Cory McClellan, a 13-year World Mission Society Church of God former member shares about her abusive and traumatic experiences inside the church and why she left.

Cory McClellan, a 13-year World Mission Society Church of God former member shares about her abusive and traumatic experiences inside the church and why she left.

World Mission Society Church Of God vs. Michele Colón full court audio (January 11, 2013)

Additional Court Audio available on the Answering The WMSCOG YouTube channel.

In this investigative exposé of a Korean church branded as a ‘cult’, award-winning journalist Harry Robinson goes toe-to-toe with the World Mission Society Church of God; a religion that believes an elderly woman living in South Korea is God on Earth. It’s a documentary that hurdles the elusiveness of the group, avoiding fetishising the ‘cult’ and, instead, seeks out and gives voices to the countless survivors who were indoctrinated into the church – all whilst the WMSCOG watch from the shadows.

A HARRY ROBINSON Documentary Cinematographer – MADELINE JAMES Cinematographer – ADAM DICKINSON Executive Producer – CHRIS CHOHAN Music sourced with permission from Megatrax With thanks to the JOURNALISM DEPARTMENT at the UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD

Jordan and Anthony (former WMSCOG deacon) discuss the The World Mission Society Church Of God.

During a Ronan Farrow interview with missionary John Powers, the WMSCOG lawyer admits that the church sued Michele Colón before she sued the church.

This statement above is an excerpt of a World Mission Society Church of God sermon given by the Chairwoman in October of 2012. In addition to her role as Chairwoman of the International WeLoveU Foundation, Zhang Gil Jah is also known as “god the mother” in the World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG). Her followers believe that she is god in the flesh, and that salvation from eternal hellfire can only be obtained through her and the WMSCOG’s numerous other requirements. The World Mission Society Church of God is considered to be a doomsday cult by many former members and families that have lost contact with loved ones after they joined the group. In recent years, the controversial religious group has become very active in their communities all around the world through the WeLoveU Foundation, a front organization created to deceptively recruit members of the public into the church. Serious consideration should be given to the information provided below before becoming affiliated with, or providing financial support to the WeLoveU Foundation.

What is the WeLoveU Foundation?

The International WeLoveU Foundation is purported to be a global charity who’s charitable works include disaster relief, blood drives and environmental clean up projects. The Foundation’s official website states that the charity “aims to make the world a better place where everybody is respected and where sustainable peace is achieved.” The charity also displays the Presidential Volunteer Service Awards it received in 2019 and 2020.

Who is behind the WeLoveU Foundation?

The World Mission Society Church of God is not referenced on the International WeLoveU Foundation’s website, though there are numerous connections between the two organizations. According to the WeLoveU Foundation’s website, Zhang Gil Jah, the same woman the WMSCOG believes is “god the mother,” is the Chairwoman of the organization. A statement from the Chairwoman states in part:

This statement is in stark contrast to the aforementioned statement made by Zhang Gil Jah in her sermon. The statement by Zhang Gil Jah on the WeLoveU Foundation’s website projects a message about love, happiness and overall concern for public wellbeing. The statement the Chairwoman makes in her role as “god the mother” in her sermon demonstrates her actual intention, to experience joy while watching non-World Mission Society Church of God members being burned to death. This contradiction brings the true motives behind the WeLoveU Foundation’s charitable works into question.

What is the connection between the WeLoveU Foundation & the WMSCOG leadership?

In the United States, the WeLoveU Foundation is currently headquartered in New Windsor, New York (previously in Oradell, New Jersey). In a publicly available tax record filed by the WeLoveU Foundation in 2021, the following board members are listed on page 7 (see complete filing below):

All of the board members for the WeLoveU Foundation hold leadership positions within the World Mission Society Church of God. Daniel Lee, aka Dong Il Lee, is also referred to as the president of WeLoveU in this video.

John Casas and John Power, both Elders in the WMSCOG, are seen in the same video. Victor Lozada, another WMSCOG elder, is also listed as an officer for the WeLoveU Foundation on the Arkansas Secretary of State website. Other members of the WMSCOG leadership previously mentioned are also listed as officers (see the highlighted areas).

The same names, Daniel Lee, John Casas and Iven Rodriguez, are listed on the WeLoveU Foundation’s certificate of incorporation in the state of New Jersey (highlighted on page 2 below).

According to their website, the International WeLoveU Foundation hosted an event called Save the World Global Forum in 2018. Zhang Gil Jah can be seen in a photo with General Pastor Joo Cheol Kim and U.S. East Coast Pastor Dong Il Lee. Joo Cheol Kim is identified as the Vice Chairman of the foundation. Note that there is no mention of the fact that these three individuals are the top leaders of the World Mission Society Church of God in South Korea and the United States.

