice a week for four years to have Bible study. That meeting has now grown to about 30 people. But, you say that this is a ‘Salvation Sect’ meeting?

I’ll post my testimony so please take a look at it carefully. If there is any issue with the content in terms of legality or morality, then your reports are legitimate but if there isn’t, you will be liable for the all damage it has caused.

— Park Jin Young

(★EXCLUSIVE) The Full Story Behind JYP And The Cult Linked To Sewol Ferry Disaster

Even more concerning, J.Y Park’s wife is Yoo Byung Ho’s daughter (the brother of Yoo Byung Eun (creator’s son-in-law)) and has familial ties with Yoo Byun Fun, the owner of Sewol Ferry. His wife allegedly helped organize and manage the cult’s meetings. But in 2014, J.Y Park tweeted, defending his connections and even claimed that he was not religious.

I have no connections to this other than the fact that my wife is related to the owners of the company in question.

Is this a country where you can write anything based on those facts? If you have seen my interviews and the music I produced, you will know where I stand on my beliefs.

I have studied religion for many years but I still do not align myself with any religion. I hope these groundless rumors will stop spreading.

— Park Jin Young

A few years later, he got “saved,” though. J.Y. Park shared his testimony in the meeting.

They stopped trying to prove the Bible wrong in Jerusalem. I changed my life completely. I stopped doing every bad thing, but I wasn’t a believer yet. Why? Because belief has nothing to do with action…

I became a new person in October 2012. I surrendered in logic to the Bible. I became a believer on April 27, 2017. I was gifted (immediately) with belief.

— Park Jin Young

Apparently, J.Y. Park’s message in the meeting was closely related to the teachings of Kwon Shin Han, the man who created the Salvation Sect’s doctrine, which was then widely spread by his son-in-law, Yoo Byung Eun, which led Dispatch to believe further that JYP is indeed a part of the cult.

Now, of course, since a few years have passed, it’s always possible that someone is no longer tied to the same people they once were. But it’s undeniable that J.Y. Park’s recent activities, being heavily involved in Bible studies, are suspicious. Besides, he is still married to the woman heavily tied to the abovementioned cult.

Considering how much power and influence J.Y. Park has, his ties to religious organizations and/or cults are certainly concerning.

Source: TheQoo and FIRSTFRUITS
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