President Moon Jae-in and First Lady Kim Jeong-suk sit on the cornerstone of Yeonhwamun Gate at the site of Beopheungsa Temple (presumed) and listen to the explanation of the Administrator of the Cultural Heritage Administration during a hike to Bukaksan Mountain on the 5th. [사진 제공 = 청와대]The Blue House announced on the 7th that “President Moon Jae-in’s respect for Buddha and respect for Buddhism are the same.” President Moon and First Lady Kim Jung-sook took a stance once morest the strong opposition from the Buddhist community when a photo of them sitting on the foundation stone of Yeonhwamun Gate at the site of Beopheungsa Temple (presumed) while hiking on the 5th to commemorate the opening of the trail to the south of Bukaksan Mountain in Seoul behind the Blue House was released.
On that day, Park Soo-hyeon, senior presidential secretary for public communication at the Blue House, said in a post on social network service (SNS), “President Moon seemed to be very upset two days ago when he received a press report that it was inappropriate for the president and his wife to sit on the cornerstone of the Beopheungsa temple site while hiking.” said. President Moon said, “I am a Catholic, but I always have the idea that Catholic doctrine and Buddhist truth eventually meet as one.” The Blue House is also in a difficult situation as it appears that the Buddhist community and the Moon Jae-in government, which already has ‘salvation’, are in conflict once more due to remarks made by Rep.
Senior Park said, “President Moon said, ‘As he passed the site of Beopheung Temple on the 5th, he said, ‘We must go through a systematic excavation and investigation of cultural assets, verify the records, and return the history to the Buddhist community and the people’,” Park said. President Moon and his wife explained that they respectfully bowed their heads in front of the Buddha, and that the Blue House aides who accompanied them also paid their respects with sincerity.
Earlier, on the 6th, Buddhist journalist Beopbo Shinmun pointed out, “Critique of the Blue House’s recognition of Buddhist cultural heritage is growing” through an article titled ‘President Moon couple sitting on the foundation stone of Daeungjeon Hall’. Buddhist monk Tan Tan said, “I was miserable when I saw the photo.” “I think this photo shows what kind of feelings they have toward the Seongbo.” “If President Moon and his wife did not know, it is incomprehensible that the director of the Cultural Heritage Administration stood still while watching it,” said Seongseok, the head of the Jogye Order’s general affairs office.
The Cultural Heritage Administration issued a statement on the same day, saying, “The foundation stone of the Beopheung Temple site where President Moon and his wife were seated (presumed) is not a designated or registered cultural property.” It has been pointed out that this has fueled controversy.
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