Public documents from a Town Hall meeting in New Windsor, New York, reveal that the WeLoveU Foundation offered to purchase the property at 18 Snake Hill Rd for $580,000. The buyer agent listed on behalf of the WeLoveU Foundation is Saira Ahmed, WMSCOG member (see highlighted portions below, the entire agenda and related documents are available here).

Note that the World Mission Society Church of God has a large compound nearby in New Windsor, New York as well. While the WeLoveU Foundation and the World Mission Society Church of God in New Jersey are incorporated separately for tax purposes, they cannot be considered completely unrelated.

Does the WeLoveU Foundation disclose any association with the WMSCOG?

An archive of the WeLoveU Foundation’s website for their Denver location shows that there was a clear connection to the WMSCOG. In what is presumably an effort to erase any evidence of a relationship between the two organizations, these images have since been removed.

In a memo for a WeLoveU event titled Mother’s Love Feeds the Hungry, organized by WMSCOG Missionary Rebecca Gardner (aka Parker) and fellow member Saira Ahmed, it is clearly communicated to the local churches that during this event there is to be no mention of any affiliation with the WMSCOG. Interestingly, mentioning the Chairwoman Zhang Gil Jah seemed to be encouraged. The members who were assigned to deliver the food were tasked with “tak[ing] clear pictures of senior citizens (who have signed the waiver) with WeLoveU members.” While delivering food to the elderly in itself is a noble cause, it appears that the event was a public relations stunt designed for WeLoveU propaganda (see the highlighted portions on page 2).

Similarly, in another memo that was circulated among church leaders regarding a walkathon in 2018, it was again made clear that WMSCOG members were not to mention any affiliation with the religious group while at the WeLoveU event. Members were also reminded that they were to call each other by name, not title, and to be aware that there would be cameras and other people watching. In other words, pretend to be normal (see highlighted portions on page 3).

What is the purpose of the WeLoveU Foundation events according to the WMSCOG?

The walkathon memo above, instructs leaders to “help them [WMSCOG members] understand that this is a different kind of preaching event.” In the WMSCOG, “preaching” is another word for recruiting new members into the church.

The same message was communicated in a memo for a WeLoveU blood drive. This memo specifically instructed WMSCOG leadership not to read the memo to WMSCOG members. The memo clearly states in all caps that this kind of event only exists for preaching (or recruiting) purposes. So here we have at least two WeLoveU events that were organized for the purpose of recruiting new members into the WMSCOG.

Members were also instructed to give a “minimum suggested freewill offering” of $20 to the admin person in the church, not the WeLoveU Foundation. In the “What NOT to do!” section of the memo, it states “Please do not mention anything about the Church of God. The International WeLoveU Foundation and the Church of God are separate entities,” followed by another reminder to act normal in front of media and guests (see highlighted portions throughout the memo).

While is indisputable that World Mission Society Church of God and the WeLoveU Foundation are separate entities legally, functionally the WeLoveU Foundation is just a front group that was created to deceptively recruit more members into the WMSCOG. WMSCOG members are taught that recruiting new members is the way to salvation, therefore, from the WMSCOG’s perspective the ends justify the means.

What should you consider before supporting the WeLoveU Foundation?

• The WeLoveU Foundation is an alter ego of the World Mission Society Church of God.
• Supporting the WeLoveU Foundation means supporting the World Mission Society Church of God’s recruitment efforts and public relations campaigns as demonstrated by the memos discussed above.
• The World Mission Society Church of God is considered a cult by many former members.
• The World Mission Society Church of God has unduly influenced members to sign non-disclosure agreements in order to prevent them from speaking out about the church.
• The World Mission Society Church of God sues former members and critics for speaking out against the group’s alleged abuses.
• The World Mission Society Church of God has been accused of encouraging members to have abortions as alleged in this lawsuit filed by a former member in a New Jersey Federal Court.
• The World Mission Society Church of God has been accused of arranging marriages, separating families, encouraging divorce if one spouse refuses to become a member or if after being a member he or she decides to leave the church, encouraging students to drop out of school and demanding massive amounts of time and money from its members.

Are front groups unique to the WMSCOG?

The World Mission Society Church of God is by no means considered a pioneer in the realm of deceptive recruitment. Front groups have long been an integral part of destructive cults. Scientology has been known to use front groups to recruit members into their cult since before the WMSCOG even existed. The Unification Church (aka the Moonies) has quite an exhaustive list of known front groups.

A message for current WMSCOG members

If you are a current World Mission Society Member who is working tirelessly for salvation because “father is coming soon,” note that the WeLoveU Foundation claims to be determined “to have a clean world not only for this generation but especially for future generations” on page 14 of the 2018 tax filing below. Ask yourself what future generations they are referring to while the WMSCOG continues to brainwash you into believing that the end of the world is near. Ask yourself what difference it makes whether the world is clean or not if it is all going to burn as Zhang Gil Jah claims in her sermon. How much more time, energy, money and other resources are you willing to give to a such a deceptive and toxic organization like the World Mission Society Church of God?

