The religious synthesis of Choe Je-U as a nineteenth century theological paradigm for Korean Minjung theology

grantor: Emmanuel CollegeThe purpose of this thesis is to identify the spiritual roots of Minjung theology in Donghak, the name of the new teaching founded by Choe Je-U (1824-1864) in 1860 C.E. The focus of our attention here will be on the importance of the context of minjung in theological discussion. I suggest that, due to that neglect, there are some Korean cultural contextual issues that have not been effectively addressed by Minjung theology. As Christianity became one of the most powerful forces in Korean society, en route to its growth and expansion there has come, in less than a century, the near eradication of some of the indigenous cultural traditions, many of which were not necessarily in conflict with the Christian faith. It is clear that the Christian mission brought with it not only a spiritual vision but also competing cultural claims. The second problem has to do with the way the Church has treated other religions. I am not going to make any simplistic assertions concerning the root cause of these social clashes. Identifying the problems will suffice for my purpose here. My thesis is that Donghak, the religious movement founded by Choe Je-U, is a nineteenth century spiritual paradigm for Minjung theology, Conversely, Minjung theology is a twentieth century spiritual heir of Donghak. Although this point has been mentioned by many, both Minjung theologians and others alike, it has not been clear how it is so. This thesis, therefore, is also an attempt to illustrate this particular point. My thesis statement can be amplified as follows: (1) In order to avoid missionary cultural imperialism, as shown in the "problems" described above, theology must begin with the local and move to the general or universal, and not vice versa; (2) Choe Je-U provides an instructive Korean example of indigenous theology which begins with local "praxis," grounded broadly in the Korean religious synthesis and especially in what I call the "shaman ethos," and this approach is taken up later by Minjung theology; (3) The method implemented by Choe Je-U, and utilized by Minjung theology is corroborated by other liberation theologies, i.e., what is primarily normative in theology is what reflects the experience of the oppressed and contributes to their liberation. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)Th.D