The University of Hull Korean Christianity and The
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THE UNIVERSITY OF HULL KOREAN CHRISTIANITY AND THE SHINTO' SHRINE ISSUE IN THE WAR PERIOD, 1931-1945: A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF RELIGION AND POLITICS being a Thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the University of Hull by Sung-Gun Kim, B.A., M.A. May 1989 SOCIOLOGY & SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY ABSTRACT Summary of Thesis submitted for Ph.D. Degree by Sung-Gun Kim on KOREAN CHRISTIANITY AND THE SHINT5 SHRINE ISSUE IN THE WAR PERIOD, 1931-1945: A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF RELIGION AND POLITICS The main theme is the differences in response among the churches to the Shinn' Shrine Issue in Korea under Japanese colonialism. The central focus is an inquiry into the possible reasons why some religious groups, including the Catholic and Methodist Churches, should choose the way of compromise, while others, such as the Presbyterian Church, represented by individual missionaries and the Non-Shrine Worship Movement and the Mount Zion Sect, chose the way of radical challenge and withdrawal. It is proposed in this study to concentrate on three major churches - the Roman Catholic, the Methodist and the Presbyterian. This study offers, firstly, a detailed analysis of the content of the debate, the attitudes and actions of the three churches towards the shrine problem in their historical evolution since 1931; secondly, an attempt is made to explain the different positions of the three churches in terms of the sociology of religion and the sociology of missions. The sociological consequences of religious experience provide a general framework. The main assumption is that the difference in ideological elements is more important in religious institutions than has been usually thought. In explaining the differences of position in the three churches, the following eight factors are proposed: (1) Theological emphasis; (2) Church structure; (3) World view; (4) Mission policy; (5) Relationship to nationalism; (6) Relationship to non-Christian religions; (7) Early historical experience; and (8) Nationalities of missionaries. The thesis is divided into two parts: (1) Part I (Chapters One to Three) reviews the theoretical and methodological literature relevant to the study of the Shinta Shrine Issue. It also surveys the introduction of the two principal forms of Christianity (Roman Catholicism and Protestantism) in Korea, and examines modern Japan, State Shinta and Christianity. (2) Part II (Chapters Four and Five) comprises a detailed analysis of the positions of the three Christian churches towards the shrine problem, and a systematic comparison of the different responses of the three churches by employing the above-mentioned eightfactors. Three key factors are proposed in respect of the denominational division in the matter of the Shinta shrine question: theological emphasis, mission policy and church structure. Attention is also drawn to the historical discontinuity in motivation between the Non- Shrine Worship Movement by the fundamentalists and the recent political struggle for justice by the liberals. The legacy of the ordeal of the ShintU shrine controversy in the 1930s remains as an obstacle to the reconciliation between ultra-conservative theology and liberal 'minjung' theology. It is therefore demonstrated in this thesis that the particular form of religious outlook is a relevant factor in its own right, which is not to be reduced to other variables. Thus for the purpose of this study, the tools of Weber seem to prove more effective than do those of Marx. KOREAN CHRISTIANITY AND THE SHINTO SHRINE ISSUE IN THE WAR PERIOD, 1931-1945: A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF RELIGION AND POLITICS CONTENTS page Acknowledgements iv List of Abbreviations vi Notes on Romanisation vii Ordering of Oriental Names viii List of Tables ix INTRODUCTION 1 PART I 30 CH. I THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS 31 A. Sociology and History 31 B. Sociological Understanding of Religion and Politics 39 1. The Relationship of Religion and Politics 39 2. Church, Denomination, Sect 58 3. Religious Fundamentalism versus Religious Liberalism 67 C. Sociology of Missions 86 CH. II HISTORICAL OVERVIEW bF KOREAN CHRISTIANITY 113 A. The Pre-Christian Religious Heritage of Korean Society 113 B. The Early Korean Churches 120 1. Catholic Missions 120 2. Protestant Missions 127 CH. III MODERN JAPAN, STATE SHINTO- AND CHRISTIANITY 145 A. The Roots of Imperialism in Japanese Culture 145 B. Characteristics of Japan's Religious History 145 1. Religious Primitiveness 154 2. Protection of the State 156 3. Hostility towards Christianity 163 C. Ultra-Nationalism and State Shinta 167' D. Japanese Christianity and the Shint6 Shrine Issue 182 1. Nationalism and Christianity 182 2. Korean Assimilation and