Eastern Orthodoxy in North Korea

Eastern Orthodoxy in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a Christian denomination in North Korea, which has developed in the country since 2006 ^[1] .

As of 2011, the number of Orthodox Christians in North Korea is estimated at 50-60 people, which is about 0.0002% of the country's population.

There were no Eastern Orthodox priests in the country, so the Korean Orthodox Committee  [ nl ], established in North Korea in 2002, contacted the Russian Orthodox Church. ^{[2] [3]} The committee sent four students to the Moscow Ecclesiastical Seminary in April 2003. ^[4] All four were freshly baptized Christians who had formerly worked for the North Korean intelligence service. One of them, Feodor Kim (Kim Hoe-il), said it was difficult for them to adopt the Orthodox faith. ^[5] After the seminary, they were dispatched to Vladivostok to gain practical experience. ^[6]

Of the Orthodox churches, only the Russian Orthodox Church is represented, which, with the assistance of Kim Jong Il, built the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in the capital Pyongyang, located in the Jongbaek-dong, Rangrang District. ^[7]

When the church was consecrated in 2006 by Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk, the first North Korean priests were ordained - Feodor Kim and John Ra.

On December 28, 2018, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church established the Patriarchal Exarchate in Southeast Asia, which included North Korea ^[8] , and on February 26, 2019, the Korean Diocese was established within the exarchate, which included North and South Korea ^[9] .

In March 2019, Metropolitan Sergius Chashin noted that

For many years, there has been the Trinity Cathedral there, built by order of the now deceased leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Il. Students from the DPRK have studied at the Moscow Theological Academy and have been ordained to the priesthood. Another group of five people is currently studying at the Khabarovsk Theological Seminary  [ ru ]. Patriarch Kirill ordained two of them in Moscow in August 2018... The authorities are very favourable to the Russian Orthodox Church. Our diplomats, as well as employees of the Bulgarian and Romanian embassies, come to the temple and pray. We have no difficulties with North Korea in terms of carrying out our activities

^[10] .

References

1. Православный храм Святой Живоначальной Троицы в Пхеньяне
2. Burdick, Eddie (26 May 2010). Three Days in the Hermit Kingdom: An American Visits North Korea. Jefferson: McFarland. p. 181. ISBN   978-0-7864-5653-6.
3. AsiaNews.it. "Pyongyang: Orthodox community subject to authority of Alexei II". asianews.it. Archived from the original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
4. Do Kyung-ok; Kim Soo-Am; Han Dong-ho; Lee Keum-Soon; Hong Min (24 September 2015). White Paper on Human Rights in North Korea 2015. Korea Institute for National Unification(South Korea). p. 221. ISBN   978-89-8479-802-1.
5. "Orthodox Church of the Live-Giving Trinity in Pyongyang". Embassy of Russia to the DPRK. Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
6. "Kim Jong-Il and Religion: North Korea Builds an Orthodox Church". Spiegel Online. 11 August 2006. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
7. patriarchia.ru (2011-08-16). "Делегация Русской Православной Церкви приняла участие в торжествах по случаю пятилетия освящения Троицкого храма в Пхеньяне". Archived from the original on 2011-11-04. Retrieved 2011-08-16.
8. "Учреждены Патриаршие экзархаты в Западной Европе и Юго-Восточной Азии / Новости / Патриархия.ru". Archived from the original on 2019-04-13. Retrieved 2019-03-06.
9. "Образованы епархии в составе Патриаршего экзархата Юго-Восточной Азии / Новости / Патриархия.ru". Archived from the original on 2019-02-27. Retrieved 2019-03-06.
10. "РПЦ не испытывает проблем с работой в Северной Корее". РИА Новости. 2019-03-04. Archived from the original on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-03-06.