| Vietnam is a multi-religious country. Our Party and State always pay attention to, care for, and create conditions to better meet the people's needs for beliefs and religions. However, recently, some cults (including the "Church of God the Mother") have been operating secretly and illegally in some localities, affecting political security (SPS), social order and safety (SO), negatively impacting social life, causing confusion and frustration among a segment of the masses and followers of religions, and dividing the great national unity bloc. In many places, the leaders have sought to deepen or exaggerate the limitations and shortcomings in the implementation of ethnic and religious policies to accuse Vietnam of violating democracy and human rights; creating an excuse for outside intervention and sabotage of the country. |
The consequences and harms of believing in and following the HTCĐCTM have been warned by media agencies and authorities. Many people have had their families broken up because of following the HTCĐCTM; students have dropped out of school and work to join meetings, find ways to entice and entice others, affect security and order, and do things that go against good customs; cause conflicts within families and clans, cause cultural conflicts, and cause division between religions... Although it has only recently rekindled its activities, the number of believers and followers is not yet large, but the consequences it causes have been forewarned.
Family broken because of believing in evil religion
Around August 2021, being enticed and enticed by HTCĐCTM members, Ms. NTH, in Dong Ve ward, Thanh Hoa city, believed and joined the activities. Seeing that his wife often gathered with strangers, often neglected her work, and did not take care of her family and children, her husband, Mr. NVH, followed her and was "shocked" when he discovered that his wife was following HTCĐCTM.
After many times of advising and preventing, Ms. H still did not wake up, forcing him to meet and discuss with the leaders of the agency where his wife worked to ask for intervention and influence. What made Ms. H's husband the saddest was that not only did his wife not listen to the good and right things from her own relatives and colleagues, but she also firmly believed in the preaching of the subjects in the HTCĐCTM and continued to neglect her family and children, causing family life to be turned upside down, with frequent conflicts and arguments. Despite trying every way, his wife still did not change. In June 2022, Ms. H's husband had to accept a divorce so that his wife could follow her blind beliefs. He left the two young children to take care of alone, and his wife did not hesitate or regret her decision.
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| Mr. H was very upset when his wife joined the 'Church of God the Mother'. |
According to the interpretation of HTCĐCTM, God incarnated into Mr. Ahn Sahng Hong, God the Mother incarnated into Mrs. Jang Ja Gil, so in religious activities, followers of HTCĐCTM will call Ahn Sahng Hong and Jang Ja Gil. They believe that believers are children of God the Father, God the Mother, and biological parents are just flesh; only HTCĐCTM understands and practices the words of God in the Bible correctly, those who do not believe are all demons (including friends and relatives).
It is these ideologies and deviant interpretations that have caused many people, when joining this organization, to destroy incense bowls and ancestral altars; to reject their parents, children, and relatives when they try to stop them; and to give up their jobs, causing their family's economy to suffer.
During the process of preaching, HTCĐCTM advised its followers to set aside 10% of their income to do charity work to help others, in order to receive many blessings from God. Although it said that it did not force members to pay money, but with threats like "God sees everything you have", "how much money you have, you cannot hide because God knows"... This made members afraid and had to pay the full 10% of their monthly income.
Not only that, every holiday, participants whisper to each other to make offerings on catechism day to “communion” with God; then they have to buy scriptures, documents, materials for preaching, studying, and activities of the saints, rent Internet applications, etc. At first, new participants do not have to pay, some people in difficult circumstances are supported, but after they believe, they have to pay regularly. However, no one knows what this money is used for or how. Some is used to maintain the activities of the church, the rest is used to “build a house in heaven”.
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| Ms. L. recounted the incident. |
Ms. Le Thi L, in Mat Son, Dong Ve ward, Thanh Hoa city said: Around November 2022, my husband was invited to a coffee shop to drink water to hear an introduction to the car and real estate business. But when we met, they shared about the Bible, about the end of the world, about opening the divine eye, opening the spiritual eye, if you follow HTCĐCTM, you will be blessed by God, but if you do not believe, do not follow, you will be punished.
Since joining, my husband has stopped his job, spending all day with them studying catechism and canon law, and when he comes home, he also studies on Zoom without working or paying attention to the family. Not only that, he also uses what he has learned to propagate and entice me to join. My family and I have tried our best to dissuade and persuade him, but he still does not listen, which has led to many disagreements and conflicts, affecting family happiness, and economic decline...
More dangerously, HTCĐCTM also tries to attract members who are students studying at universities and colleges in the area; many students have thus had their studies affected. In June 2020, Mr. Nguyen Van T (born in 1998) in Hai Thanh ward, Nghi Son town, a student at the Thanh Hoa branch of Hanoi Medical University, was invited by a friend studying at Hanoi Medical University Hospital to join HTCĐCTM.
