3 children of pastor found dead at home

Three children of a local pastor who had been sick were found dead at home Saturday after their father chose prayer over medical intervention, police said.

A relative found the bodies of the children, aged five, eight and 10, in their home attached to the church where their father works as a pastor in Boseong, 397 kilometers south of Seoul, and reported the deaths to police at about 10 a.m.

Bulgarian Orthodox priests read prayers as people gather around candles stuck to jars of honey arranged as a Holy Cross in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, Feb. 10. (AP-Yonhap News)

The three, all biological children of the 43-year-old pastor, had shown symptoms of flu for some time, but their father did not seek medical assistance but prayed for God's help instead, according to the police.

Police were investigating the exact cause of the children's deaths while placing a fourth child in protective custody. (Yonhap News)