DKZ’s Kyoungyoon Admits He Was Part Of JMS In An Exclusive Interview With Dispatch

DKZ‘s Kyoungyoon admit he was involved with the JMS cult when he was younger due to his family ties with the church in an exclusive interview with Dispatch.

Dispatch conducted a series of interviews with both Kyoungyoon and his family. On March 8 and 10, they interviewed Kyoungyoon while on March 9, they interviewed his parents. Dispatch noted that the purpose of their interview was to allow Kyoungyoon and his family to confess their ties to the controversial church, reflect on their past, and apologize, not merely an explanation of what happened in the past.

When Dispatch straight-up asked Kyoungyoon which particular church he and his family were affiliated with, Kyoungyoon confirmed it was JMS.

Yes. JMS… that one.

It was since I was born. I went there while holding my mother’s hand.

I’m glad to know what the truth was, even at this point in time. But my parents are worried. My mother especially, believed in the church, attending for over 20 years… I hope she will be able to overcome it.

— Kyoungyoon

Kyoungyoon’s mother attended a Presbyterian church in the past. His aunt was going to work when she happened to come across a church, attended, and told Kyoungyoon’s mother about it, explaining that the church taught the Bible well. Kyoungyoon’s mother visited the church, and became hooked. It was a JMS church. This was in 1994.

I followed my mother around. When I was young, I would go to my aunt’s house. My family and some elders in the neighborhood would gather together to eat and talk, then they would go home. Weekends were usually like that.

This is the pastor aunt that was mentioned in a past interview. I heard she studied theology and became a pastor. At first, I evangelized at home. I remember she left our house around the time when I was in kindergarten and set up a church on the third floor of a small building.

— Kyoungyoon

Kyoungyoon’s aunt opened her own church in February 2020. It is attached to a cafe that is run by Kyoungyoon’s mother. There were suspicions raised online regarding the connection between his mother’s cafe and his aunt’s church. Kyoungyoon explained how he ended up joining the church as well as why he got out.

I heard about the JMS sermons through a video. My aunt said that JMS is the one who delivers the word of God. She said that JMS is a great man who read the Bible 2000 times.

I, too, watched In the Name of God. There was a part where he said “I am Messiah”. When I saw that scene, I thought he was crazy. But you might not believe me, but I didn’t know back then. It may seem pathetic but… that’s how it was.

I remember watching his video. Before he said he was Messiah, he would lay the bait, foreshadowing it for 2-3 hours. Then, when he finally said it, the countless number of followers would roar in response. That’s how you get dragged into it. It’s a kind of gaslighting.

I didn’t believe he was Messiah. My aunt said that he was the person who was the best at delivering the words of God. But it’s true that I was being brainwashed bit by bit. I had thoughts such as “if I compare Jung Myung Seok to someone, wouldn’t it be Messiah?”

— Kyoungyoon

As Dispatch continued to inquire for more information about JMS’s brainwashing techniques, the conversation then shifted to a story about how Kyoungyoon’s mother became firmly entrenched into the cult.

I don’t understand the brainwashing either. But if someone just straight-up tells you “I am the Messiah. If you give me sexual favors, you’ll go to heaven,” who would believe them? JMS does not approach things this way. They feed it to you, little by little.

For example, there were continuous stories about how amazing Jung Myung Seok is. There were testimonies and stories from various people around him. There was a person who even printed out a medical certificate and showed me, saying that he was told he needed surgery, but got better after Jung Myung Seok prayed for him. There were constant testimonies saying that he fixed their problems.

How could you believe that? Well actually, I didn’t have the right to choose my own religion. It’s just that my family believed in it… I didn’t have anything to compare it to. But I think my mother got even more into it because of me. When I was in elementary school, after that event…

When I was in second grade, my head just swelled up. I couldn’t eat anything and would continuously vomit. At that time, a pastor who was my aunt’s acquaintance came from faraway, and prayed for me, then left. Three days after that, I went to get surgery and there was nothing wrong with me. My mother seemed to have believed in the church even more after that, saying that the stories [of healing] are real.

But wasn’t it an illness that simply time would take care of? It was just the right timing… and yet that led to blind faith in the religion. Even if you catch COVID, you’ll feel better after 3-4 days with medicine. God didn’t make me feel better just because a pastor prayed for me. Now that I think about it, it was so stupid.

