(The Roys Report) An arm of the Presbyterian Church in America is allowing Min Joshua Chung—arguably the nation’s most prominent Korean-American pastor—to return to ministry despite allegations of sexual misconduct and cover-up.
Whistleblowers are making their accusations public after several years of attempts to confront the influential pastor within a reportedly tight-knit, shame-based community. Former members of Covenant Fellowship Church (CFC) of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where Chung pastored, say the whole church system breeds abuse.
In much of Asian culture, “you never want to look bad in front of the community and you never want to be the cause of someone else being shamed,” said Frank Mesina, a former CFC member. “Especially in the Korean community, to call out a pastor, you’re going against God-given authority.”