South Korea's Christian Military Chaplaincy in the Korean
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Volume 11 | Issue 18 | Number 1 | Article ID 3935 | May 05, 2013 The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus South Korea’s Christian Military Chaplaincy in the Korean War - religion as ideology? 朝鮮戦争における韓国軍キリスト教チャ プレン制度—イデオロギーとしての宗教 Vladimir Tikhonov first Constitution (1948) promised workers a share in company profits iik( kyunjŏm), the reality of mass pauperism and hunger wages was only too obvious (Sŏ 2007: 22-43). One of the ways of compensating for the evident lack Summary: The present paper examines the of socio-economic progress was to emphasise military chaplaincy in the context of a problem the “freedom and democracy” in South Korea – which has long intrigued researchers, namely as opposed to what South Korean the reasons for the rapid growth of the propagandists termed the “totalitarian regime” Christian (Protestant and Catholic) churches in in the North. But the claims to “democracy” 1950-80s South Korea compared to Japan or Taiwan. The author suggests that, whereas a were belied by the authoritarian behaviour of general answer to the question may be the use South Korea’s first president, Syngman Rhee of Christianity as a de facto state ideology in (Yi Sŭngman), whose regime was by 1952 the years 1948-1960 and its functioning as an routinely characterized as “dictatorial” even by ideology of capitalist modernisation in the his conservative opponents from the 1960s-80s, a particularly important part of parliamentary Democratic Party (Pak 1998). government-induced Christianization of South Facing a serious deficit of compelling ideology Korea was the institution of military chaplaincy. – aside from rabid anti-Communism and In 1951-1968, Christians – despite being a primordealist invocations of “Korean blood and numerical minority! – monopolized the glory” (Sŏ 1998) – the newborn pro-American chaplaincy in the military, and fully utilised this monopoly, “solacing” vulnerable youth forcibly regime turned to religious symbols to conscripted for military service and making substitute for secular ideological tools. This many “church family members”. The loyalties turn was hardly new as such: Protestant won in such a way, often lasted for life, thus Christians, together with indigenous providing the churches with new recruits and Ch’ŏndogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way) the hard-core anti-Communist state – with activists, were among the main organizers of docile anti-Communismt Christian subjects. the March 1, 1919 pro-independence demonstrations, although none of them From its very beginnings in the wake of Japan’s anticipated the degree to which the movement defeat and US occupation, South Koreawould eventually radicalize participants (Lee suffered from an acute deficit of political 2000), and the Protestant YMCA was among legitimacy. Its lack of nationalistic credentials the many “cultural-nationalist” groups was mainly due to the fact that the privileged conducting rural reconstruction work in the layers of the colonial society, tainted by their 1920s and 1930s (Wells 1990: 98-162). Kim Il collaboration with the Japanese, conspicuously Sung’s father, Kim Hyŏngjik, was a Protestant retained their positions. While South Korea’s nationalist, and, unsurprisingly, some elements 1 11 | 18 | 1 APJ | JF suggestive of formative Christian influences Christian political leaders in the northern surfaced in the chuch’e (self-reliance) ideology part of Korea, led by the chairman of the which substituted for Soviet “Marxism- Korean Democratic Party, Cho Mansik, Leninism” in 1960s-80s North Korea (Ch’oe defied the Soviet occupation authorities 1986). Raising the status of religious – mainly on the issue of the Allies’ proposed Christian – ideology to that of state ideology trusteeship over Korea. The Soviet was, however, somewhat new in late 1940s- authorities – unwilling to establish a early 1950s South Korea, although state Shinto “friendly” state of their own in the North of colonial times (Grayson 1993) did provide a at this stage – were prepared to enforce blueprint of sorts. Syngman Rhee’s religious the decision of the December 1945 turn was greatly helped by a number of Moscow conference of US, British and interrelated contextual circumstances: Soviet foreign ministers and put Korea under an Allied trusteeship for five years, 1. The clashes between Protestant and something right-wing Korean nationalists Catholic establishments and North opposed to (although in reality it could Korean authorities in 1945-1950 made theoretically be one way to keep Korea the overwhelming majority of Korea’s intact. See Lankov 2001). When Cho was Christians North and South into hard- placed under house arrest, a sizeable core anti-Communists, and guaranteed number of his followers fled south. The their loyalty to Seoul regime. The conflict conflict between the majority of the was hardly inevitable, since North Korea Christian leadership and the Soviet and was originally planned as a “people’s North