The Korean creation science movement was inspired by a large international creation seminar held during August 12-15, 1980, at the Worldwide Evangelization Crusade Meeting in Seoul, Korea. The seminar, entitled "Creation? Evolution?" attracted great attention, and the total number of attendees was about 4,000.
This first creation science seminar in Korea had a great impact on many people, especially evolutionists. The seminar was covered by Korea's national TV and radio stations. The invited speakers from the USA were Dr. Henry Morris and Dr. Duane Gish from the Institute for Creation Research, Dr. Walter Bradley, of Texas A & M, and Dr. Charles Thaxton, of the Foundation for Thought and Ethics. Their lectures were interpreted into Korean by various creationist scientists working at the leading universities and national research institutes of Korea. Prior to the Worldwide Crusade Meeting, about 20 of these Bible-believing scientists and their wives had been gathering together for Bible study and prayer for about six months. The speaker from Korea for the creation seminar was Professor Young-Gil Kim of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. He was a former research scientist at NASA-Lewis Research Center and is the inventor of the semiconductor leadframe alloy, PMC-102, the superalloy, MA-6000, and a new cryogenic steel. In 1985, he was Visiting Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of California at Los Angeles.
After the seminar, a dinner meeting was held for planning future creation science activities in Korea. Dr. Morris and Dr. Gish encouraged and attended the meeting with 25 Korean scientists who were especially interested in creation science. As the result of the meeting, the "Korea Association of Creation Science" (KACR) was formally organized on January 31, 1981. The inauguration assembly of KACR was attended by about 500 people and received wide attention. The leading national daily newspapers, such as The Korea Times and The Chosun Ilbo reported the inauguration meeting as a major news event. The National Television of KBS also televised it.
The KACR has rapidly grown since that time, and the total number of KACR members was 524 as of June 1985. There were 78 full members with the Ph.D. in Science or Engineering, plus 104 full members holding the M.S. in Science or Engineering. Associate members who hold the B.S., number 152. Other members hold Ph.D., M.A., or B.A. degrees in social science and other fields. KACR also has an advisory board consisting of professors, theologians, and pastors. KACR has seven local chapters in Korea, and also has expanded recently into the USA. Several branches in Ohio, Mighigan, and New Jersey have been initiated.
The staff of KACR includes the following:
Professor Young-Gil Kim
(Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) Ph.D. in Materials Science, Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute, President
Professor Young-Sang Choi
(Korea University) Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of Miami
Professor Man-suk Song
(Yonsei University) Ph.D. in Computer Science, University of Michigan
Dr. Wan-Young Yoo
(Division Head, KTR.) Ph.D. in Systems Engineering, Case Western University
Professor Harriet Kim
(Seoul National University) Ph.D. in Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin
Dr. Jung-Ku Ro
(Branch Head, KCR) Ph.D. in Life Science, University of Wisconsin
Professor Hee-Chun Ro
(Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dr. Sung--Ki Min
(Division Head, ADD) Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Catholic University
Wesley Wentworth
M.S. in Civil Engineering (Virginia Polytechnic Institute)
Professor Hwa-Su Park
(Kugmin University) M.S. in Metallurgy (Columbia University) Ph.D. (Seoul National University)
Professor Myoung-Joon Chai
(Hanyang University) Ph.D. in Chemistry (Seoul National University)
Professor Hyun-Kil Shin
(KunKuk University) Ph.D. in Food Chemistry
Professor Johng-Bae Kim
(KunKuk University) Ph.D. in Biochemistry, Israel
Professor Enho-Lee
(Yonsei University) Ph.D. in Biology, Austria
Professor Kyoung-rae Kim
(Sungkunkwan University) Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of Houston
Professor Jung-wook Lee
(Seoul National University) Ph.D. in Environmental Science, University of Texas
Professor Dong-won Park
(Seoul National University) Ph.D. in Geology, USA
Professor Jung-Han Kim
(Yonse University) Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry, University of Houston
Professor Ken-sik Jang
(Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley
Dr. Han-Kyu Moon
(Division Chief) Ph.D. in Mechanics, Brown University
Professor Byoung-Moo Im
(Junbook University) Ph.D. in Veterinary Science (Seoul National University)
Professor Seung-hoon Yang
(Kyoungbuk University) Ph.D. in Physics (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
Professor Joung-il Kim
(Josun University) Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering
Byoung-Sun Sur
(Research Scientist) M.S. in Biology (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
Kyoung-Tai Kim
(Research Scientist) M.S. in Biology (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)
USA Branches:
Professor Dong-ha Shin
(University of Michigan) Ph.D. in Physics
Dr. Choong-kuk Chang
(Scientist, New Jersey) Ph.D. in Genetics, Princeton University
I.S. Choi, M.H. Kim, H.S. Hwang, S.J. Chang, S.H. Choi, J.S. Kim, T.S. Yook
(all M.D.'s)
KACR has published five books, including several translations of ICR books. One Korean-authored book, entitled Is Evolution a Scientific Fact?, has become one of the best-selling books in Korea. The book was distributed to nearly all professors of life sciences in major universities. An English edition of the book is planned. The number of creation-science seminars held in high schools, major universities, seminaries, and churches totaled 379 as of June 1985. The creation science seminars at schools are usually followed by an invitation for acceptance of Jesus Christ as personal Savior. Many non-Christian students have been saved through creation-science seminars at schools. For example, about 40 out of 300 college students accepted Jesus as their Lord at the seminar held by Professor Jung-Han Kim of Yonsei University at Sung-kunkwan University in April 1985. Professor Kim had been an evolutionary scientist and had come to the USA (under Professor Oro at the University of Houston) to study further on chemical evolution for his Ph.D. After two years of study, he learned the impossibility of chemical evolution, and changed his field from chemical evolution for organic chemistry. He was a former research scientist at Stanford Research Institute and Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.
KACR is now writing a college textbook, Introduction to Natural Science, in terms of the creation model. The writers of the book are Professor Harriet Kim of Seoul National University (Biochemistry), Professor Eun-Ho Lee of Yonsei University (Biology), Professor Jung-Han Kim of Yonsei University (Chemistry), Professor Jung-Wook Kim of Seoul National University (Environmental Science), and Professor Seung-Hong Yang of Kyoungbook University (Physics). Professor Harriet Kim has lectured on the two-model approach in origins to the students at Seoul National University for the last several years. Several objections and criticisms had been raised by her colleagues against her for teaching creation science at the nation's leading major university. However, the reaction of the students who attended her lectures was good, and the students showed great interest and surprise to learn the scientific evidences for creation in the origin of life. The staff members of KACR have also been lecturing on creation science at major seminaries. KACR had participated in the writing of a biology textbook for public high schools, but the book was not adopted by the national committee on textbooks which consisted only of evolutionist professors. Public high-school textbooks are revised every five years in Korea, and the next year is 1989. However, a paragraph on Biblical creation has been included in the chapter on the origin of mankind in a geology textbook, now being used in public high schools for the first time in Korea.
KACR is publishing a monthly newsletter, CREATION, containing articles on scientific evidences of creation and on the activities of KACR. The number of subscribers was about 3,000 as of June 1985. Several slides and film strips from ICR have also been translated into Korean by KACR. Professor Robert Goette and a KACR staff member, Wesley Wentworth, are providing current information and books on creation science published outside of Korea. KACR is planning an International Creation Science Seminar in Seoul in the year of the Seoul Olympic Games, in 1988.
KACR is praying for the further growth of creation science activities in the world for spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. We give thanks to the Creator and our Almighty God and Father, for leading and blessing the Korea Association of Creation Research.
