Knowledge of the outside world opened the door to despair. Knowledge of God opened the door to hope.
That is the conclusion Dr. Hyun Sook Foley draws regarding the current situation of North Koreans working abroad, based on letters released this week by her organization Voice of the Martyrs Korea, an NGO which serves persecuted Christians worldwide. The letters, dated the end of December, were written by North Korean workers in response to care packages provided by the NGO through its local workers. According to Representative Foley, the care packages contained medicine, hygiene items, and an audio Bible.
Audio Bibles being delivered to a North Korean foreign labor factory. (Photo altered for security reasons.)
“The five letters show that workers have virtually no practical choices available to them to protect their health and their lives,” says Representative Foley. “One North Korean worker wrote that they are ‘less free than animals’ while another described themself as a ‘slave dying helplessly’.”
Representative Foley says that the letters appear to indicate that COVID infections may be widespread among groups of North Korean workers abroad. “The North Korean workers wrote that they are afraid that if they stay where they are, they will get infected and die from a lack of medical treatment. But they are afraid that if they escape, they will never again be able to see their family and friends inside North Korea. One worker wrote, ‘Whatever it takes they’re trying to go back to Joseon’.”
But according to Representative Foley, the complete lack of human options is resulting in their being unusually open to God.
“They’re turning to God and relying on him daily even more deeply than South Korean Christians do,” she says.
One North Korean worker wrote, “We may find God more than others because the situation is very painful and difficult.” The worker added, “What is clear is that if we did not know God in the first place, we would have given up everything and lived a life without hope.”
“Karl Marx and all the communists who followed, right up to the present day, have always dismissed religion as ‘the opium of the people’, causing them to lose their focus on the so-called revolutionary struggle,” says Representative Foley. “But when North Koreans are sent abroad to work and they see the outside world with their own eyes, they realize that it is the North Korean ideology that is the opium. It has dulled their mind to the truth—not only truths about economics, politics, and culture that their government has concealed from them, but also truths about God, who they quickly realize is their only hope.”
Representative Foley quotes one North Korean worker who wrote, “If I didn’t know the world, it would have been easier to endure, but now it’s hard to endure. All the hardships that lay upon us would leave nothing but anger and hatred.” But the same worker added, “I talk about the Bible with my comrade every day. We’ve developed a relationship where we depend on each other for our lives. Even when we go back to Joseon, we have a plan to let our parents and brothers know the God we know.”
“When they hear the word of God, North Korean workers realize that the answers they are seeking can’t be found by fleeing, whether to South Korea or back to North Korea,” says Representative Foley. “The answers can only be found by seeking God today exactly where they are.” She quotes one worker who wrote, “Me and my three comrades fall in love with the Holy Spirit every day. Because it is our daily bread. God is with us every day like we breath and eat every day.”
Representative Foley says that Voice of the Martyrs Korea supplies audio and printed North Korean dialect Bibles to North Koreans inside North Korea, as well as to North Korean laborers working abroad and North Korean sex trafficked women in China. The Bibles are individually distributed directly to recipients, often as part of small care packages containing other items like masks, medicines, and hygiene items. She says that the distribution is done by underground Christians from North Korea and the other countries where Voice of the Martyrs Korea reaches North Koreans.
The year-end letters from North Korean workers released this week by Voice of the Martyrs Korea are shown here, with slight alterations in appearance to ensure the safety of the writers.
Hello. I didn’t know at first, but now I know that we are less free than animals that can’t go out or walk around. If I didn’t know the world, it would have been easier to endure, but now it’s hard to endure. All the hardships that lay upon us would leave nothing but anger and hatred. However, I talk about the Bible with my comrade every day. We’ve developed a relationship where we depend on each other for our lives. Even when we go back to Joseon, we have a plan to let our parents and brothers know the God we know. Recently, I learned about Christmas in detail, which I had never heard of it in Joseon, and I also learned anew that it was the day Jesus was born. I was very shocked that it was a universal holiday that only Joseon people don’t know. Wherever we go, we are with God, so we are never afraid. We believe that God will be with us also in the new year.
—
Hello. It’s been a while sending greetings. It’s been [X] years since I couldn’t go to my hometown in Joseon due to COVID-19. I was exhausted and tired. Perhaps if I hadn’t known God, I would have been just a slave dying helplessly. Many people were killed in groups in the ‘Arduous March’, but even that would not have been as painful than now. I relied on God and prayed, so I could have hope without collapsing. I encounter God’s love through the medicine and food you sent me. They say that the doors of Joseon will open next year. All the people infected with COVID-19 are dead, so whatever it takes they’re trying to go back to Joseon. I feel very bad that they can’t go to heaven because they don’t know God. I believe that God will protect us and be with us in the New Year. Thank you.
