By Na Jeong-ju



Dongguk University, the country’s biggest Buddhist-run school, pledged Thursday it will deal sternly with “illegal and rude” missionary activities by some Christians inside the school.



Jeonggakwon, one of the temples operated by the university, posted a message on the school’s homepage on Tuesday, saying the school was deeply concerned about the insensitive and inconsiderate behavior of the Christian students.



It presented some examples of their actions.



Some followers drew a big cross in red paint on a statue of Buddha enshrined at the temple and scribbled “only Jesus Christ.” Some urinated or defecated at a sanctuary and destroyed the door.



There was also an incident in which an elephant-shaped lantern, which would have been used for a Buddhist ceremony, was set on fire.



One night, a large number of Christians came to the school in buses and held a noisy assembly near the temple. Some followers even broke into classrooms which had been closed for college admission tests and hung missionary posters on chalkboards, according to the school.



“We decided to take action to prevent such incidents from occurring again in this school,” said a monk at Jeonggakwon. “We understand that most Christians don’t behave in this way, but illegal and inconsiderate activities to impose religious superiority should not be repeated here.”