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In Korean Presbyterian Preaching: a Practical Theological Investigation “Authority” in Korean Presbyterian Preaching: A Practical Theological Investigation by Dong-Choul Kim Dissertation presented for the degree of Ph.D. – Practical Theology at Stellenbosch University Promoter: Prof. J. Cilliers December 2014 Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za DECLARATION By submitting this dissertation electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own original work, that I am the owner of the copyright thereof (unless to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), and that I have not previously, in its entirety or in part, submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Date: December 2014 Copyright © 2014 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved II Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ABSTRACT Korean society has experienced more severe changes in the last 50 years than in the last 500 years. The pulpit has also faced the challenges created by the socio-cultural revolution following the collapse of Korean traditional values, while authoritative and hierarchical cultures are rapidly changing as a result of westernization and political transformation. This situation has led to an acute crisis in the relationship between the hearer and the preacher in Korean services, where the Korean Presbyterian preachers still pursue an authoritarian style of preaching based on hierarchical, logical or proposition-centred preaching and argument- centred preaching. Since the 1990s Korean Presbyterian homileticians have accepted narrative preaching as an alternative to the traditional manner. However, this narrative preaching aggravates the problematic relationship - extending the gap, falling into theological relationalism, and neglecting the identity of Jesus Christ - between the preacher and the hearer. The preaching should propose the face-to-face relationship, a participatory role in the preaching process, and interactive persuasion. In order to overcome both authoritarianism and subjectivism in the authority of preaching, this research studies the theology and homiletics of three homileticians, namely Rose, McClure and Campbell, who propose the functional community as an alternative, suggesting face-to-face relationships, fostering the congregation to participate in the whole process of preaching, and support to interpret the truth being the task of the whole community. Afterward, preaching is defined to explore the blending of the four elements (God, Bible, preacher and audience) to create a living voice, so that the four elements of preaching are reassessed and re-interpreted in terms of the “Spirit-guided community authority” in the Korean Presbyterian homiletics. Hence, Korean Presbyterian preaching, lastly, needs to consider the purpose of the preaching as “building up the functional community” homiletically, applying the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers into homiletics theologically, turning from rhetoric to theo-rhetoric, III Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za and exercising the way of power that Jesus Christ practised. IV Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za OPSOMMING Die Koreaanse samelewing het in die afgelope 50 jaar deur meer drastiese veranderinge gegaan as in die afgelope 500 jaar. Die preekstoel is ook uitgedaag deur die sosio-kulturele revolusie wat deur die ineenstorting van Koreaanse tradisionele waardes veroorsaak is, terwyl outoritêre en hiërargiese kulture vinnig verander vanwëe verwestering en politieke transformasie. Hierdie omstandighede het ‘n ernstige krisis veroorsaak in die verhouding tussen die luisteraar en die prediker in Koreaanse dienste, waar predikers steeds ‘n outoritêre preekstyl handhaaf wat op ‘n hiërargiese, logiese of proposisie-gesentreerde prediking gebaseer word en argument-gesentreerde prediking. In hierdie sin het Koreaanse homiletici narratiewe prediking sedert die 1990s aanvaar as ‘n alternatief tot die tradisionele manier. Dit vererger egter die problematiese verhouding – verleng die gaping, verval in teologiese relasionalisme en verwaarloos die identiteit van Jesus Christus – tussen die prediker en die luisteraar. Die prediking behoort ‘n aangesig-tot- aangesig verhouding, ‘n deelnemende rol in die predikingsproses en interaktiewe oorreding voor te stel. Om beide outoritarisme en subjektivisme in die outoriteit van prediking te oorkom, bestudeer hierdie navorsing die teologie en homilitiek van drie homiletici, naamlik Rose, McClure en Campbell,wat die outoriteit op die funksionele gemeenskap as ‘n alternatief plaas. Hulle stel voor aangesig-tot-aangesig verhoudings, die bevordering van die gemeenskap om in die hele proses van prediking deel te neem, en ondersteuning om die waarheid te interpreteer as die