John has grown up in North Korea amidst many famines and not had proper nourishment. He has also suffered from a spiritual famine. He has never had the opportunity to listen to Bible stories, sing “Jesus Loves Me,” or even hear about Jesus.

John is growing up in a country that is still almost completely isolated from the outside world by its communist government. The fortified border between North and South Korea remains one of the most impenetrable in the world. Little is known about the underground church—only that it has survived and probably grown.

Population

North Korea has 22 million people, with almost 3 million in the capital city of Pyongyang. 61% of North Korea’s people live in cities.

Language and Ethnicity

North Korea, like South Korea, is a very homogeneous group; 99.3% are ethnic Korean, with 0.7% Chinese. They all speak Korean, with a literacy rate of 99%. The present government, since 1950, has “purified” the Korean language, using only Korean script. (South Korean newspapers and literature often use Chinese characters; 60% of Korean words come from the Chinese.)

History

Korea has a 4,000 year history. All of Korea was occupied by Japan from 1910 to 1945. Though Japan tried to make them Japanese, the Koreans held on to their culture, language and history, even if it meant grandfathers teaching Korean language and history to children at night. Since 1948 Kim Il-Sung and now his son Kim Jong-Il have controlled the educational system, much like the Communists did in the USSR and Mainland China. Kim Il-Sung, the founder of the communist regime, passed away in 1994.

Political

Since 1948 Kim Il-Sung and an elite group of communist officials controlled the country; now his son Kim Jong-Il and an inner group control things. It is one of the most regimented regimes in the world, keeping the people of North Korea almost completely secluded from the rest of the world. Time magazine described it as a “system of…thought control that has thrived on seclusion.” For economic reasons, though, Kim has to allow some interaction with the world around them; a person based in Beijing said North Korea imports food, so “they are not independent of the world even to that minor extent.” North Korea has over 1 million men in active military duty (South Korea: 633,000). Recent reports that North Korea has been developing nuclear weapons have resulted in widespread concern in the region. As of September 2005 North Korea was involved in six-way talks with China, the U.S., South Korea, Japan and Russia about the containment of its nuclear weapons program.

Livelihood

The economy is heavily industrialized and has major problems. Though North Korea has many mineral resources, it has not tapped into them. Much of its money is poured into its defense and military budget.

Religion

Traditionally, Koreans were animistic and shamanistic. Buddhism entered Korea about 1,500 years ago; Christianity entered about 120 years ago. In 1907 there was a significant Christian revival in Pyongyang. Before 1945 the church was actually larger in north Korea than in south Korea. Since Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il have been in power, all religions in the north have been severely repressed. Patrick Johnstone (Operation World) estimates 64% as non-religious or atheist and 16% involved with traditional ethnic religion.

Christianity

Many thousands of Christians fled or were martyred during and after the Korean War; however, the church is small but alive in North Korea. Three government-approved churches are in Pyongyang, at least one Protestant and one Catholic. Operation World estimates that 15,000 people are affiliated with the government-approved Protestant group, 40,000 affiliated with the government-approved Roman Catholic group, and 350,000 affiliated with the underground church. It also reports that 1.5% may be evangelical. However, it is impossible to verify such statistics. There may still be significant numbers of secret believers, but how many underground churches there are is unknown.

Missions

Many missions worked in all of Korea, including northern Korea, from the 1880s to 1930s or ’40s, then had to leave because of the Japanese occupation. Since 1948, the communist regime has taught that religion and the church are not necessary and hence tried to close all the churches and eliminate the Christians, especially the church leaders. At this time many Christians fled south. Bibles were banned and burned. Now several South Korean based Christian radio stations beam into North Korea. However, legal radios have to be registered and locked into government stations, so it is difficult (but possible) for people to receive these broadcasts. Several Korean Christian groups based in South Korea or abroad are waiting expectantly for North Korea to open up to the gospel. Some are already involved quietly in getting Bibles into North Korea. It is also possible to reach out to North Koreans both directly and indirectly by means of ministry in Northeast China, or by entering North Korea as Christian professionals.