Friday, February 16, amid fresh revelations that he fears the spread of Christianity in his isolated nation.
Investigators of Netherlands-based Christian rights group Open Door told BosNewsLife that they obtained secret documents showing that the North Korean regime views Christianity as being responsible for the fall of Communism in Europe.
Christians in North Korea are patiently awaiting the end of Kim Jong-Il’s rule and have been encouraged by a worldwide prayer campaign, said Open Doors, which declared this week the "North Korea week."
North Korea’s Stalinist system of carrying out Communism is based on "total devotion" of the ruler. North Korean authorities have denied wrongdoing saying the North Korean people love to serve their "dear leader." Open Doors estimates there are up to 70,000 Christians in labor camps and has named it the country with the "worst persecution" in the world.
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Yet, "although Kim Jong-Il persecutes the Church, we believe that God will judge this current regime. That judgment will come soon and we do our best to survive and to form a strong unity with fellow believers," said a smuggled letter from North Korean Christians, published by Open Doors.
INCREASINGLY "COURAGES"
The criticism in the letter shows that "Christians are showing more and more courage," said Peter, a contact of Open Doors with the North Korean church. "Many North Korean Christians know about the worldwide prayer campaign for them and that encourages them," Peter added.
Another letter of a North Korean Christian said believers were thankful for "the [Christian] books and medicines," adding that believers manage to survive "thanks to the endless involvement" of the international community.
"Many times I am not able to meet fellow Christians because of the difficult situation here, but if we get a chance we gather to share the Gods’ Word," a believer wrote in the letter published by Open Doors and seen by BosNewsLife. "I wish I could share more with you, but please understand I can not share everything because it is dangerous," the writer added in the letter.
Christian refugees from North Korea said "prayer and patience" was needed before radical changes were possible in the country. A Christian identified as Kim Jin Chul, which is not his real name, was trained by Open Doors in China and hopes to return to his nation and spread
the Gospel there.
BAD SITUATION
"I fled because of the bad situation, but when I became a Christian I wanted to tell my friends about my faith in Jesus Christ," he said. "Now I live in South Korea and follow a theological education so that when the borders open, I can return to spread the Gospel among children. How otherwise can they, who have been brainwashed, survive in a world without Kim Jong-Il?".
Another believer identified as Lim Mose, which is not his real name, studies at the same institute and said he still recalls how he worshipped the previous leader Kim Il-Sung. "The picture of Kim Il-Sung was the most valuable object in my house. Every morning when I woke up I would walk to the portrait kneel down, and pray to him, a ritual that I repeated in the evening before I went to sleep." He added that the worst words he said were: ‘Thank you father Kim Il-Sung. "I could say that earlier than ‘mama’," the Christian claimed.
He was forced to sing songs about the leader and "could not imagine a live without him." Open Doors and its key contact Peter told BosNewsLife it was important to pray for North Koreans "at a day when he is worshipped as a god." They said they have urged believers to "pray for protection and strength."
Especially young Christians have reportedly been betrayed and are often dying in prison camps, Open Doors and other groups have said. "Yet some survived, even after serving 20 years in such a camp. That’s also possible in North Korea today," Open Doors said in a statement. (With reports from North and Sourth Korea and the Netherlands).
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