2021/07/22

Minjung theology - Wikipedia

Minjung theology - Wikipedia

Minjung theology

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Minjung theology
Hangul
민중신학
Hanja
民衆神學
Revised RomanizationMinjung Sinhak
McCune–ReischauerMinjung Sinhak
Literally "the people's theology"

Minjung theology (Korean: 민중신학; RR: Minjung Sinhak; lit. the people's theology) emerged in the 1970s from the experience of South Korean Christians in the struggle for social justice. It is a people's theology, and, according to its authors, "a development of the political hermeneutics of the Gospel in terms of the Korean reality."[1] It is part of a wider Asian theological ferment, but it was not designed for export. It "is firmly rooted in a particular situation, and growing out of the struggles of Christians who embrace their own history as well as the universal message of the Bible."[2]

History[edit source]

Minjung theology first began in South Korea in the 1950s and 1960s after the Korean War,[3] and was preached in a minority of protestant churches.[4] The theology gained popularity in the 1970s during the dictatorship of Park Chung-hee and the Third Republic of Korea.[5] The two Protestant theologians considered to be the creators of minjung theology are Ahn Byung-mu and Suh Nam-dong, who were both Kijang pastors that joined the minjung movement after the death of Jeon Tae-il.[6] Jeon Tae-il was a factory worker and union organizer who had burned himself to death along with a copy of South Korea's labor laws in an act of political and religious protest.[7] In 1972, Ahn Byung-mu wrote his first article on minjung as a theological theme, which he called "Jesus and Minjung."[8] A Catholic writer and artist named Kim Chi-ha is credited with inspiring much of minjung thought with graphic depictions of the Korean Christ suffering alongside the minjung.[9] Ahn Byung-mu, Suh Nam-dong, Hyun Young-Hak, and Kim Yong-bock are considered first generation minjung theologians.[10]

As South Korea has grown to be more a prosperous nation, later generations of minjung theologians have needed to reevaluate who are the poor and oppressed minjung of Korea. As such, a number of minjung theologians such as Park Soon-kyung have focused on questions of reunification with North Korea, identifying the minjung as all those oppressed in both Koreas.[11] The Catholic Priests' Association for Justice (CPAJ) and Fr. Park Chang-Shin are associated with liberation theology in Korea.[3]

In the 1970s theologians began exploring the theme of minjung liberation and many were removed from their positions at universities and seminaries for coming to the defense of those who were oppressed and imprisoned by the Park Chung Hee regime and the Korean Central Intelligence Agency.[12] Minjung movements that are important for understanding the Korean context include the Tonghak Peasant Revolution, the March 1st Movement, and the April Revolution.[13]

Theology develops out of a human analysis of God's interactions with the world in a given historical and cultural context, and Christian theology has predominately been defined and expressed within a Western context. Minjung theology asserts that God speaks to all historical and cultural contexts including the conditions of Korea.[14] Proponents of Minjung theology believe that the context of Korea is similar in many ways to the stories found in the bible, and that God is demonstrably on the side of the poor and oppressed throughout the books of the Bible.[15] The word Minjung translates literally as "the mass of people," but a more comprehensive definition of the term is "those who are oppressed politically, exploited economically, alienated socially, and kept uneducated in cultural and intellectual matters." Another way of putting it is that the minjung are han-ridden people, which is a Korean word that roughly translates as resentment.[16] Minjung is contrasted by the paeksung who accept oppression and the word inmin meaning a national identity.[17] The Old Testament was written from the perspective of people in positions of power, but the stories are often about the liberation of the minjung. For instance, the Exodus, a story told from the perspective of Moses, is about the liberation of the Hebrew people from the oppressive rule of the Egyptian Pharaoh Rameses II.[18] The Exodus story has parallels to Korean history because Koreans have endured under brutal governments for most of its history.[19] The first protestant missionaries in Korea such as Horace Newton Allen, Henry Appenzeller, and Horace Grant Underwood began their missions among the lower classes. For instance, in 1885 the protestant missions opened a school for girls, which was attended by minjung but were dismissed by the yang ban. These missionaries discovered that the Chinese language was being used by the upper-classes so the missionaries began using Hangul and translated the Bible into Hangul between 1887 and 1900.[20] In January of 1893, the Nevius Plan was adopted by protestant missions, which stated that:

1. It is better to aim at the conversion of the working classes than that of the higher classes.

2. The conversion of women and the training of Christian girls should be a special aim, since mothers exercise so important an influence over future generations.