— Kyoungyoon

Kyoungyoon and Dispatch then moved on to the topic of Wolmyeong-dong. Wolmyeong-dong is where JMS’s retreat church was, where followers would travel to from near and far to experience what JMS had to offer. Kyoungyoon also talked about a picture he drew, which previously showed off on a broadcast.

I went to Wolmyeong-dong three or four times when I was in elementary school. My parents would take me there, saying that we should make good memories. I remember eating delicious food, swimming, playing soccer, volleyball, and basketball. Sexual favors? I had no idea that was happening. Those of us who came from the countryside to Wolmyeong-dong had no idea what happened.

I have seen Jung Myung Seok in Wolmyeong-dong. There was a basketball hoop and Jung Myung Seok was praying towards the court in opposite direction, but then he would then shoot the ball and all of his shots would go in the basket. I thought “What was that? Is that possible? Wow this is seriously crazy.”

There would also be 10 or more goalies in front of him, but he would score a goal. To be honest, it’s all about the impact. When I was young, I saw that and I got hooked. I remember telling my parents “Wow, there is a person like that in the world?”

There’s also a cliff on the way to Wolmyeong-dong. A stream flowed beneath the cliff. My mother once took me there to show it to me and wanted to show me something else. There was a tree on top of the cliff. A memorable scene. I even knew the name of the boulder there. The church would even quiz people, asking if they knew the name.

What you can see in the picture is actually a seagull, not an eagle. Of course, the eagle does have a symbolic meaning. There is a group shirt that has the eagle on it. But now I admit it. What difference would there be if you think the seagull is an eagle?

— Kyoungyoon

Dispatch then asked the hard-hitting question: Was Kyoungyoon ever personally active within JMS?

There were various groups such as hip-hop, dance, brass, and singing within JMS. I really liked to sing. I wanted to get vocal training from someone who was good at singing. However, I wasn’t even able to think about it because of the difficulties my family had. That’s when I applied for the JMS singing club.

This was around when I was in ninth grade, when I applied for the singing club. When I passed, I was invited to the band through Naver. The band had homework. In addition to hymns, there were also normal songs assigned as homework. It was almost as if it was a class that was being conducted online.

I was active with the singing club during my ninth and tenth grade years. Once or twice a year, there would be in-person meetings. There were no actual performances. JMS seems to have used teenagers and their interests to evangelize others or conduct missionary work. I didn’t question it back then. I just thought they were people who taught music…

— Kyoungyoon

Kyoungyoon was born in Youngdeok, a small county in the North Gyeongsang Province on the east coast of Korea. He attended all of his schooling in Youngdeok. During his time as a trainee, he would travel between Seoul and his hometown. Up until his trainee period, he would attend his aunt’s church.

Dispatch questioned why Kyoungyoon would attend a JMS affiliated church even though Jung Myung Seok was arrested in 2008, when Kyoungyoon was 8, and released from prison in 2018, when Kyoungyoon was 18. He must have seen the news about him, right? Kyoungyoon also explained how he never mentioned JMS to the public or his company.

Since I was young, I learned that Jung Myung Seok was falsely accused of his crimes. They teach a lot of reasons why he is actually innocent. It was almost like cramming them into us. With that, it’s like we were all brainwashed into thinking “Oh, well Jung Myung Seok was persecuted just like Jesus was.”

The Jung Myung Seok I saw at Wolmyeong-dong did not appear like a sex offender. It was my mistake to misjudge him just by looking at him. I only followed what others said, “don’t be swayed by the surrounding evils.” I didn’t think he would be a person like that. I am so ashamed of myself.

When I was young, I was bullied for believing in a pseudo-religion. I became a defensive person without even realizing it. When someone asked about my religion, I said I was Christian. We all believed in God anyway. I have never mentioned JMS to my agency, members, or anyone else.

I swear, I have also never attempted to propogate religion while being an idol. The closest people to me are the members and our fans. I have never mentioned JMS to either of them before, not even once. If I did, I would have no justification to stay as part of DKZ. I wouldn’t be able to face the fans.

— Kyoungyoon

Following this, Dispatch asked why Kyoungyoon never just left the church. While Kyoungyoon explained his story, he ended his interview with Dispatch by making sure he made clear one thing — he will no longer be associated with JMS.

In our Youngdeok church, there are less than 10 members. They are all like family to me. The JMS believers that I met were also good people. They went to good schools, had good jobs, and said nice words. They weren’t the weirdos like the people shown in In the Name of God.