—
Hello, how have you been? Me and my three comrades fall in love with the Holy Spirit every day. Because it is our daily bread. God is with us every day like we breath and eat every day. In fact, we may find God more than others because the situation is very painful and difficult, but what is clear is that if we did not know God in the first place, we would have given up everything and lived a life without hope. 2022 is already at the end. I believe that God will give us new hope next year, and I will pray for it. Comrade [X] who was sick, survived after taking the medicine the boss brought her. We think it’s all done by the hands of God.
—
Hello. When I believed in Jesus, I had a wish to go to a church where South Koreans and Chinese people attend. For now, I think I’ll have to run away to make that wish come true. It’s hard to imagine going somewhere leaving my parents and younger brother (sister) in Joseon. That’s why I feel very complicated these days. Will God show me the path if I pray to Him? I just thank God for letting me forget all the pain I am going through now. I want to evangelize my comrades who don’t know God. I want to thank all teachers who didn’t forget us and helped us every time and wish you a happy new year.
—
More than half of our factory’s employees are infected with COVID-19. We don’t know who will die when and how. There’s nothing I can do but pray. Please pray for us. Thank you for sending us medicine and household items. I wish you a happy new year.
Representative Foley says that for the safety of its workers and the Bible recipients, Voice of the Martyrs Korea no longer releases the specific quantity of Bibles distributed each year. “Generally, we distribute 40,000 to 50,000 North Korean dialect Bibles a year in print and electronic formats to North Korean citizens outside of South Korea, though distribution has increased significantly during the pandemic as North Koreans seek the kind of hope and stability that are only found in Christ,” she says. She notes that the Bible is also read daily on Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s five shortwave radio broadcasts.
Individuals or churches interested in supporting Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s North Korea ministry can make a donation via website or wire transfer to:
국민은행 (KB Bank) 463501-01-243303
예금주 (Account Holder): (사)순교자의소리
Please include the phrase “NK Ministry” with the donation.
Evangelical believers paid a “tax on faithfulness” in 2022, and that tax is increasing, according to persecution watchdog Voice of the Martyrs Korea.
“Across the Russian Federation in 2022, basic Christian activities—gathering for worship, distributing Bibles and Christian literature, and personal evangelism—were investigated by Russian police and punished as crimes by Russian courts of law,” says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley. “Believers paid fines, appealed their decisions, and in most cases lost their appeals. It is a trend that Voice of the Martyrs Korea is monitoring closely as 2023 begins.”
Representative Foley notes that Article 19 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation guarantees the equality of the rights of citizens, regardless of their attitude to religion and beliefs. “It says that any form of restriction of the rights of citizens on the grounds of religious affiliation is prohibited. But in 2022, authorities across Russia visited not only the churches and homes but even the workplaces of evangelical Christian believers, interrogating them and charging them with crimes.”
“These believers were not demonstrating in the public square or evangelizing passersby on street corners,” Dr. Foley adds. “They were worshiping in their homes and church buildings and offering Christian literature in their shops.”
Voice of the Martyrs Korea designated six cases as representative of the “rising tax on faithfulness” evangelical Russian believers faced in 2022. The cases are detailed below.
YAYVA
On November 8, 2022, in the village of Yayva, Perm region, a trial was held against the presbyter of the local evangelical church, Stefan Valery. The court found Stefan V. guilty and fined him 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD).
The basis for the decision was a report from an inspector in the Ministry of Internal Affairs which said: “During the monitoring of social networks on the Internet, an official … revealed that Stefan V., professing religious beliefs of ‘Evangelical Christian-Baptists’ … carried out missionary activities for two years in violation of the requirements of the legislation ‘On freedom of conscience and religious associations’, disseminated information about the doctrine, held concerts, worship services, including among persons who are not members of this religious organization … And also he distributes materials like the newspaper ‘Do You Believe?’, which violated the law ‘On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations’, Article 5.26 Part 4 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.”
Representative Foley notes that the newspaper, “Do You Believe?”, is produced by a media company lawfully registered with the Russian government.
A court document showing an Unregistered Baptist, Stefan Valery, fined for missionary activity and distribution of Christian newspaper in Yayva village, Perm territory.
ARMAVIR
On April 11, 2021, in the city of Armavir, Krasnodar Territory, police and FSB officers and a group of people in civilian clothes drove up to the prayer house during a Sunday service. After the service ended, they questioned the minister, Vladimir Popov. They also examined the premises and took photos and videos. This was in addition to a video recording that had also been made by a person sent in advance to the church.
Officers from the Internal Affairs Directorate for Combating Extremism interrogated the believers and took samples of literature for examination. Later, Vladimir Popov was summoned to the prosecutor’s office, where he was handed a subpoena.
On June 28, 2021, the court found Vladimir Popov guilty of missionary activity and fined him 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD).
Later, Lyubov Popova, the wife of the minister, was charged with unlawful commercial usage of the land on which the services were held.
The “Do You Believe” newspaper that Stefan Valery, Pastor Vladimir Kharchenko and Maslenik Stanislav were accused of distributing.