3. The Word of God converts where humankind is without resources; therefore it is most important that we make every effort to place a clear translation of the Bible before the people as soon as possible.

4. The mass of Koreans must be led to Christ by their own fellow country men; therefore we shall thoroughly train a few as evangelists rather than preach to a multitude ourselves.

— Cyris H. S. Moon and Mun Hŭi-sŏk, A Korean Minjung Theology: An Old Testament Perspective, Chapter 2, Page 11
Liberation of Korea

During the Tonghak rebellion, the minjung held the belief that "humanity is heaven" and that the lower classes were subjects of history rather than simply objects being acted upon. However, in the early 1900s protestant missionaries became disconnected from the minjung and after the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905 protestant churches no longer focused on the political oppression of the minjung and were more concerned with the saving of souls. Once Korea was officially annexed to Japan in the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910 Koreans were expected to recognize the Imperial Rescript on Education and the divinity or Arahitogami of the emperor. Korea under Japanese rule led to the persecution of Christians who began to interpret the bible within the context of their struggle for independence by turning to the Exodus story and would cumulate into the March 1st Movement. Twenty-two percent of the participants in the movement and much of the leadership consisted of Christians, but the movement was crushed by the Japanese military. Christian missionaries found it necessary to collaborate with Japanese authorities, and between 1920 and 1945 Korean churches became fundamentalist and focused on Western theology while also giving into Japanese demands to recognize the divinity of the emperor. At the end of World War II, in 1945, the Korean minjung achieved independence from Japan in much the same way that the Hebrew people liberated themselves from the Egyptians.[21]

Theology[edit source]

The word multitude is uniquely important within minjung theology. Minjung theology is a belief that is concerned with the experience of the lower classes or the multitude.[22] Ahn Byung Mu viewed Jesus as a collective event wherein Jesus comes as the Messiah for the poor and oppressed masses of people.[23] Minjung theology is a postcolonial theology. When the life of Jesus is interpreted within different Asian contexts he is often cast in a subversive light, defying both locally established and colonial powers. In Korea, Jesus took on the role of the suffering and impoverished of the democratization movement.[24] Minjung theology focuses on Jesus being the friend of the poor and his powerlessness during crucifixion leading up to his resurrection.[25] Minjung theology was inspired by the liberation theology being preached in Latin America.[26] Ahn Byung Mu is the biggest proponent of minjung theology.[27] Minjung theology was influenced by Shamanism and Messianism.[28] Minjung theology views the oppressed masses as subjects of change rather than objects of history.[7]

Criticism[edit source]

In his book Grassroots Asian Theology, Simon Chan criticizes minjung theology for being an elitist interpretation of grassroots theology in South Korea that ignores the actual beliefs of the minjung.[29]

William Huang of Mercator Net has criticized believers in minjung theology for supporting restrictions on beef imports from America, encouraging peaceful dialogue with North Korea, and calling for the National Security Act to be repealed.[3]

Hyunsook Park of Christian Today has criticized believers in minjung theology for not taking a literal interpretation of the bible, being more concerned with collective sin and structural violence than it is with individual sins, being more concerned with the material world rather than the eternal afterlife, for favoring the poor over other groups of people, and for being affirming of LGBT+ people.[30]

Kim Jin-young of Christian Today has criticized proponents of minjung theology for putting Kim Il-sung, liberation, and labor before God. He also compared minjung theology with Juche.[31]

Lee Youngjin of Christian Today has criticized minjung theology for putting people first rather than God.[32]

See also[edit source]

Notes[edit source]

