A South Korean court has ordered the arrest of Lee Man-hee, the 95-year-old founder of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, over allegations he orchestrated an illegal scheme for followers to join a political party.
Background
Lee is accused of violating the Political Parties Act, which bans religious groups from involvement in politics, and obstruction, for directing tens of thousands of followers to join the conservative People Power Party ahead of major elections.
Many mainstream Christian groups have described Shincheonji as a brainwashing cult. The church was thrust into the spotlight during South Korea’s 2020 COVID-19 outbreak, with more than half of early cases linked to its followers.
Lee, who has denied wrongdoing, is suspected of sitting at the apex of the operation, which authorities have described as a case of potential collusion between religion and politics.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
