Spike in South Korean coronavirus cases linked to doomsday sect

A religious sect with a leader who claims to be the second coming of Jesus Christ is at the center of a recent spike in South Korean coronavirus infections.

According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two-thirds of the country’s 204 confirmed cases of the virus have been tied to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony. Shincheonji is a religious movement with more than 200,000 followers that follows the teachings of its messianic founder Lee Man-hee.