Church Construction

Issues

Within the Korean church, there has been an ongoing debate over where necessary investment ends and overreach begins when a church builds or expands its sanctuary. The debate centers on three main questions. First, how essential is a worship space to a community of faith? Second, is it acceptable to build with a loan, that is, by taking on debt? Third, what is the relationship between the size of a building and the growth of a church?

The Case for Building

• This view holds that a stable space for worship, education, and fellowship is indispensable to the community. It also regards building as an expression of devotion to God.
• As biblical grounds, proponents cite God's command to Israel to build the tabernacle (Exodus 25:8); the joyful offerings of David and the people for the building of the temple (1 Chronicles 29); and the rebuke of the people who had delayed rebuilding the temple (Haggai 1:4–8).
• Proponents read Romans 13:8 not as a prohibition of borrowing as such, but as a warning against neglecting the obligation to repay. Accordingly, they regard a loan undertaken with a repayment plan as permissible, a step of faith.
• Proponents also point out that a sanctuary can serve the local community as a space for education and social welfare. The Korea Church Press Association, a church organization, once rebutted a news report critical of a church building project, arguing that the construction had followed lawful procedures and had been undertaken to meet the needs of the congregation.

The Cautious or Critical View

• This view stresses that the church is essentially people, not a building. It cites the following passages: believers themselves are the temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16); "the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands" (Acts 7:48); and true worship is not bound to a particular place (John 4:21–24).
• It cautions against excessive borrowing for construction, citing these passages: the early church met in homes (Acts 2:46); one should count the cost before building a tower (Luke 14:28); and "the borrower is servant to the lender" (Proverbs 22:7).
• The house church movement, which takes the home gatherings of the early church as its model, and the Quaker tradition, with its simple meetinghouses, share affinities with this perspective.
• Critics also note that building fund offerings crowd out budgets for missions and relief and place a heavy burden on church members.

The Situation in Korean Churches

Many churches have built sanctuaries with borrowed money. Church media have regularly reported cases in which declining membership and mounting interest payments led to sanctuaries being sold at auction. In some instances, members who had pledged their personal property as collateral also suffered losses. In other controversial cases, sanctuaries burdened with unmanageable debt were sold to the World Mission Society Church of God, a group that several denominations have declared heretical.

A frequently cited example is the case of Eunseong Church in the Seoul Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Korea (Tonghap).

• Unable to pay the interest on its loan during construction, the church saw its property go to auction in 2013.
• The company that won the bid for the site billed the presbytery's property-holding foundation for land use fees. This foundation holds and manages church real estate in the name of the denominational corporation, and title to Eunseong Church's property was held by it.
• In the course of these events, petitions for compulsory auction were filed against other churches whose property was held by the same foundation.
• Under a court's compulsory mediation decision, the foundation agreed to pay 2.5 billion won, and the denomination apportioned the cost among the presbytery and its churches.

The case is regarded as showing that one church's overextended building project can become a burden on an entire denomination.

Questions for Reflection

• With church membership declining, is the expectation that "if you build big, people will come" realistic?
• When deciding to build, does a church adequately consult its members through bodies such as the congregational meeting and disclose its finances transparently?
• Are safeguards needed at the presbytery and general assembly levels to prevent excessive building loans?
• How can the value of worship space be upheld alongside the value of people and mission?