Catholic Daejeon Diocese Priest Kim Yongtae's Political Mass Sparks Controversy
Using Apocalypse Metaphor: "Let's Pull Out Yongsan's Imugi"
A priest who compared the December 3 emergency martial law situation to the Book of Revelation in the Bible during a national mass is gaining attention belatedly.
On the 25th, the YouTube channel 'MBC News' posted footage of a national prayer meeting held on the 9th at the Cathedral Parish Church in Daeheung-dong, organized by the Justice and Peace Committee of the Catholic Diocese of Daejeon. On that day, Father Kim Yong-tae Mateo explained the emergency martial law by likening it to the Book of Revelation. Father Kim Yong-tae Mateo is also well known as a descendant of Father Kim Dae-geon Andrea, the first Catholic priest in Korea.
Father Kim brought up the story of the seven-headed, horned dragon from Revelation 12:3. He said, "This dragon leads monsters with evil hearts, tormenting or corrupting deeply faithful humans to separate them from God, hence it is described as the 'devil' or 'Satan.' The dragon is cast out of heaven but gathers an army to wage war. However, it is instantly destroyed by fire sent from God, and the dragon itself falls into a sea of fire and sulfur, suffering torment." He then explained the passage where God and the dragon fight in Revelation and continued his sermon by saying that Satan fell to the earth.
At this point, he said, "The place where this evil dragon from Revelation has taken root, we call that place Yongsan." He was criticizing Yongsan (the Presidential Office) in relation to the emergency martial law situation of December 3, which was less than a week old at the time. About 1,000 attendees at the mass laughed heartily and applauded in agreement.
Father Kim continued, "But even the term 'dragon' is too generous for the Yongsan Imugi, the ancient serpent, also called the devil or Satan, the one who deceived the whole world, who on the night of December 3..." Before uttering the next word, he gave an explanatory note. Then he said, "went crazy (jiXbalgwang)." He added, "If you look up 'jiXbalgwang' in the dictionary, it is a Gyeongbuk dialect term meaning 'dog XX,'” which drew laughter.
He went on, "Martial law in broad daylight in 2024? At first, I thought it was fake news. In fact, it was a pseudo-martial law, a personal coup disguised as such, a rebellion against the people who are the true owners of the country," and said, "The Yongsan Imugi’s jiXbalgwang disregarded everything and rushed to the National Assembly, but the courage of the citizens, the conscience of the martial law soldiers, and the prayers of the entire nation who stayed awake through the night with folded hands met, and it ended within a few hours."
He concluded, "Together with all the people who long for democracy, we must take the lead in pulling down Yongsan’s Imugi, the national rebel ringleader Yoon Seok-yeol and his band of traitors from power and send them to the prison prepared for them."
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