Korean authorities afterwards was democracy” where “progressive ostensibly ignited by such symbolic religionists” were ensured their rightful issues as Peoples’ Committees elections place as builders of a new society. Mao’s on Sunday, November 3, 19463; in the China conducted a broadly similar policy background, however, lurked the conflict too in the early years of the PRC; in between mostly middle-class and richer Stalin’s USSR, by contrast, the Orthodox Christians, who comprised only about Church was a target for state 2-3% of North Korea’s overall suppression in 1930-1941, although its population4, and the new power-holders position was strengthened as a part of themselves mostly hailing from and the wartime “national reconciliation” reliant upon the poorer majority of North policy in 1941-1945 (Fletcher 1965). Koreans (Han’guk Kidokkyo Yŏksa North Korea’s initial, rather tolerant, Hakhoe 2009, 45-50). In the end, around position towards religion seems to have 25% of the Presbyterian and 59% of the been influenced by the wartime Methodist pastors from North Korea improvement in relations between the migrated to the South, together with an Orthodox and the Soviet state. In fact, as estimated 70-80,000 lay Protestant a result of the People’s Committees’2 believers and some 6,000 Catholics elections in November 1946, 2.7% of (Kang 2006: 410-431). Many of these their members (94 persons) turned out to migrants lost their possessions in North be “full-time religion practitioners” Korea, often due to the egalitarian land (sŏngjikcha); approximately the same reform there in March 1946 (on the share of pastors, priests and monks was reform, see Armstrong 2003: 75-85), and among the People’s Committee members that too strengthened their support of elected in June 1949 (cited in Kim 2012, the anti-Communist regime in South 400). However, already in January 1946, Korea. 2 11 | 18 | 1 APJ | JF 2. A large part of the new ruling elite in administrative elites and Christian, South Korea (?) was comprised of especially Protestant, leadership, was Christians, especially Protestants, in a further cemented by the Korean War in society where only slightly over 2% of the 1950-1953, as right-wing Christians population (500,198 out of the total came to regard the South Korean population of 20,188,641 in 1950) were authorities as their only protectors from Protestants. The three most prominent the threat of “victimization by right-wing émigré nationalists who Communists”. Buddhists felt more returned to (South) Korea by late 1945 estranged from what they – with good and were contending for leadership – reasons – tended to perceive as Syngman Rhee (1875-1965), Kim Ku “Christian government”, but the interests (1876-1949) and Kim Kyusik (1881-1950) of the conservativesangha leaders, – either were devout Protestants or at mostly abbots of the richer, land-owning least experimented with Protestantism at temples, were well served by the very some point in their lives (Kim Ku’s case), moderate South Korean version of the and all of them agreed that the “new land reform (conducted in 1949-1950) Korea” should be grounded in “Christian which obliged the peasants to pay for the ideals” (Han’guk Kidokkyo Yŏksa Hakhoe land they were to receive (Sŏ 2007: 2009, 41). 21% of the parliament 38-43) and additionally protected the deputies elected in South Korea in the landholdings of the temples as long as first-ever separate elections on May 10, they were tilled by the monks themselves 1948 –elections that were seen as (Kim 2000: 108-111). Some renowned lay illegitimate and were boycotted by most and monastic Buddhist leaders (Chŏn of the Left – were Protestants, a large Chinhan, Paek Sŏng’uk etc.) joined part of them being wealthier right- Syngman Rhee’s government too as wingers. Among the administrative elite, ministers, although such cases were the proportion of Protestants was even relatively rare. higher. 38% of the 242 persons who 3. Christianity was one of the main links served as ministers or vice-ministers between South Korea and its American under the Syngman Rhee presidency in sponsors. As Lee Chae-jin formulated it, 1948-1960, were Protestants, a large South Korea as a separate state was a part of them being wealthy individuals Cold War creation of the Truman with either American or Japanese administration which primarily viewed it educational background (Kang 1996: as “a buffer to protect security and 175-178). Small wonder that in such an integrity of Japan in the larger context of atmosphere, the majority of Protestant America’s regional and global policies” clergymen identified “democratic spirit”, (Lee 2006: 23). As a gateway to Japan, “anti-Communism” and “Christianity” as South Korea was a global asset of the largely synonymous, and felt committed United States; at the same time, the Joint to “grounding our new country in the Chiefs of Staff came by autumn 1947 to Gospels’ message”, with obvious the conclusion that South Korea’s encouragement from the political military-strategic value was relatively authorities who saw them as their low.