Shincheonji Church of Jesus During the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea : a dangerous cult or a political scapegoat?

The Shincheonji Church of Jesus is a new religious movement of Christian origin in South Korea. In February 2020, the church became the first mass infection cluster in the country. The ruling Democratic Party used this opportunity to blame Shincheonji for spreading the virus. The Korean media chose a similar narration to criticize this religion and its practices. Shincheonji already had a bad press due to a few scandals it was involved in. Global media also usually uncritically became interested in the "dangerous cult" story. In this paper, I argue that Shincheonji became the perfect political scapegoat, which helped the government in avoiding taking the responsibility for rapid growth of COVID patients. Until then, South Korea did not install social distancing policies and for most citizens of China there were no travel restrictions to South Korea. However, the government successfully transferred public criticism from itself to the minor church. This study shows that although some Shincheonji practices are controversial, they seem not unusual in the highly competitive South Korean religious market. Shincheonji Church of Jesus seems to have become a victim of political stigmatization and an example of scapegoating in South Korean politics.