Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rok_the-boat]

Great example for the religious to follow:

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200504/kt2005042018082710160.htm

Corruption Scandals Rock Nation's Largest Buddhist Order



By Kim Ki-tae
Staff Reporter
The Chogye Order, the nation��s largest Buddhist sector, is embroiled in a relay of internal illegalities and irregularities and is tainting its transcendent image. Experts point out that the order needs an overhaul as the incidents reflect the underlining shady practices in the temples around the nation.

According to recent reports, members of Pulguksa Temple in North Kyongsang Province, one of the nation��s oldest temples, were found last week to have run an illegal golf practice range within its compound for three years. Its head monk is suspected to have gambled abroad and violated a law on foreign currency exchange. He also allegedly purchased a yacht. The prosecution is currently inspecting the charges. The monk admitted last week to his involvement in the golf range, but denied all of the other charges.

The head monk of Hwaomsa Temple, one of the nation��s largest temples, is currently wanted by the police for allegedly embezzling 600 million won ($600,000) granted by the central and local governments for repairs to the temple��s cultural assets.

Last week, a former Buddhist monk was arrested after stealing jewelry and golf course membership cards thought to be worth hundreds of millions of won from a Buddhist temple in Seoul. The list of stolen items was met with surprise by the public as clerics are not supposed to own private possessions, according to Buddhist beliefs.

In addition, some administrative monks in Seoul are suspected of colluding with a construction firm to siphon off funds while contracting it to build a Buddhist history museum. Members of the board of directors at a Buddhism-related university are also suspected to be involved in irregular transactions.

Embezzlement and other illegal practices are unfortunately not new to the nation��s oldest religion. In 1999, there was a 20 billion won ($20 million) embezzlement case involving Seoul��s Chogye Temple, the very center of the order. A monk also got away with 2.3 billion won at Pomosa Temple in Pusan four years ago.

etc etc etc.

[Hollywoodaction]

Well, can't say I'm surprised.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/224987.stm

As an old French proverb says, "l'habit ne fait pas le moine". It appears to be literally true that the cowl does not make the friar.

[igotthisguitar]

>. Shameless hypocrites. Bad karma. Tsk, tsk.

[darkpoet]

Ha! Hasn't anybody ever seen a Buddhist monk or nun with a cell-phone. It surprised me the first time I saw it, then I noticed how common in Seoul it seems to be. Telling my students in Busan, they all seem surprised. What? Monks with posessions? Never!

Note that whatshername, that nun protesting the KTX on behalf of a wildlife-ridden mountain hadn't eaten in 100-odd days... possible? Not likely, since she looks damn healthy still...

Buddhists are just as corrupt and immoral as any other religion.

[Yaya]

I disagree. I think it's more of a Korean thing to corrupt religion but I find Christians and Muslims as the hands-down worst offenders.

[dogbert]

The Jogye order issues its own branded credit card.

Buddhists here are entirely commercial.

[Hollywoodaction]

[Cthulhu]

A professor I knew used to hang out with the leader of a rather large temple in Kyungsangnamdo and mentioned his Mercedes (plural), love of whiskey and extensive porn collection. Same stuff is reported in Thailand from time to time--ditto on the fact that no religion is exempt from corruption.

Hollywoodaction wrote:

[Yaya]

[the eye]

[Harpeau]

How interesting. A newspaper that probably has christians way up in the hierarchy slamming Buddhists on the week of Buddah's birthday. Am I surprised? no, not really.
Everybody loves to see justice done~ on somebody else.

[igotthisguitar]

[igotthisguitar]

Buddhist priest embezzles 13 million yen from followers
Mainichi Shimbun, Nov 14, 2005

MATSUDO, Chiba (Japan) -- The 71-year-old head priest of a Zen Buddhist temple here misappropriated at least 13 million yen that followers supplied for a new temple building, it has emerged.

Followers at Choyoji Temple, which belongs to the Soto Zen sect of Buddhism, have filed a criminal complaint against the priest, whose name has been withheld, and law enforcers are investigating his actions.

A new main building was constructed at the temple in 2001 and followers put in 42 million yen to pay for the work. However, suspicious arose about the way the money was being used and when followers investigated, they reportedly found that funds had been misappropriated.

http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=1,1941,0,0,1,0

[fiveeagles]

[igotthisguitar]

Buddhist Priest Arrested For Underage Sex
Fri Mar 10, 9:35 AM ET

TOKYO (Reuters) - A Japanese Buddhist priest who was arrested on suspicion of having paid sex
with a teenage girl said he was under stress and had given in to lust.

Itsushi Ehara, 73, chief priest at a temple in the western Japanese prefecture of Hiroshima and
also head of a nursery school, paid the 15-year-old girl 80,000 yen ($675) to have sex in a hotel in downtown Tokyo, a police spokesman said on Friday.

"I could not resist my lust. A lot of stress built up from running the school," Ehara was quoted by Kyodo news agency as telling police.

Ehara, who is believed to have met the girl through a prostitute-dispatch service, is also suspected of having paid for sex
with several other teenage girls over a period of two to three years, Kyodo quoted police as saying.

Japan has long had a relatively lax attitude toward sexual exploitation of young people. Teenage prostitution -- known as "compensated dating" ( gotta love these kinda creative euphemisms ) -- was outlawed in 1999, but it still goes on, though less openly than before.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060310/od_nm/japan_priest_dc;_ylt=ArPYO2pkM2insuIk0a7FH9Kek3QF;_ylu=X3oDMTA3NW1oMDRpBHNlYwM3NTc-