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Members who have left the church are called Canaanite believers in Protestants.

Canaan was originally a Palestinian region's old name, and in the biblical sense, it was a land flowing with milk and honey.

But these days, you read it backwards.

It is used as a reference to Protestants who have faith but do not go to church.

It is estimated that these people make up 20% of the Protestant population, or about 2 million.

Those who wanted to follow Jesus' teachings but had to leave the church can be said to be the painful current state of Protestantism in Korea.



Reporter So Hwan-wook met pastors looking for a new path while reducing the crisis in the church.



<Reporter> The



number of churches in Korea is estimated at 80,000.

It is similar to the 87,000 private chicken restaurants.



The church members are given, but the number of churches and pastors does not decrease.



Following hereditary inheritance and money issues, this year's corona crisis raised disappointment for the church.



Some churches who violate the quarantine guidelines and enforced face-to-face worship, and condemnation of the Protestants poured out over the number of infected people.



[Deokman Bae/Professor Nehemiah, Christian Research Institute: Christians are really different.



Pastor Joo-kwang Choi, who felt a deep skepticism as he saw numerous crosses on the street, worked as a carpenter as a side job

because he couldn't feel that he was a people who pursue a more universal value beyond selfish people.

There is.



[Pastor Joo-Kwang Choi: I had a lot of worries from the beginning.

There are so many churches, why should there be another church?

I asked myself such a question...

.]



Pastor Choi approaches and preaches to the Canaanite believers who have left the church

.

He does not ask for donations as much as he does pastoral activities with his own money.



[Pastor Joo-Kwang Choi: Since church finances are managed through donations, we see a lot of cowardice in front of money.

He couldn't tell the truth while watching people's attention because of money...

.]



Most denominations forbid pastors from taking other jobs because they must be committed to pastoral work.



However, like Pastor Choi, more and more pastors are against it.



This is to avoid following the evils of the Protestant'Expansionism', which has been obsessed with large churches, many members, and external expansion.



[Pastor Jong-Hyun Park: If we give up on solving the problems of eating and living in the church, will we be able to focus more on the essence?]



Christian's calling to practice Jesus' teaching to love God and neighbors in their lives.



He says the answer to the Protestant crisis is the faithful practice of its calling.



[Pastor Joo-Kwang Choi: What Jesus said is the light and salt of the world.

It's not'the light and salt of the church', but'the light and salt of the world'.]



(Video coverage: Bae Munsan, video editing: Lee Seungjin, VJ: Kim Joonho)  



▶ [Sell to the end ①] Even if the donation disappears, the pastor can sat down No