After nearly 2 years of following HTCĐCTM, fortunately with the family's determination, T gradually realized the consequences, so he stopped participating in activities since February 2022. Recalling, Mr. T said: When I joined, there were about 10 people participating in the same activities, but no members knew information or learned about each other, so we didn't know who was who. I only know that there was a classmate who was one year below me who also joined HTCĐCTM. For working people, the contribution is 10% of monthly income, and for students like me, the contribution is 100 - 200 thousand VND.
Need coordination and consensus
Recently, along with the participation and fierce struggle of the police force to prevent and strictly handle related violations, agencies, departments, branches, organizations and functional forces in Thanh Hoa province strongly protested and requested strict handling of violations of the law by HTCĐCTM.
Mr. Ho Viet Anh, Head of the Religious Affairs Department, Thanh Hoa Province Department of Home Affairs, said: HTCĐCTM has not been authorized by competent authorities to conduct religious activities. Most of the activities of the groups named HTCĐCTM in the recent past have violated the law; these groups have not been approved by competent authorities to register for collective religious activities.
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| Ho Viet Anh, Head of the Religious Affairs Department, Thanh Hoa Province Department of Home Affairs, talks with reporters. |
According to the provisions of the Law on Belief and Religion, the performance of religious rituals, preaching, and proselytizing by dignitaries, officials, and monks must be conducted at religious establishments or other legal locations. If preaching is outside the area of responsibility, religious establishments, or registered legal locations, it must be approved by the competent state agency where the organization is planned. The fact that subjects propagate about the HTCĐCTM at gathering places without the approval of the competent state agency and some groups have profit-making motives, put forth magical arguments as well as methods and tools to fascinate and entice people to participate in some localities, causing confusion and indignation among the masses is a violation of the provisions of the Law on Belief and Religion.
With many illegal acts that negatively affect believers, their families and society, the activities of these groups, regardless of their form, must be condemned and strictly handled according to the law.
Pastor Duong Van Tuan, Director of the Vietnam Evangelical Church (North) Thanh Hoa Evangelical Church also frankly expressed his opinion about the Protestant Reformation: From the viewpoint of those in the Vietnam Evangelical Church, we see that the doctrine of the Protestant Reformation is a heresy that we have recognized for a long time, it has a very harmful impact on social security, as well as on the Churches of God in Vietnam. They carry the name "Church of God", but do things that go against the Bible, against the words of God.
For Protestant churches, the leaders and missionaries will be responsible before the law, with the duty to protect their followers from incidents, but because of illegal activities, the missionaries and leaders of the HTCĐCTM organization never show up, and if incidents occur, they do not dare to stand up to take responsibility, or protect the followers when they believe. Their wrongdoings are not good for society, for the community. We are very indignant, and request that the government take strong measures to awaken them to return to a life of faith; to stabilize social order.
In essence, through the documents, it is shown that HTCĐCTM also considers itself to be based on the Bible, but in reality, it quotes fragmentary Bible passages, incorporates personal interests, contradicts some of the content in the Bible itself, thereby contradicting the teachings of other sects and groups. Other sects and groups reacted quite strongly and most of them considered this religious phenomenon to be "heresy".
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| Thanh Hoa City Police discovered and removed the propaganda and activity site of the 'Church of God the Mother'. |
Faced with the complicated activities of the HTCĐCTM in recent times, the Thanh Hoa Provincial Police force has deployed many measures to prevent and suppress the illegal religious activities of this organization; at the same time, it has discovered, arrested and strictly handled many HTCĐCTM groups, confiscated many documents and exhibits related to illegal religious preaching and activities.
Lieutenant Colonel Le Duy Dung, Head of the Domestic Security Department of Thanh Hoa Province Police, said: Currently, the police have investigated and clearly understood the organizational structure, methods and tricks of the organization calling itself HTCĐCTM; grasped the leaders, key members, and number of participants in order to have measures to combat and handle it.
The police force will continue to collect documents, consolidate evidence and fight against the illegal activities of this organization. Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, it will be handled according to the provisions of the law, including considering criminal prosecution for acts that cause serious consequences.
Eliminating heresy requires the coordination and consensus of all agencies, organizations and individuals. That is the police force investigating, detecting and handling individuals who commit fraud, hiding under the guise of beliefs and religions, specifically the HTDCTM. Schools, organizations and families join hands to educate and propagate so that people can recognize, be vigilant, self-prevent, not listen to, not believe in, and not participate in heresy and illegal religious organizations. But most importantly, each person needs to raise their awareness and understanding, in order to have the right and clear-headed attitude towards the spread of dark and ignorant beliefs.
Article 331 of the 2015 Penal Code (effective from January 1, 2018) stipulates: 1. Anyone who abuses the rights to freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of belief, religion, freedom of assembly, association and other democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the State, the legitimate rights and interests of organizations and individuals shall be subject to a warning, non-custodial reform for up to 03 years or imprisonment from 06 months to 03 years. 2. Committing a crime that negatively affects social security, order and safety shall be punishable by imprisonment from 02 to 07 years. |
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