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The price of proselytizing in a war zone?

JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images The world has followed the story of the 23 (now 21) Korean hostages abducted by the Taliban on July 19 in Afghanistan with horror. Of course, nothing justifies the Taliban’s brutal actions, but the incident does raise questions about an evangelical culture in South Korea that Time reports has lead to “increased ...

JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images

JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images

The world has followed the story of the 23 (now 21) Korean hostages abducted by the Taliban on July 19 in Afghanistan with horror. Of course, nothing justifies the Taliban’s brutal actions, but the incident does raise questions about an evangelical culture in South Korea that Time reports has lead to “increased competition” between churches for members:

[P]astors feel pressured to engage in a kind of one-upmanship: sending congregants on as many overseas missions as possible. New markets and riskier missions tend to garner more publicity, which until now has translated into more kudos and ultimately more money for the pastor and the church.”

In fact, the criticism in South Korea over the evangelicals’ mission has been withering. But as so often happens, much of the anger is now shifting to the United States as relatives and Korean lawmakers plead for U.S. help. Should the U.S. and Afghan governments cut a deal with the Taliban to release the remaining hostages? And should the fact that the missionaries were aware of the risks, flouted the government’s advice, and failed to take precautions change the answer to that question?

Clearly, these are difficult issues. But with 17,000 missionaries in 173 nations (including Afghanistan, China, Iraq, Sudan, and the North Korean border), they are questions that South Koreans will have to address. I just hope that after this disaster, churches will think twice about sending their missionaries into the lions’ den.

Prerna Mankad is a researcher at Foreign Policy.

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