WeLoveU Foundation 990 Filing for 2021

According to the filing:

• The WeLoveU Foundation has received over $2 million dollars in donations and membership fees over the last 5 years (page 14).
• Big Shine Worldwide, a global technology company owned by WMSCOG Pastor Daniel Lee, donated $50,000 to the WeLoveU Foundation (page 22).
• Paul Cha, WMSCOG elder and WeLoveU Foundation Treasurer (page 7), is listed as the Sales Manager for Big Shine Worldwide here.
• The WeLoveU Foundation donated backpacks to students in NJ, IL and CA (page 2), the same states that the World Mission Society Church of God and Big Shine Worldwide are incorporated in.

Additional 990 filings are available at www.guidestar.org.

WeLoveU Foundation 990 Filing for 2018

World Mission Society Church of God (WMSCOG) claims that Zhang Gil Jah, the woman in South Korea whom they claim to be “god the mother”, is the prophetic fulfillment of the heifer in the Book of Numbers. This topic was first discussed on this site in an article here. After reviewing the WMSCOG’s arguments on this topic again, this time in a book titled “God the Father and God the Mother” written by general pastor Joo Cheol Kim, additional rebuttals surfaced. (See relevant pages below). One important thing to keep in mind while reading this article is that when the WMSCOG claims that Zhang Gil Jah is “god”, there is no room for error in her actions, nor in the actions committed on her behalf by the leadership.

What is a Heifer according to the dictionary?

The word heifer is defined as a young cow over one year old that has not produced a calf. Once a heifer produces a calf, she automatically becomes a cow. It has long been established that Zhang Gil Jah had two children with her ex-husband. Therefore, Zhang Gil Jah cannot represent the heifer in the book of Numbers.

Why is this important?

In the above referenced book, Joo Cheol Kim uses phrases that are obviously intended to inspire guilt and fear in WMSCOG members. On page 157, he writes regarding Sabbath and Third Day (Tuesday) worship:

“Through such regulations, Mother has purified our souls by sacrificing Herself, so that we may not be cut off from the community of God.”

This is actually a very loaded statement.

First, it asserts that Saturday and Tuesday worship at the WMSCOG is a “regulation” from God. This creates a false sense of duty when the member is made to understand that they must attend Saturday and Tuesday services because God allegedly commands them to do so.

Second, the statement alleges that Zhang Gil Jah is sacrificing herself, as the heifer was sacrificed in Numbers, in order to purify members’ souls. This statement is obviously meant to induce feelings of guilt and indebtedness to Zhang Gil Jah for her supposed sacrifice.

Third, the above referenced statement by Joo Cheol Kim implies that if a member does not attend Saturday and Tuesday worship services, he or she may be “cut off from the community of God.” This statement sends a clear message that if the member does not follow the rules or “regulations” set forth, he or she will be “cut off” or kicked out of the WMSCOG. Since WMSCOG members are indoctrinated to believe that World Mission is the only church by which one can receive salvation, this cleverly crafted message is designed to induce fear of the only alternative fate, which is to burn in hell for all of eternity.

(Read more about how cults use loaded language, fear and guilt as thought control tactics here.)

On page 158, the guilt trips and fear mongering continue:

“The Israelites were cleansed through the sacrifice of a heifer. This shows that God’s children are purified through the sacrifice of Mother on the third and seventh days.”

As previously stated, Zhang Gil Jah cannot represent the heifer in Numbers because she would be, simply by definition, a cow. Zhang Gil Jah is also not without defect because she erroneously claimed, or alternatively allowed Joo Cheol Kim to erroneously claim, that she represented the heifer in the first place. Therefore, the belief that the members are somehow “cleansed” by their attendance during Tuesday and Saturday worship at the WMSCOG is based on a false premise and does not hold up to scrutiny.

Following repetitious statements, on page 159:

“How can we imagine and describe in words our Mother’s pain, sacrifice and love?”

Any reasonable person who is not subject to the undue influence of the WMSCOG, would agree that it is highly improbable that Zhang Gil Jah’s blatant lies cause her pain and suffering. This statement is clearly designed to influence members to feel guilty and indebted to Zhang Gil Jah. The veiled “you owe me or else” sentiment in the above passages written by Joo Cheol Kim seems pathologically narcissistic. Love is not self-seeking (1 Corinthians 13:5).

The Bible also tells us that there is no fear in love, fear has to do with punishment (1 John 4:18). Remember the threat of being “cut off from the community of God” as a punishment for not keeping Tuesday and Saturday worship? (page 157). Love keeps no record of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13:5). World Mission Society Church of God keeps records of everything that you do or fail to do for the group. But that is a topic for another day.

Love must be sincere (Romans 12:9). Love cannot be sincere if it is based on a lie. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (1 Corinthians 13:6). If you are a member, carefully consider the information in this article so that you may free yourself from the life of slavery you live as a member of the World Mission Society Church of God.