Kil answered, “How could man call God Father?” But three days later, while praying, he heard a mysterious voice call his name three times. Indigenous Christian rituals such as sagyeonhoe (Bible study and the Bible-examining meetings), saebyoek gido (dawn prayer meetings), and tongseong gido (collective audible prayer) were formulated as part of Protestant practice. The denomination with the highest number of missionaries is Presbyterian Church in Korea (Hapdong) with about 3,000 missionaries. While many of these older Koreans still want to see the two countries reunited, young people do not share the sentiment. The Rev. All rights reserved. South Korea provides the world's second-largest number of Christian missionaries, surpassed only by the United States. The locals’ role in the beginning of Korea’s Protestant church in the 1880s closely resembled the early days of Catholicism. The Japanese-controlled police made systematic efforts to minimize the influence of the missionaries; this reduced conversions during the years 1911–1919. Jin-soo (his first name), one of Torrey’s students told my student through a translator: “I went to a public elementary and middle school. Christianity was linked even more with the patriotic cause when some Christians refused to participate in worship of the Japanese Emperor, which was required by law in the 1930s. This article was originally published on The Conversation. And although it’s an uphill struggle, they believe with faith anything is possible. For a time, the priest was protected from authorities by Kang Wan-suk (Columba), a wealthy aristocratic woman, who was divorced by her husband for her evangelistic activities. I watched these events unfold with interest since two months earlier, I had traveled to South Korea with 12 journalism students to report on ongoing religious, political and cultural developments. The Japanese imprisoned many in the movement. "[57] The practice of Christianity in Korea revolves around two of its largest branches, Protestantism and Catholicism, accounting for 8.6 million[1][2] and 5.3 million[3] members, respectively. [31] Although the Vatican ruled in 1789 that the appointment of lay-priests violated Canon law, in Korea indigenous lay-workers rather than foreign prelates carried Catholicism to many. After they were baptized in the late 1870s, several returned to Ŭiju and started a church there. The first Western missionaries to enter Korea officially were Horace Grant Underwood and Henry Gerhard Appenzeller—both from the United States. who later testified that “the day that Jesus Christ was preached in Korea began the emancipation of women from the bondage of thousands of years.” She first heard the name of Jesus at the age of 50 and she was baptized and received into full church membership in 1899. In that year, approximately 2% of the population was Christian. Despite these difficulties, the first Korean Catholics pressed the bishop to send them a priest (they could not observe mass without one) and in 1795, a Chinese priest was smuggled in. From the first entry of Protestantism, colporteurs like Suh Sang-ryun sold Christian literature, and from the late 1880s, Korean Christians were engaged by missionaries as “helpers” to interpret for them, lead Bible studies, and organize churches. The economic challenge is equally daunting. Catholics and Buddhists had to compete for loyalty and attention, and it inspired numerous smaller sects. Jesuit missionaries distributed philosophical and scientific literature, material that caught the attention of scholars looking to innovate and reform the Confucian system. John Ross, a Scottish Presbyterian missionary based in Shenyang, completed his translation of the New Testament into Korean in 1887,[35] and Protestant leaders began a mass distribution effort. From 1910 to 1945 the Japanese occupied all of the country, taking over its rule under a treaty forced on Korea. [60], Former Mayor of Seoul, Oh Se-hoon, proposed a referendum in Seoul on 24 August 2011. The influence on higher education in Korea has been decisive as the Christians started 293 schools and 40 universities including 3 of the top … Today, the Korean Catholic Church is the only national Catholic church that is recognized as founded by a lay community. The practice of Christianity in Korea revolves around two of its largest branches, Protestantism and Catholicism, accounting for 8.6 million [1] [2] and 5.3 million [3] members respectively. Some aristocrats who converted to Catholicism or were sympathetic to the faith disguised their views, caring for exiled believers by allowing them to live on land they owned in more remote mountain areas or islands. In fact, most of them were wives who had been neglected by their husbands in the patriarchal society of Korea. Get the best from CT editors, delivered straight to your inbox! (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon). [7] Numerous unorthodox sects, such as the Unification Church founded in 1954 by Sun Myung Moon, have also developed in Korea. Buddhism was first introduced to Korea from China in 372 AD during Korea's Three Kingdoms Period, which lasted from 57 BC until 667 AD. What first caused Christianity to take hold in Korea? In 1910, Japan would annex Korea and it would cease to exist as a separate country until the defeat of the Japanese Empire in 1945. Female literacy rose sharply, since women had previously been excluded from the educational system.[37]. Churches established industrial chaplaincies among the workers within factories. South Korea’s current president, Park Geun-hye, is an atheist with connections to Buddhism and Catholicism, according to the Council on Foreign Relations. Silhak scholars perceived Catholicism as providing an ideological basis for their beliefs and were therefore attracted to what they saw as the egalitarian values of Catholicism. Sign Up For Our Newsletter According to some defectors, religion helps with acculturation. The growth of both denominations was gradual before 1945. When Southern Methodist missionaries arrived in 1896, they likened Yun to the man of Macedonia whom the apostle Paul saw in a dream saying “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” (Acts 16:9). [clarification needed] In 2000, there were 10,646 South Korean Protestant missionaries in 156 countries, along with an undisclosed number of Catholic missionaries. Many soldiers converted to Christianity during their military service. [64] In early 2008, Seoul Land, a leading amusement park, hosted a "creation science" exhibit, organized by KACR, which was visited by over 116,000 visitors in three months, and as of 2012[update], the park is in talks to create a year-long exhibition. In 1603, Yi Gwang-jeong, Korean diplomat, returned from Beijing carrying several theological books written by Matteo Ricci, an Italian Jesuit missionary to China. But after the Korean War, the country’s religious landscape changed dramatically. Christianity Today strengthens the church by richly communicating the breadth of the true, good, and beautiful gospel. [73], Pope Francis accepted an invitation to visit South Korea in August 2014.
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