Japanese Christianity 188 page PART II 193 CH. IV KOREAN CHRISTIANITY AND THE SHINTO SHRINE ISSUE (1) : The Responses of the Three Christian Churches Towards the Shrine Problem in Their Historical Evolution 194 A. Japanese Government Policy on State Shinti5 and Religious Education 194 B. The Catholic Church 199 C. The Methodist Church 204 D. The Presbyterian Church 208 CH. V KOREAN CHRISTIANITY AND THE SHINTO SHRINE ISSUE (2) : The Catholic, the Methodist and the Presbyterian Positions Compared 224 A. Theoretical Framework 224 B. Theological Emphasis 235 1. The Catholic Church 235 2. The Methodist Church 238 3. The Presbyterian Church 242 C. Church Structure 244 1. The Catholic Church 244 2. The Methodist Church 251 3. The Presbyterian Church 253 D. World view 256 1. The Catholic Church 256 2. The Methodist Church 260 3. The Presbyterian Church 264 E. Mission Policy 269 1. The Catholic Church 269 2. The Methodist Church 277 3. The Presbyterian Church 280 F. Relationship to Nationalism 284 1. The Catholic Church 284 2. The Methodist thurch 288 3. The Presbyterian Church 291 G. Relationship to Non-Christian Religions 297 1. The Catholic Church 297 2. The Methodist Church 300 3. The Presbyterian Church 302 H. Early Historical Experience 304 1. The Catholic Church 304 2. The Methodist Church 307 3. The Presbyterian Church 310 I. Nationalities of Missionaries 313 1. The Catholic Church 313 2. The Methodist Church 317 3. The Presbyterian Church 320 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 323' The Responses of the Three Christian Churches A. on the Shint6 Shrine Issue 323 B. Comparison of the Catholic, the Methodist and the Presbyterian Positions 329 ii page C. Some Theoretical Considerations 340 Notes 344 Appendix A The Imperial Rescript on Education (1890) 408 B The Nevius Method (1890) 409 C Three Negative and Four Positive Principles for the Training of the Korean Ministry 410 D Educational Ordinance of 1911 411 E Revisions in Regulations for Private Schools (1915) 412 F Statement made by Bishop Chung Choon Soo (2.10.1940) 413 Glossary of Chinese Character Terms 415 Bibliography 424 - iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My former M.A. supervisor, Professor Pak YOng-sin, Department of Sociology, Yonsei University, gave initial encouragement in 1986. Rev. and Dr. Kim Yong-Bock, Presbyterian Theological Seminary (in 1986), and Professor Yi Man-nyOl, Department of History, Suk MyOng Womans University, and Director of the Institute of Korean Church History Studies, considered my project sympathetically. Elder ChOng Un-hun and Mr. Pak KOn-han of Zion Presbyterian Church of Christ, KyOng-ju offered some inaccessible materials on the Mount Zion sect. Dr. Helen Ballhatchet, Department of Japanese Studies, London University School of Oriental and African Studies, provided her Ph.D. bibliography [Between Idolatry and Infidelity: The Christian Missionary in Japan, 1874-19121. Thanks to Dr. Ballhatchet's introduction, I had useful discussions with Professor Takeda Kiyoko, International Christian University, and - Professor Suzuki Norihisa, St. Paul University, during a short study-visit to Japan in 1987. I wish to thank my supervisor, Dr. Peter Glover Forster, for his encouragement. He read an earlier draft of the thesis carefully and provided very useful comments, despite many other calls on his time. Professor Valdo Pons has provided valuable points on design of the project. Seminars at Hull and presentations at the Yorkshire and Northumbria Korea Seminar (University of Sheffield, 11 November 1988) and the British Association for Korean Studies (University of Durham, 22 March 1989) gave me important encouragement to complete the project. Dr. James Huntley Grayson, Director of the Institute for Korean Studies, University of Sheffield, provided very useful advice on Romanisation and Glossary. I wish to thank Miss Valerie Clark, Mrs. Margaret Turner, and Mr. David Turner, Department of German, iv University of Hull for their proof reading of the final draft of the thesis. Mrs. Stella Rhind typed the manuscript, and I was also able to draw on her long experience of typing theses for Hull University for much valuable assistance in preparation. For the scholarships I would like to thank the Hull University Scholarships Committee, and the O.R.S. Award, of the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals of the Universities of the United Kingdom. The University of Seowon has provided part of the financial assistance for my study leave in U.K. from 1986 to 1989. I wish to thank Professor Yi ChOng-sik of the same university as well as Professor Yi Chong-su of Han Nam University, and my brother-in-law, Rev. Prof. Suh Jung Woon, Presbyterian Theological Seminary, for their moral support during the last three years. I also wish to thank my good friends Rev. Song Chun-s6p, YOm Ch'On Presbyterian Church, Seoul, Mr. Pygn YOng-elk, Director of Tokyo Office, Yukong