For years, one question has continued to follow J.Y. Park: what exactly is the religious group he helped build, and where does it fit within the wider Christian landscape? Now, a new video from Firstfruits has brought that question back into focus, with Park himself offering his most detailed explanation yet of the fellowship’s identity.

The discussion does not simply revisit the controversy that surrounded Park in 2018. Instead, it opens a new chapter by focusing on Firstfruits’ stated doctrine, its roots and the way Park believes religious groups should be distinguished.

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J.Y. Park addresses the Firstfruits denomination question

On September 19, the Firstfruits YouTube channel released a video titled “What Denomination Is Park Jin-young’s Church?” The approximately 72-minute presentation featured Park speaking before the congregation about a question that has remained closely associated with the fellowship.

From the beginning, Park acknowledged that some people arriving at the gathering may already have heard warnings about Firstfruits.

“There probably aren’t many of you who came here feeling at ease today. Especially if you have people around you who attend church, they probably all tried to stop you.”

He then listed some of the descriptions that attendees may have encountered before coming to the gathering.

“You probably heard things like, ‘You shouldn’t go there,’ ‘I hear it’s a strange place,’ ‘I hear it’s heretical,’ or ‘I hear it’s a cult.’ The thing you probably heard most often was, ‘What denomination are they?’”

That final question became the central point of Park’s explanation.

According to him, determining the denomination of a religious group ultimately involves looking at either its organizational connections or its doctrine.

“Ultimately, asking what denomination something belongs to comes down to one of two things: whether it is connected to another organization, or whether it shares something doctrinally identical with it.”

Park then argued that Firstfruits should not be understood simply as a group without religious roots.

“Firstfruits is not, contrary to what you might expect, a church without a lineage. It has clear roots and a definite lineage. The standard for distinguishing doctrines and denominations should be eternal life.”

He connected this explanation to passages from the Gospel of John, specifically chapters 5, 6 and 12.

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Why eternal life is central to Park’s explanation

The focus on eternal life became one of the most important elements of Park’s latest presentation.

Rather than identifying Firstfruits through the previous affiliations of individual attendees, Park said doctrine should be the standard used to distinguish denominations.

That argument became particularly relevant when he discussed the variety of religious backgrounds represented among people attending Firstfruits.

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Firstfruits includes people from different religious backgrounds

Park specifically addressed the presence of people who previously belonged to different religious traditions.

“Our church has people who came from Catholicism, Presbyterianism, the Baptist Church, and Shincheonji. Just because our church has someone from a Shincheonji background, that doesn’t make our church Shincheonji, does it?”

His point was that a person’s previous religious affiliation does not automatically establish an institutional relationship between that former organization and Firstfruits.

Park continued by explaining how he believes denominations should instead be differentiated.

“Denominations are distinguished based on doctrine, and doctrines can be distinguished by examining how they explain eternal life.”

He then described Firstfruits’ teaching on the subject.

“Our church teaches that eternal life is obtained through a mysterious and perfect faith, received as a gift only by those who have repented.”

The statement gives a clearer picture of the theological framework Park presented in the September 19 video. His argument was not simply that Firstfruits has members from different backgrounds, but that those backgrounds should not determine how the fellowship itself is identified.

This is also where the latest discussion connects directly with the controversy that began years earlier.

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The Salvation Sect controversy began in 2018

The questions surrounding Park’s religious activities became widely publicized in May 2018, when Dispatch reported that he was connected to the Salvation Sect and had participated in gatherings associated with the organization.

The reports included photographs and recordings from a religious meeting and raised questions about the Bible study group Park had been leading.

Park rejected the allegations.

In a statement published in May 2018, he said that the gathering was a Bible study he had organized himself rather than a Salvation Sect meeting. He explained that he had rented the location and that people from different religious backgrounds had attended.

Park wrote:

“A Salvation Sect meeting?
I paid money to rent a space and teach a bible study myself, and you’re calling it a Salvation Sect meeting?”

He also disputed the idea that the presence of people associated with the Salvation Sect meant the gathering itself was organized by that group.

“Around 100 people gathered to hear my lecture, and out of those, a few people from the ‘Salvation Sect’ came and sat down because they said they wanted to hear my lecture, and you’re saying it’s a Salvation Sect meeting?”

Park additionally denied any institutional relationship between himself, JYP Entertainment and the businesses associated with the Salvation Sect.

“I, myself personally, and the JYP Entertainment company do not have any relations with the businesses of the ‘Salvation Sect,’ but you’re saying I’m part of the Salvation Sect?”

At the time, Park also explained how the Bible study had grown.

“Four years ago, my friend and I met twice a week for a bible study, and then the friend’s friend, then that friend’s friend were added, and now our meeting has about 30 people.”

He subsequently published a longer explanation of his religious beliefs and said he did not belong to a particular church or denomination.

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Park again rejected the allegations and explained why he had no denomination

As the controversy continued in 2018, Park issued another statement directly addressing the reported connection.

He wrote:

“1. The meeting that I held recently and the Bible study that I hold twice a week has no relation to the Salvation Sect.

2. Dispatch’s article that portrayed me as a member of the Salvation Sect is not true at all.”

Park also explained why he had chosen to remain outside an established denomination.

“I don’t belong to any church or denomination because I don’t want to be tied to a particular denomination.”

He described the gatherings as Bible studies rather than conventional church services. According to his explanation, participants discussed and debated different interpretations of the Bible.