SOCHI
On October 13, 2021, an FSB detective investigated the local house of prayer pastored by Vladimir Kharchenko. He then filed a report claiming that the church was in violation of the provisions of the Federal Law of September 26, 1997 No. 125-FZ, “On Freedom of Conscience and Religious Associations”. The detective said that the church was operating in an illegal building. The pastor was charged with organizing the activities of the church, carrying out worship services according to an established schedule, and giving visitors specialized religious literature including the New Testament, the Psalter, and copies of the newspaper, “Do You Believe?”
On January 11, 2022, the court found Vladimir Kharchenko guilty and imposed a fine of 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD).
ULYANOVSK
On February 19, 2022, Stepan Prokopovich, the presbyter of the local evangelical church, was summoned to the prosecutor’s office for questioning. He was asked: when do services take place, who preaches, what are the relations with representatives of other faiths, since when has he been a pastor, for what reason is the church not registered?
On March 14, 2022, the court ruled that Stepan Prokopovich should be fined 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD) for illegal missionary activity. During the appeal process, three more court sessions took place, and all of them upheld the earlier decision.
On March 16, 2022, Stepan Prokopovich was invited to a conversation at the Center for Countering Extremism. The questions were the same as in the prosecutor’s office. Soon he received by mail a statement entitled “On the ban on the activities of the local church.”
On May 12, 2022, the Zavolzhsky District Court of Ulyanovsk instituted a ban on the activities of the church.
NADYM
At the beginning of June 2022, FSB officers and the prosecutor’s office officials came to the house where the meetings of the evangelical church in Nadym were held. The owner was not there, so they were not allowed into the house. They then went to the workplace of the church’s pastor, Veniamin Zapotylok. They asked: who the Baptists are, how do they treat Jehovah’s Witnesses, why the church does not register.
On Sunday June 5, 2022, authorities came to the worship service. Proceedings were secretly filmed and later used as evidence in court.
On August 8, 2022, the Nadym city court found Veniamin Zapotylok guilty of carrying out missionary activities in violation of the requirements of the legislation, “On freedom of conscience and religious associations”, and fined him 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD).
Plaque on the outside the Nadym city court building where Pastor Veniamin Vasilyevich was found guilty of carrying out missionary activities.
ARMAVIR
On September 1, 2022 in Armavir, authorities came to the workplace of a Christian, Maslenik Stanislav, and accused him carrying out missionary work by distributing copies of the newspaper “Do You Believe?” to participants in a key-making workshop he led. They searched the premises and seized eight newspapers.
On October 10, 2022, the Armavir city court found Maslenik Stanislav guilty and fined him 5,000 rubles (approx. 71 USD).
To Chinese authorities, Chen Wensheng is a troublemaker who was actually less trouble when he was just a drug addict on the street years ago. But to Chinese Christians, Chen Wensheng is a powerful street evangelist who even after 10 years refuses to stop preaching the gospel even though he has been arrested more than 100 times, including most recently on October 12.
“They call him the ‘Gospel Warrior’,” says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley. “For years he has walked the streets of Hengyang City, Hunan Province, as well as in other provinces in China and even in Vietnam. He carries a wooden cross displaying the words ‘Glory to our Savior’ and ‘Repent and be saved by faith’, and he hands out gospel tracts, even to the police who arrest him.”
According to Representative Foley, local officials made multiple visits to Evangelist Chen’s home in advance of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in late October. “Police warned him not to preach during the congress,” she says. “Evangelist Chen says they tried to persuade him to join the local Three-Self church. He says they even offered to let him replace the two pastors of the local Three-Self church. He says they promised him the opportunity to preach to large crowds in government-approved locations in Hunan province. When he wouldn’t agree, they begged his wife to try to reason with him.”
“But Evangelist Chen just welcomed the officers into his home, gave them gospel tracts, and told them, ‘Officers, I’m glad you came again. Jesus loves you and blesses you!’” says Representative Foley.
She says that on October 12, authorities then took Evangelist Chen and his wife to a mountain for a half-month’s forced ‘vacation’, to prevent him from preaching during the Communist Party Congress. She says Chen used the time to rest and study.
Evangelist Chen, a former drug addict, reportedly heard the gospel in a rehab center.
“Years ago he was a drug addict. When he heard the gospel, he was delivered from his addiction and immediately began preaching on the streets. He’s been a street preacher for more than 10 years. He is a member of a small church, and yet even the authorities testify to the breadth of his impact.”
In 2020, national security officers told Chen that he had proclaimed the gospel four to five times each month in various regions to over a thousand people. “That year he was detained multiple times for sharing the gospel, and then he was detained another six times in 2021,” says Representative Foley. “He spent the 2021 New Year in a detention center. After 10 days, he and his 84-year-old mother shared the gospel and handed out gospel leaflets on the street, and they were detained again.”
According to Representative Foley, Evangelist Chen says he will never give up the mission God granted him, and he remains determined to spread the gospel even in prison.
Individuals interested in donating to Voice of the Martyrs Korea’s work in partnership with the house church Christians of China can visit www.vomkorea.com/en/donate or give via electronic transfer to:
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