taak van die hele gemeenskap. Hierna word prediking gedefinieer deur die vermenging van die vier elemente (God, Bybel, prediker en gehoor) te ondersoek om ‘n lewende stem te skep, sodat die vier elemente van prediking herbesin en herinterpreteer word in terme van die “Gees-geleide gemeenskapsoutoriteit” in Koreaanse homiletiek. Dus behoort Koreaanse prediking laastens die doel van die prediking homileties te heroorweeg as die “opbou van die funksionele gemeenskap”, die leer van die priesterdom van alle gelowiges teologies toegepas in homiletiek, van retoriek te verander na teo-retoriek en V Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za mag, soos beoefen deur Jesus Christus. VI Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Firstly, I would like to express my special thanks to Professor Cilliers, who has always challenged and encouraged me throughout the entire journey. Without his sincere guidance, books, and papers, I could not have this honour. I genuinely wish to thank Jinju-sungnam Church (Dr. Dae-Sik Yang, Elder. Yoon-Je Park, Hye-Ki Ji, Dae-Sung Kang), Joo-singil Church (Rev. Moon-Nam Lee), Daejun-Seomun Church (Rev. Yong-Han Kim), Geumgok Church (Rev. Myeon-Soo Lee), Jukjeon Church (Rev. Jong-Hyun No), Dongseo Church (Rev. Dong-Jin Kim), Geochang Mission Church (Dr. Byung-Chul Park), and Shinchnag Church (Rev. Gwang-Rae Kim) who have supported me both spiritually and financially during the last four years. I also cannot express more gratitude for the faithful love and support of my mother, Soon-Yeon Cho, my parents-in-law, Kyu- Seong Chung and Yoon-Hee No, and my colleagues. I am also grateful to Mrs. Felicity Grové for her precious help in refining my English. Finally, I would like to express my deepest love to my wife, Jane Chung, and my children, Yiseul and Sarah. They always provided me with plentiful hope, joy, and happiness whenever I was tired of studying and ministering. Lord, May You Bless Africa Continually! VII Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION１ 1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM ........................................................................................................ １ 1.2 AIM OF RESEARCH ............................................................................................................................. ６ 1.3 HYPOTHESES ........................................................................................................................................ ７ 1.4 METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................................. ８ 1.5 DEMARCATION ................................................................................................................................ １１ CHAPTER 2: BRINGING THE CONCEPT OF AUTHORITY INTO DIALOGUE WITH RECENT THOUGHT IN THE LIGHT OF McCLURE’S METHOD 2.1 THE NEED FOR A FACE-TO-FACE RELATIONSHIP ..................................................................... １３ 2.2 THE NEED FOR PARTICIPATORY ROLES ...................................................................................... １６ 2.3 THE NEED FOR INTERACTIVE PERSUASION .............................................................................. １８ 2.4 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION .................................................................................................... ２０ CHAPTER 3: EXAMINING THE DISTORTED AUTHORITY IN KOREAN PRESBYTERIAN PREACHING 3.1 THE TRADITIONAL THEOLOGY AND HOMILETICS: THE PREACHER BASED AUTHORITY ２３ 3.1.1 The Religious-Sociological Background of the Traditional Homiletic: Neo-Confucianism and Shamanism ......................................................................................................................................................................... ２４ 3.1.1.1 Neo-Confucianism ..................................................................................................................................... ２５ 3.1.1.2 Shamanism .................................................................................................................................................... ２６ 3.1.2 The Traditional Korean Church History and Homiletics .................................................................... ２８ 3.1.2.1 The Preaching Purpose: Why does the preacher preach? ...................................................... ２８ 3.1.2.2 The Preaching Content: What does the preacher preach?..................................................... ３２ VIII Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za 3.1.2.3 The Preaching Language: What kinds of sermonic languages does the preacher use? ..........................................................................................................................................................................................
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