Rick Warren to preach in communist North Korea

LAKE FOREST, Calif. — Pastor Rick Warren has been invited to preach this summer to some 15,000 Christians in North Korea.

A country famous for its religious persecution and nuclear threats, North Korea fired a seventh long-range missile July 5, but it malfunctioned soon after launch. The series of missile tests, which drew international protests, prompted an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council. Japan is considering calling for sanctions against North Korea, according to Associated Press reports.

Warren acknowledged his trip could be used by the Korean government for propaganda or further persecution, but he said it is worth the risks. The author of the best-selling book “The Purpose Driven Life” said he would make the trip as part of a nearly 40-day journey to meet with the leaders of 13 foreign countries.

Warren said North Korea would allow him to preach in a stadium seating 15,000 but that he could preach in a larger venue if he could fill the seats.

Since 2001, the U.S. State Department has designated North Korea a “country of particular concern” for religious-freedom violations. Religious freedom essentially does not exist in the highly centralized state, where Kim Jong Il reigns as Supreme Being.

The communist regime prohibits citizens from belonging to unauthorized religious groups. And its authorized groups are largely propaganda, organized for the benefit of foreigners, according to a 2005 U.S. State Department report on international religious freedom.