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"이번 일은 우리를 이슬람국가들로 인도하려는 신의 뜻"
인질사태의 가장 큰 책임자인 분당 샘물교회의 박은조 담임목사가 자신에 대한 비난여론을 '비기독교인들의 공격'으로 규정한 뒤, 앞으로도 이슬람지역에 대한 선교활동을 더 강화하겠다는 입장을 밝혀 파문이 증폭되고 있다.
박은조 "이번 일은 우리를 이슬람국가들로 인도하려는 신의 뜻"
박 목사는 미국 기독교잡지 <크리스채니티 투데이'(Christianity Today)>와의 인터뷰에서 이같은 입장을 공개리에 밝혔다.
4일(현지시간) <크리스채니티 투데이> 인터넷판에 따르면, 박 목사는 "이번 일(아프간 피랍사태)은 우리를 다른 이슬람 국가들로 인도하려는 신의 뜻이라고 생각한다"며 "이번 일이 선교에 장애물이 되지 않기를 원한다"고 말했다.
잡지는 박 목사의 이같은 말을 전하며 "박 목사는 선교금지조치가 해제되면 아프간을 포함, 이슬람 국가들에 더 많은 선교단을 보내고 싶어한다"고 덧붙였다.
박 목사는 또 "우리가 국가에 어떤 일을 일으켰는가를 생각하며 불면의 밤들을 보냈다. 진심으로 미안하다"면서도 자신에 대한 비난여론에 대해 "한국인들, 특히 기독교를 믿지 않는 사람들이 매우 감정적으로 이번 일을 비난하고 있다"며 자신에 대한 범사회적 비난여론을 비기독교의 공격으로 몰아갔다.
그는 인질 사태와 관련, "이번 사태는 엄청난 파장을 불러온 문제였고 국제적 이슈가 될 만했다"며 "개인적으로는 정부 노력에 감사한다"고 말했다.
샘물교회 "기독교를 믿지 않는 사람들이 우리 비난"
샘물교회 대변인 역할을 하고 있는 권혁수 장로도 5일 <서울신문>과 전화통화에서 “기독교에서의 선교 활동 중 순교는 우리나라에서도 모두 경험했던 일인데 기독교를 믿지 않는 세상 사람들은 이러한 역사를 이해하지 못하고 우리를 비난한다”고 주장했다. 그는 이어 “기독교를 믿지 않는 사람들은 우리를 이해하지 못한다”며 “교황 중심의 천주교와 달리 기독교는 개별 교회 단위의 봉사 활동이 진행돼 성과는 많아도 세간의 평가가 늘 박할 수밖에 없다”고 덧붙이기도 했다.
그는 “구한말 미국 선교사들이 죽음을 각오하고 우리나라에 들어와 대학·병원들을 세운 덕분에 지금의 대한민국이 될 수 있었던 것 아니냐”라고 반문한 뒤, “이제 우리가 열악하고 위험한 상황에 처한 나라에 들어가 봉사하는 것은 어찌보면 당연한 일”이라고 강변했다.
그는 언론에 대해서도 “현재 대다수 언론이 박은조 목사의 설교 가운데 일부만 발췌해 ‘심성민 형제 같은 순교자가 3000명은 나와야 한다’는 식의 왜곡 보도로 우리를 공격하고 있다”며 “무슨 말을 해도 비난밖에는 돌아오지 않아 일절 대응을 하지 않겠지만 일단 사태가 진정되면 적극적으로 진실을 알리기 위해 노력할 것”이라고 향후 강력대응 방침을 밝히기도 했다.
다음은 박 목사의 <크리스채니티 투데이'(Christianity Today)> 인터뷰 기사 전문.
Hostages' Pastor: 'Remorse Is the Face of the Church'
Interview with Park Eun-jo: 'I don't want this to be a stumbling block for missions.'
Sarah Pulliam
The 19 South Koreans freed by the Taliban returned to Seoul Sunday as the church that sent the group fields critical remarks for sending members to such a volatile country.
The return ends a 43-day ordeal in which two hostages were killed, including Bae Hyung-kyu, an associate pastor at Saemmul Church.
Before they left Afghanistan, the hostages apologized at a press conference for the trouble they had caused South Korea.
"I've had sleepless nights, thinking of what we have caused the country. I am deeply sorry," Yu Kyeong-sik said at a press conference.
"Remorse is the face of the church," said Park Eun-jo, senior pastor of Saemmul Church. The Presbyterian congregation that sponsored the trip, in the Seoul suburb of Bundang, has a weekly attendance of about 5,000 people.
"Koreans, particularly those who are not receptive to Christianity, are very emotional and critical about this incident," he told Christianity Today. "Because of the hostage situation, people withheld their opinions, but since they are released, people are now really letting us have what they think."
The hostages did not know until after they were released that two male hostages, including the associate pastor of the church, were killed.
"Upon hearing the news, they all wailed and were in great agony," Park said. "They couldn't handle the sadness, losing their loved ones."
Park said that 20 South Koreans traveled to Afghanistan for a short-term trip to volunteer at a school and provide medical aid. He said that three of the hostages were missionaries who had already been in Korea when the group arrived. Before it had left for the country, the group was told to be cautious in the dangerous area.
As they traveled through the country, their bus driver picked up two people without asking permission, which the pastor called a mistake. The two fired guns before taking the group hostage.
"I feel deep responsibility, strong responsibility, for the two lives that were lost," the pastor said.
Saemmul Church has decided to identify the two killed hostages as martyrs, Park said. The church will hold a funeral service September 7 for Bae Hyung-kyu, the associate pastor killed by the Taliban.
When the hostages were first taken, the church had prayer services throughout the day. At night, more than 1,000 people would attend.
"During those times, we were in shock. We were not able to pray anything clearly but for their safe return," the pastor said. "A week later, we began to calm down, and then we started to pray for Afghanistan."
After the hostages' release, Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi told the Associated Press that the group plans to abduct more foreigners.
"We will do the same thing with the other allies in Afghanistan, because we found this way to be successful," he said.
His statement reinforced international fears that South Korea's decision to negotiate directly with the militants would create more hostage situations
"I understand that this has created a huge problem and it has become an international issue," Pastor Park said. "Personally I have to be grateful for their effort."
The pastor said that the church will pray that hostage issues will not happen again.
"That is what we can do at this moment," he said.
The church will cover the cost to bring the hostages back to South Korea.
After the hostage situation began, South Korea banned its citizens from traveling to the country. Park said that the 180 Korean missionaries currently serving in the country have been told to leave by the end of September.
The pastor said that because of the situation, he wants the church to send more missionaries to Muslim countries and Afghanistan after the ban is lifted.
"We believe that this is God's providence leading us to other Muslim countries," he said. "I don't want this to be a stumbling block for missions."
/ 박태견 기자 (tgpark@viewsnnews.com)
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