# Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDong)

The General Assembly of Presbyterian Church in Korea (GAPCK), also known as Yejang Hapdong (Korean: 예장합동) or just Hapdong, is an Evangelical Presbyterian denomination, which is the biggest Christian church in South Korea. The headquarters of the church is in Seoul, South Korea.

## History

In the 1950s, the Presbyterian Church of Korea suffered from a series of schisms over issues of theology, ecumenism, and worship.
The first of these divisions was connected to a controversy that began in the 1930s, when Korea was still under Japanese rule. During that time, university students were instructed to bow to the shinto shrine in worship. This was controversial for Christians, theologically and politically. While many acquiesced to this, there were Christians at Pyongyang Theological Seminary who adamantly opposed it, holding that the Bible prohibited such actions. After Korea was liberated from Japanese rule, Korea divided and many Koreans from the north of the country moved to South Korea. Those who formerly opposed the shinto shrine worship created a new seminary, Koryo Theological Seminary (today's Kosin University) in 1946, and eventually a new denomination, Presbyterian Church in Korea (Kosin) in 1951.
The second division occurred in 1953 when progressives separated, forming the Presbyterian Church of the Republic of Korea (KiJang). In the 1970s, the KiJang Presbyterians would produce some of the key leaders of minjung theology who advocated for social justice issues under the dictatorship of Park Chung Hee.
Hapdong was the more conservative group in the schism. Its conservative doctrinal basis made it possible to unite later with the Presbyterian Church in Korea (Koshin) in 1960. But this union did not last and a group of Koshin churches separated a few years later, although about 150 Koshin congregations stayed with HapDong. In 1961, another group separated to form the Bible Presbyterian Church, later to be called the Presbyterian Church in Korea (Daeshin).
At the 64th General assembly in 1979 the church suffered another division. Kim Hee Bo the President of the ChongShin Seminary advocated for the historical-critical approach to the Pentateuch. The church divided into a mainline and non-mainline groups. The debate centered about two issues: the authorship of the Pentateuch and the relationship with the ChongShin Seminary. The non-mainline section fragmented in the following years.
In the 1990s the Hapdong branch experienced phenomenal growth. By the early 2000s, Hapdong developed into the largest denomination in South Korea with more than 2.2 million communicant members, 5,123 congregations, and 6,300 ordained pastors. These figures differ from the statistics offered by Chongshin Seminary, which claims the church has 11,000 congregations and about 3 million members.
In South Korea there are about 15 million Protestants, about 9 million are Presbyterians in more than 100 denominations.

## Doctrine

Hapdong is a theologically conservative denomination. The Hapdong group subscribe the historic Presbyterian Confessions, such as the Apostles' Creed, the Westminster Confession of Faith, the Westminster Larger Catechism, and the Westminster Shorter Catechism
According to the Apostle Paul's instructions, there are no women ordinations. However, at the 2024 109th General Assembly, the preaching rights of female ministers were officially approved.

### The stance on homosexuality

Hapdong declare that homosexuality goes against God's creation order, calling it anti-biblical and unethical, and continue opposing the Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex partner rights. They emphasize the importance of maintaining a biblical understanding of gender and marriage. Additionally, they strongly oppose the comprehensive anti-discrimination law, citing concerns over the violation of fundamental rights such as freedom of conscience and religion.

## Theological Education

The Chongshin University and Chongshin Seminary are the only official educational institutions of the Hapdong Church to train pastors.

## Missions

The General Assembly of Presbyterian Church in Korea created the Global Missions Society (GMS) in South Korea to support evangelism and missions. The Global Mission Society, the missionary body of the Hapdong General Assembly of Presbyterian Churches of Korea, is the single largest Presbyterian missionary organization in South Korea and the world with over 2,500 missionaries working in Europe, Asia, Russia, Latin America, Africa.

## Controversies
### Light & Truth Church

Pastor Kim Myung-jin of Light and Truth Church, along with two leaders, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong), have been sentenced to prison for "coercion" and "aiding and abetting coercion" after being accused of abusive discipleship training, which included forcing members to eat feces and depriving them of sleep. The Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong) is facing public backlash for remaining silent and failing to take action against these criminal acts. Also, he was found to receive salaries through newly added regulations while in custody.