A Study on the Reputaton of Religion and Its Influence
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A STUDY ON THE REPUTATON OF RELIGION AND ITS INFLUENCE ON SOUTH KOREAN CHRISTIANITY A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Asbury Theological Seminary Wilmore, Kentucky In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Missiology Dissertation Committee Dr. Michael A. Rynkiewich, Mentor Dr. Stephen Offutt, Reader By Shin-Ho Choi April 2017 Copyright April 2017 Shin-Ho Choi All rights reserved TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ..............................................................................................................v LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................ viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ...................1 Background of the Problem .................................................................................................... 1 Social Change in South Korea ............................................................................................ 3 Personal Experience ............................................................................................................. 4 “Gae Dok” or “Gae Dok Gyo” and “Muk Sa” ................................................................ 6 Trust Index of the South Korean Protestant Church ....................................................... 8 Religious Context of South Korea: Religious-Market Situation ................................... 9 Reputation as a Significant Issue ..................................................................................... 10 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................................... 12 Research Questions ................................................................................................................ 13 Delimitations ........................................................................................................................... 14 Definition of Key Terms ....................................................................................................... 15 Reputation ........................................................................................................................... 15 Stakeholders ........................................................................................................................ 18 Christianity .......................................................................................................................... 19 Chemyun .............................................................................................................................. 19 Religious Market Situation ............................................................................................... 20 Theoretical Framework ......................................................................................................... 20 Reputation Theory ............................................................................................................. 20 Reputation Quotient Model .............................................................................................. 25 Research Methodology (Data Collection) ............................................................................ 28 Library/Academic Research ............................................................................................. 28 Survey with Questionnaires .............................................................................................. 28 i Analytic Framework (Data Analysis) .................................................................................. 30 Significance of the Study ...................................................................................................... 31 CHAPTER 2: STUDIES OF REPUTATION AND THE NECESSITY OF REPUTATONAL STUDIES IN THE AREA OF RELIGION .........................................33 Studies of Reputation ............................................................................................................. 33 History of Reputational Studies ....................................................................................... 33 The Paradigms of the Reputational Studies .................................................................... 35 Reputation: Operational Definition and Measurement ................................................. 36 Effects of Reputation ......................................................................................................... 42 Reputational Studies in Various Organizations .................................................................. 46 Reputation Studies of Educational Organizations ......................................................... 46 Reputation Studies in Politics ........................................................................................... 51 Reputation Studies about Religion ....................................................................................... 53 The Concept of Reputation in the Studies of Christianity ............................................ 54 Defining Religious Reputation ......................................................................................... 56 Previous Reputational Studies in Religion ..................................................................... 57 Summary .................................................................................................................................. 60 CHAPTER 3: REPUTATION IN THE FIRST CENTURY MEDITERRANEAN WORLD AND EARLY CHRISTIANITY ........................................................................61 Reputation in Mediterranean Culture: Cultural-Anthropological Foundation ............... 61 Reputation as the Pivotal Value in the Ancient Mediterranean World ....................... 62 Reputation as a Zero-Sum Game in a Limited Goods Society .................................... 65 Reputation as Awareness of Group in the Collectivistic Society ................................ 69 Reputation in the New Testament: Biblical Foundation ................................................... 71 Reputation as a Pivotal Value in the New Testament ................................................... 71 Jesus’ Reputation and Its Influence on People in the New Testament ....................... 76 The Early Christians’ Reputation and Their Influence on People in the New Testament ............................................................................................................................ 84 Reputation of Christianity in the First Three Centuries: Historical Foundation ............ 91 ii Expansion of Christianity in the First Three Centuries ................................................. 91 Obstacles to Expansion: When Christianity Has a Bad Reputation ............................. 94 The Reputation of Christianity in the Roman Empire ................................................... 95 Summary ................................................................................................................................ 102 CHAPTER 4: REPUTATION IN THE CULTURE AND RELIGION OF SOUTH KOREA ............................................................................................................................104 Reputation in South Korean Culture: Chemyun Culture ................................................. 104 Understanding Chemyun in South Korea ...................................................................... 105 The Importance of Reputation in South Korea: the Influence of Chemyun on South Korean Behavior .............................................................................................................. 109 The Importance of Reputation in Choice Situation: the Influence of Chemyun on Consumption Behavior .................................................................................................... 113 Reputation in South Korean Religion ................................................................................ 116 Four Dominant Religions in South Korean Religious History .................................. 117 Reputation in the Transition Process of South Korean Predominant Religions ...... 123 Reputation in the Transition from Shamanism to Buddhism ................................ 123 Reputation in the Transition from Buddhism to Confucianism ............................ 124 Reputation in the Transition from Confucianism to Christianity and Buddhism 127 The Importance of Reputation in the South Korean Religious Situation ..................... 132 Religious Tendencies of South Koreans ....................................................................... 132 Multi-Religious Situation in South Korea .................................................................... 135 Summary ................................................................................................................................ 138 CHAPTER 5: THE INFLUENCE OF RELIGION’S REPUTATION ON PEOPLE’S INTENTION AND BEHAVIOR IN SOUTH KOREA ..................................................140 Questionnaire configuration, data collection, analysis method, and respondents ....... 140 Questionnaire Configuration ........................................................................................... 140 Data Collection and Analysis Method ............................................................................ 141 Respondents