'Actor Kang Ji-seop, "Left JMS 5 Years Ago," Identified by JMS Followers'

"Only Attended Worship on Weekends... No Other Activities"
Learned About Jeong Myeong-seok's Sexual Crime Facts from Documentary

Actor Kang Ji-seop, who was rumored to be a JMS follower on online communities, clarified that although he did attend the Christian Gospel Mission (commonly known as JMS) in the past, he has since left the group.

On the 12th, a post suggesting that Kang Ji-seop was a JMS follower rapidly spread on online communities. According to the post, Kang Ji-seop uploaded a message on his social media on March 16, 2012, saying "My life mentor's birthday." March 16 is the birthday of JMS founder Jeong Myeong-seok. Additionally, a Jesus statue frame known to be associated with JMS was found in Kang Ji-seop’s home, which was revealed on a variety show, further supporting the claim that he was a JMS follower.

In response, Kang Ji-seop told Yonhap News in a phone interview, "Around 1999 or 2000, when I was a college student, a JMS follower approached me on the street asking if I wanted to study the Bible." He added, "I followed them with a pure heart, thinking it was a regular church." Regarding his faith, he explained, "I only attended worship services on weekends and did not participate in other activities," and clarified, "I found it strange that (Jeong Myeong-seok) claimed to be the Messiah and was deified, so I stopped attending about 4 to 5 years ago."

Actor Kang Ji-seop. [Photo by Yonhap News]

Kang Ji-seop, who recently starred in the KBS daily drama 'Bride of the Typhoon,' has long been known as a devout Christian through various media interviews. He actively participates in overseas missions and volunteer work, and has stated that his ultimate goal is evangelism, saying, "I will work hard on my acting career to evangelize to more people," he also revealed.

Regarding the post on social media that day, he said, "It was a long time ago, so I don’t remember well, but at the time, I probably wrote it because I trusted those people." He added, "I kept the Jesus statue without any awareness of its connection to JMS, simply out of my devotion to Jesus."

Kang Ji-seop said he only learned about Jeong Myeong-seok’s sexual crimes after watching the Netflix documentary 'I am a God: People Betrayed by God.' He said, "I was very shocked and surprised after watching Netflix. They don’t talk about these things inside, and because the group is large, people don’t think it’s a cult." He concluded, "I sincerely hope there will be no more victims."