This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Lee Man-hee (Korean: 이만희; Hanja: 李萬熙; born 15 September 1931) is a Korean church leader. He is the founder of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a South Korean religious group with teachings derived from Christianity.
Lee Man-hee | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 15 September 1931 |
| Nationality | South Korean |
| Occupation | Church leader |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 이만희 |
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | I Manhui |
| McCune–Reischauer | Yi Manhŭi |
| Signature | |
 | |
Early life
editLee Man-hee was born on 15 September 1931 in Punggak-myeon, Cheongdo County, North Gyeongsang Province (Keishōhoku-dō), Japanese Korea, Empire of Japan. Before founding his own religious movement, he was a member of the group known as Olive Tree and of another movement called the Tabernacle Temple (장막성전).[1]
Lee Man-hee served as a sergeant in the 7th Infantry Division of the Republic of Korea Army during the Korean War;[2] After the war, he returned to Punggak Village and worked as a farmer.[3]
COVID-19 outbreak
editOn 22 February 2020, South Korea confirmed that 231 of their 433 cases of COVID-19 were from within the Shincheonji church.[4] Lee Man-hee called the coronavirus a "devil's deed", but he canceled all gatherings of his faith. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the practice of gathering followers in close quarters for religious services may have contributed to the fast spread of the disease.[5]
On 1 March 2020, Seoul mayor Park Won-soon announced that the Seoul Metropolitan Government had made a criminal complaint about Lee Man-hee, asking for an investigation.
On 31 July 2020, Lee was arrested by South Korean authorities for allegedly violating the Infectious Disease and Control Act. At issue was a dispute over withholding data from the government for contact tracing, with the church asserting privacy. Lee was also charged with embezzlement. By this time, the Shincheonji Church was being linked to more than 5,200 coronavirus infections or 36% of South Korea’s total cases.[6][7] On 13 January 2021 Suwon District Court in Seoul acquitted Lee of violating the infectious disease laws.Lee Man-hee was sentenced to three years in prison. He remains out of jail on probation for four years.[8]
References
edit- ^ Kim, David W.; Bang, Won-il (2019). "Guwonpa, WMSCOG, and Shincheonji: Three Dynamic Grassroots Groups in Contemporary Korean Christian NRM History". Religions. 10 (3): 212. doi:10.3390/rel10030212. hdl:1885/204914..
- ^ "이만희, 박근혜 정부 때 참전유공자 등록…83세에 신청, 왜?". Newsis. 5 March 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
- ^ "뉴질랜드 기독교인을 표적으로 삼은 한국 종파. 교회는 효과적으로 대응했을까?". Christianity Today. 24 January 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
- ^ McGee, Luke (22 February 2020). "A controversial religious group is at the center of South Korea's coronavirus outbreak". CNN. Retrieved 2020-02-23.
- ^ "South Korea sect leader arrested over coronavirus outbreak". Reuters. Seoul. July 31, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
- ^ "Shincheonji: Coronavirus: South Korean Shincheonji sect leader arrested". BBC. Seoul. August 1, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
- ^ "Shincheonji: Korean sect leader found not guilty of breaking virus law". BBC. Seoul. January 13, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.