The attendees also came from different religious backgrounds, while Park acknowledged that some people associated with the Salvation Sect had attended his meetings.

The controversy extended beyond Park’s own activities and also involved speculation concerning his wife and her family connections. Park rejected claims that his wife held a position within the Salvation Sect.

The Christian Gospel Baptist Church, commonly referred to as the Salvation Sect in Korean media coverage, also denied that Park was a member of its denomination.

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A timeline of the controversy and Firstfruits’ development

Date	Event	Key detail
May 2018	Dispatch reports on Park’s religious activities	Reports alleged a connection to the Salvation Sect
May 2018	Park responds	He denied the allegations and said the gathering was his own Bible study
2018	Further statement	Park said his Bible study had no relationship with the Salvation Sect
August 2020	Radio Star appearance	Park explained his religious journey and again denied organizational affiliation
September 19, 2026	Firstfruits YouTube video	Park addressed Firstfruits’ denomination, lineage and doctrine

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What J.Y. Park revealed about his religious journey on Radio Star

The controversy resurfaced publicly again during Park’s appearance on MBC’s Radio Star in August 2020.

During the programme, Park explained that his interest in the Bible had deepened after travelling to Jerusalem. He spent about two months studying the Bible there.

According to Park’s account, he initially understood what he was studying intellectually but did not feel that he had developed faith.

After returning to Korea, a friend asked him to teach the Bible. What began as a small study between friends gradually expanded as more people became involved.

Park said that he eventually came to believe in 2017, around the same period when media reports about his religious activities emerged.

He again rejected the suggestion that his Bible study was affiliated with a particular organization.

“I was reported as if I were connected to some religious organization, but that was completely untrue. We were simply a Bible study group made up of acquaintances with no ties to any organization. The media also found through its reporting that it wasn’t true, but no one published a correction.”

When the subject of his denomination came up, Park gave a direct answer.

“There is no denomination. It is still just a Bible study we conduct among ourselves.”

Contemporary reports on the broadcast likewise recorded Park saying that he had no denominational affiliation and describing the gathering as a religious study group.

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From a small Bible study to the Firstfruits fellowship

The group Park described in 2018 and 2020 has since developed into the religious fellowship now known as Firstfruits.

That evolution is important to understanding why the September 19 video carries a different tone from Park’s earlier explanations.

In 2018 and 2020, Park’s public responses focused heavily on rejecting the reported connection with the Salvation Sect and explaining that his Bible study did not belong to an established denomination or religious organization.

The latest Firstfruits presentation goes further.

Instead of only addressing what Firstfruits is not, Park focused on what the fellowship believes it is. He discussed its lineage, its doctrine and, most significantly, its teaching about eternal life.

That shift gives the latest discussion a different focus. Park’s argument is that the identity of Firstfruits should be considered through its own teachings rather than simply through the previous religious affiliations of individual members.

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Why the Firstfruits cult allegations remain part of the public discussion

The September 19 video does not provide an independent determination from a religious authority that Firstfruits should be classified as a cult, denomination or another religious category.

Instead, it documents Park’s own explanation of the fellowship and his response to questions surrounding its identity.

That distinction matters because the term “cult” has appeared in public discussion of the controversy, while Park has consistently rejected allegations connecting him to the Salvation Sect.

The documented history stretches back to 2018, when media reports triggered the controversy. Park responded with denials and explanations of his Bible study. He returned to the subject in 2020 on Radio Star, again saying that the group had no denominational affiliation.

Now, in September 2026, Firstfruits has publicly presented a more detailed explanation of its stated beliefs.

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Conclusion: Park’s latest explanation puts doctrine at the centre

J.Y. Park’s latest Firstfruits address revisits a controversy that has followed his religious activities for years, but it also introduces a more detailed explanation of how he believes the fellowship should be understood.

Park maintains that Firstfruits is not defined by the previous religious affiliations of its members. Instead, he argues that doctrine, particularly the teaching surrounding eternal life, should be used to distinguish religious groups.

His position remains consistent with his earlier denials that he was affiliated with the Salvation Sect. What has changed is the focus of his explanation. While his 2018 and 2020 statements centred on the absence of an organizational or denominational connection, the September 19 Firstfruits video places greater emphasis on the fellowship’s own lineage and beliefs.

The available record therefore documents Park’s statements and the history of the controversy, while leaving religious classification as a matter distinct from his own account.

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Source and research disclaimer

This article has been prepared based on thorough research of the sources provided in the original material, including Sports Chosun, Star News, Soompi, SBS Star, SBS News, YTN and MBC Entertainment. It reflects the information and statements available from those sources and from the verified material provided for this article. Descriptions of religious organizations, allegations and disputed classifications are presented as reported or attributed claims and should not be interpreted as an independent determination of the religious status of Firstfruits.

Sources

• Sports Chosun — Park Jin-young addresses Firstfruits and denomination questions
• Star News — Park Jin-young explains Firstfruits and its religious background
• Soompi — Park Jin Young responds to further Salvation Sect allegations in 2018
• Soompi — Park Jin Young denies reports of being part of a religious cult
• SBS Star — J.Y. Park’s 2018 denial of Salvation Sect allegations
• SBS News — Park Jin-young’s 2020 explanation on *Radio Star*
• YTN — Park Jin-young again denies Salvation Sect affiliation and explains his Bible study
• MBC Entertainment — *Radio Star* coverage featuring Park Jin-young

Featured Image Credit:

• Firstfruits / YouTube