  1. ^ Suh 1983, p. 17
  2. ^ Wickeri 1985, p. 461
  3. ^ Jump up to:a b c Huang, William (2020-05-13). "Korean Christianity: Thriving in Megachurches, Deserted by Youth". MercatorNet. New Media Foundation. Archived from the original on 2020-10-22. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  4. ^ Hazzan, Dave (2016-04-07). "Christianity and Korea: How Did the Religion Become So Apparently Prevalent in South Korea?". The Diplomat. Diplomat Media. Archived from the original on 2021-02-21. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  5. ^ Wadhwa, Soni (2021-01-28). "Motherly figure, Hindu mystic or Jain pilgrim: Jesus has always been interpreted differently in Asia". Scroll.in. Scroll Media. Archived from the original on 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  6. ^ Kim & Kim 2014: "Two Protestant theologians are regarded as the originators of minjung theology: Ahn Byung-mu and Suh Nam-dong both were Kijang pastors who were prompted to join the minjung movement by the death of Jeon Tae-il."
  7. ^ Jump up to:a b O'dwyer, Shaun (2014-06-03). "The Tank Man's Defiance". The Japan Times. News2u Holdings. Archived from the original on 2020-08-13. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  8. ^ Kim & Kim 2013: "According to his memory, it was in 1972 that he had written for the first time an article dealing with minjung as a theological theme called 'Jesus and Minjung.'"
  9. ^ Kim & Kim 2014: "The Catholic writer and artist Kim Chi-ha was the inspiration for much minjung thought ... His pictures, writings and plays vividly portray the Korean Christ who is brutally treated and suffers with the minjung"
  10. ^ Küster 2010, p. xi
  11. ^ Kim & Kim 2014: "In the late 1970s, as the activists for democracy came to see the division of the peninsula as the chief hindrance to freedom in both South and North, they began to give serious consideration to reunification."
  12. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. ix, Introduction
  13. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. x, Introduction
  14. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. v, Preface
  15. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. vi, Preface
  16. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. 1, chpt. 1
  17. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. 2, chpt. 1
  18. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. 3, chpt. 2
  19. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, p. 7, chpt. 2
  20. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, pp. 10-11, chpt. 2
  21. ^ Moon & Mun 1985, pp. 12-17, chpt. 2
  22. ^ Wilcox, Susan (2013-11-06). "Authors' Theology Grounded in Class Struggle". National Catholic Reporter. The National Catholic Reporter Publishing Company. Archived from the original on 2020-08-09. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  23. ^ Sharma, Manik (2018-06-16). "How Asia Remade Jesus: A New Book Presents Intriguing Insights Into the Story of Global Christianity". Firstpost. Network18 Group. Archived from the original on 2021-01-10. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  24. ^ Dabashi, Hamid (2020-01-06). "Decolonising Jesus Christ: The Figure of Jesus Christ Goes Way Beyond the Image of Him Which Hegemonic European Christianity Imposed on the World". Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera Media Network. Archived from the original on 2021-02-26. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  25. ^ Langan, Michael D. (2020-09-04). "Review: "Christianity, The First Three Thousand Years"". NBC2 News. Waterman Broadcasting. Archived from the original on 2021-01-17. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  26. ^ Cox, Harvey (2013-12-18). "Is Pope Francis the New Champion of Liberation Theology?". The Nation. The Nation Company. ISSN 0027-8378. Archived from the original on 2021-02-14. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  27. ^ Balakrishnan, Uday (2018-03-03). "Jesus in Asia review: A question of faith". The Hindu. The Hindu Group. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  28. ^ Namsa, Engelberto (2020-04-06). "Teologi Pembebasan Asia: Bertolak Dari Keresahan Masyarakat" [Asian Liberation Theology: Departing From Societal Unrest]. Jubi (in Indonesian). Indonesian Press Council. Archived from the original on 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  29. ^ Chan 2014, p. 26
  30. ^ Hyunsook, Park (2020-08-24). "Bosusinhakgwa Haebang-Minjung Sinhak" 보수신학과 해방-민중 신학 [Conservative Theology and Liberation-Folk Theology]. Christian Daily (in Korean). German Report. Archived from the original on 2021-01-16. Retrieved 2021-03-24.
  31. ^ Jin-young, Kim (2018-12-08). "Nyuseuaenjoi Gwallyeon Danchedeul, 'Yesugyo'nya 'Suryeonggyo'nya" 뉴스앤조이 관련 단체들, '예수교'냐 '수령교'냐 [News & Joy Related Organizations, 'Jesus Church' or 'Recipient Church']. Christian Today (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2021-03-22.
  32. ^ Youngjin, Lee; Daewoong, Lee (2019-07-15). "Minjungsinhagi Jeonyeomdoeneun Gaeyo" 민중신학이 전염되는 개요 [Overview of the Contagion of Minjung Theology]. Christian Today (in Korean). Archived from the original on 2019-10-27. Retrieved 2021-03-24.

References[edit source]

Further reading[edit source]

External links[edit source]

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