More and more details are emerging about the South Korean church cluster believed to have been the center of a coronavirus "super-spreading" event as scientists and health professionals work to contain the virus.
Senior Health Provider Admits Membership in Controversial Church
An unnamed health official in South Korea's Daegu who leads the Infection Preventive Medicine Department in the city admitted on Monday that he is a member of the religious group linked to many other coronavirus cases in the region.
According to the South China Morning Post, the said senior health official tested positive of the CoVID-19 strain. He is among the over 450 confirmed cases that are members of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus.
Mainstream churches in the country consider the said religious group as a doomsday cult.
Aside from the said health official's confession, it was revealed that 50 other health workers who worked with him in the district's fight against the novel virus have been put on self-quarantine for precaution.
A children's cram school teacher in Daegu's neighboring city, Gumi, has also come out as a member of the said church, as well as a Daegu police officer. Both have been infected with the novel coronavirus.
KCDC Points Out Role of Church in Spreading Virus
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said the religious group's mass services may have triggered a "super-spreader" event after a 61-year-old female church member was linked to multiple coronavirus cases in the region, Business Insider reported.
Officials revealed that the woman thought her symptoms were that of the common cold. Furthermore, she didn't leave the country over the past few months, which made her bypass the possibility of a CoVID-19 infection.
Authorities are expected to look into 1,100 Shincheonji facilities around South Korea. All of the church's members have also been advised to stay at home while 9,600 followers in Daegu have been ordered to go under home-quarantine.
Former Long-Time Church Member Outs 'Secretive' Group's Mass Methods
Director of the Guri Cult Counseling Center in Gyeonggi province Shin Hyun-uk revealed details about how the church's mass services are implemented.
According to NPR, Shin stayed with the Shincheonji religious sect for two decades and he was also the church's former Bible study instructors' manager. He left the group in 2006.
Shin revealed that church members sit on the floor during worship services where they are seated together "like bean sprouts." He added that followers shout "amen" after every sentence from the pastor.
Aside from possibly transmitting the coronavirus through their packed services, Shin said proselytizing is done in secret, making it harder for other people to determine whether they have been in contact with a Shincheonji member.
South Korea Reports 60 New Cases
On Tuesday, the KCDC reported 60 new coronavirus cases in South Korea. The country's total now sits at 893.
Reuters reported that of the new patients, 16 are from Daegu, further heightening fears about the virus' spreading in the southeastern city believed to be the center of the outbreak in South Korea.
A total of 456 people as of Monday morning have been linked to the Daegu facilities of the Shincheonji sect, making up for almost 60 percent of S.Korea's overall CoVID-19 cases.
Hundreds of Thousands Sign Petition of Dissolution
Over 552,000 people have signed an online petition lodged on the official website of the country's presidential office. Under Cheong Wa Dae regulations, a petition that sees over 200,000 signatures will get a response from the office.
The petition calls for the dissolution of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, considered to be a shadowy religious group by many of its critics. The petition was lodged following the announcement that health authorities were facing difficulties in tracking down church members, the Korea Herald reported.
The government is reportedly investigating claims that the church failed to cooperate with probes into its facilities and church members. The investigations on Shincheonji are expected to help find out whether there were undetected infections among other followers.