There must be a lot of people who have the same idea as me. “We have our full faith in God, what else is the problem?” Having faith is not a sin… Jung Myung Seok and those who contributed to his crimes using God’s name should be punished. They are the perpetrators.

I saw comments saying that I should leave DKZ and go back to Jung Myung Seok. It’s not that I don’t know how the people who are blaming me feel. But can’t you try to help the people who are believing in JMS try to get out faster instead? It’s a shameless request, but I would appreciate it if you gave us a chance.

Why couldn’t I have just taken that last step back then? When I came to my sense, things were no different than from what the pseudo-religion group said. When Jung Myung Seok said he was the Messiah, we would confirm that, comparing him to the Messiah. It was just so cowardice.

When the controversy first broke out, I was suddenly very scared. I gave myself excuses, saying that I was ignorant. Did I really not know? I didn’t want my faith to be considered unrighteous so I turned a blind eye to things. I covered my ears and eyes. I’m sorry to see the victims’ pains.

Is it a relief that I am not a famous idol right now? Otherwise, if I was more famous, maybe I would have been used as a missionary for JMS too. It was awful. It’s late, but I am severing ties with the church now. No more JMS.

— Kyoungyoon

Remember, Kyoungyoon wasn’t the only person Dispatch interviewed. They also interview his parents. His mother did most of the responding, with his father chiming in just once. She first explained how she got into JMS in the first place.

I attended a Presbyterian church, but the Bible just didn’t have an impact on me there. Life was frustrating. Then, my younger sister clearly explained JMS’s doctrine to me. It seemed like there was an answer that my previous church was unable to provide.

I heard stories about In the Name of God from people around me. However, I believed Jung Myung Seok’s sermons for over 20 years. I lived my life drunk on those sermons. So I was afraid that everything I had believed in up until now would come crashing down. So I haven’t watched the documentary yet.

— Kyoungyoon’s mother

Based on this response, Dispatch’s next question was to ask Kyoungyoon’s parents whether they are still part of JMS or not.

Kyoungyoon called us while crying. He said we were all tricked. Honestly, I was confused at that time. But one thing is clear. No religion comes before a child. My son is the first priority. I can do anything for him.

— Kyoungyoon’s mother

What’s so important about religion? Not just leaving the church, I can do more than that. In the future, I won’t even break out any faith that can be tied to a church. I won’t go anywhere near that. Please believe me.

— Kyoungyoon’s father

The topic then shifted to Kyoungyoon’s mother’s cafe, which was suspected of attempting to spread JMS ideology to its visitors due to its connection with the church.

Graphic showing Kyoungyoon’s mother’s cafe on the left, and his aunt’s church on the right.

In 2020, my younger sister opened a new church, which the JMS foundation assisted with. The cafe and church are the same building, but the entrances are different. It is also not true that there is a door to the church from inside the cafe. They are not connected at all.

The deficit on our orchased was just too high. I opened a cafe to earn a living. We pay ₩200,000 KRW (about $151 USD) a month in rent for it. The sign was also handmade. It is true that we tried to imitate Jung Myung Seok’s handwriting for it. All of the interior decorations for the cafe, we decorated ourselves. That’s how we did business with just three tables.

We played church hymns in our cafe? Well, once or twice a week, DKZ fans would come to our cafe. I wondered if my son was that popular to have fans come, and I was very thankful. But preaching to those people like that? That’s absurd. That’s not true. We have never played hymns in our cafe. I wonder why decent people have to tell such lies.

— Kyoungyoon’s mother

The last topic was about the family, mainly the family dog and Kyoungyoon’s aunt (his mother’s younger sister). But she concluded with one powerful quote, one a mother should never have to say, especially publicly.

Entrance to Kyoungyoon’s mother’s cafe.

There are too many rumors being spread now. Kyoungyoon’s dog was an abandoned dog, not one related to JMS. It’s name was given to it because it was saved from the road and that it should live happily now. I hope no other meaning can be derived from this.

My sister attended a seminary for a church and ended up becoming a pastor after taking a course to become one. Sexual favors? That’s ridiculous. There are less than 10 followers here in Youngdeok. My family, the local grandfather and grandmother, that’s it. Something like that can’t happen in a rural town.

I’m too ashamed to face my son. It is not his fault. It’s because he met the wrong parents. I am so sorry about that. If you didn’t meet a mother like me, you wouldn’t have to go through all of this. I hope Kyoungyoon can return to his normal life as soon as possible. I’m sorry.

— Kyoungyoon’s mother

 

Source: Koreaboo – Read More