Christianity between South Korea and Japan - Essay Example

Introduction Whereas there is ample scope for research on Christianity in Asia, People have not always explored or introduced to wider scholarship this topic and its theologies. This paper focuses on Christianity in two Asian countries – South Korea and Japan. It clearly indicates how and when Christianity took form in each of the two countries and how the natives received it. It also shows that while virtually every Asian country has Christians, they are not evenly distributed. Apparently, Koreans have more passion about Christianity than Japanese do. Japan, has a history of superior political stability during which time the presentation of overseas ideas developed into the religion called native for Japan. Since Japan was increasingly integrated into the administration of the imperial family for the fourth and fifth centuries, the religious conviction became a tool for political control. Afterwards Japan developed into an isle of cultural swap in the middle of Korea, China, and further south East Asian nations. Japan has a long history of Christianity. The first Europeans from Portugal landed on Kyushu, Western Japan in the year 1542 bringing with them the two historically most important things namely gunpowder and Christianity. Because of the new weapons, the Japanese barons on Kyushu welcomed foreign trade therefore tolerating the Jesuit missionaries who were successful in converting quite large numbers of people including members of the ruling class. Roman Catholic missionaries from Portugal and Spain followed with Christianity to Japan in 16th century. Francis Xavier also undertook a mission to Kyoto, the capital, in 1550. Both Catholic and Protestant Christianity have failed to strike roots in Japan. Less than one percent of the population has converted to Christianity. The Jesuits lost their monopoly position in Japan towards the end of the 16th century when Franciscan missionaries arrived in Kyoto despite a first banning edict by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Japanese linked Christianity with imperialist culture of the west and believed it to be a threat to the political control. In fact, Christians were at the forefront of the resistance against the Japanese occupation and they helped lead the fight for democracy in Japan (Roth, Para2) Between the 17th -19th centuries, they severally banned Christianity and continued exhibiting intense antagonism towards it. However, as Christianity dimensions were explored and the imperialist power grew, the ban on the religion was lifted After the Meiji restoration in 1873 and especially since World War II. Freedom of religion was promulgated and the number of Japanese Christians increased slowly. Hideyoshi proclaimed a more serious banning edict in 1597 and executed 26 Franciscans as a warning. His successors continued persecuting the Christians in several further edicts. By 1638, there was the complete extinction of Christianity in Japan brought about by the governments intentions to exercise absolute control over its people, which would not have been possible with the interference of an intolerant and aggressive foreign religion like Christianity of that time. Japan closed its door to the rest of the world for the next 250 years and it was only in the 1800s that Japan’s isolation ended when Commandore Perry of the US Navy forced her into signing an agreement. In 1859, the first seven Protestant missionaries arrived in Japan. Emperor Meiji worked hard to modernize Japan in 1868 and Japan sought expansion throughout most of Asia. Despite the Meiji constitution allowing freedom of religion, Christianity was still technically a crime with a maximum punishment of death. During the Second World War, Shinto was the official religion and all others were crimes. Persecution increased because administrators saw Christians as sympathetic to the allies. With Japan’s first defeat in World War II in 1945, as part of the surrender, America forced Japan to grant freedom of religion and compelled her to adopt a democratic constitution. She also banned State Shinto or Emperor Worship (Sumimoto, para5). Japan has continually rejected Christianity throughout her history. She continues to see Christianity as not only something foreign, but also as having Western influence. This is especially so because many churches have Western architecture and decor. The hymns sung, and the styles of worship are predominantly Western. Presently, Christians are a tiny minority in Japan. Of Japanese population, approximately one to two million are Christians. This accounts to about 1% of Japans population. 22.8% of the population is Buddhist, and the rest adhere to various new religious movements including Confucianism, Daesunism, Cheondoism, Taoism, Wonbuddhism and Jeungism. Most of these Christians live in Western Japan where during the 16th century; the missionaries activities were greatest. Churches are extremely small with an average attendance of 20 to 30 people on Sunday most of whom are women. Since there are few Christian families, individuals feel exposed. These Christian families face Cultural pressures to conform from their communities. This can come in form of an obligation to participate in religious rituals and festivals such as helping to take care of the local shrine and ancestral worship. The few Christians are not able to make a real impact on the political, commercial and industrial centers of power. Moreover, Japan’s intense work ethos squeezes out Christianity. Many people in Japan today are Shintoist and Buddhist. A 1996 report records that about 194,000,000 Japanese are members of both religions, about 54% more than Japan’s total population. Shinto and Buddhism are not in conflict with each other. Kristof argues that lack of oppression hurts Christianity in Japan and that Japans freedom of religion has killed off Christianity. Unlike in Japan, the practice of Christianity in Korea has a relatively short history. Catholic missionaries were the first to arrive in Korea in 1784, followed by the American Presbyterians and Methodists Protestant missionaries in 1884. The missionaries used invaluable evangelistic tools during the first two decades of their arrival. For example, they established new mission stations, small hospitals and new schools in many parts of Korea. They also translated the Bible and other literary works into the Korean language. Since then, Christianity has become the largest religion in South Korea after Buddhism. South Korea is different from Japan, a neighboring country with strikingly similar social organization and shared cultural traditions, in that her people have so widely accepted Christianity. Kim asserts that only about two percent of the Asian population is Christian and that South Korea has witnessed the most spectacular historical and sociologically significant expansion in Christianity particularly over the past three decades, the period of the countrys remarkable modernization. Christians constitute approximately 25 percent of South Korea’s total population. Many observers agree that the dynamism of Korean Christianity is an outgrowth of the peninsulas unique history as well as the early role of indigenous leadership. Being a colony of Japan From 1910-1945 rather than of a Christian European nation, Koreans associated Christianity with anti-Japanese nationalism. Japan also viewed the Christianity as a potential threat and destroyed Korean Churches, imprisoned and tortured Christians. World War II divided Korea and the Korean War followed soon thereafter. Relief efforts from Christians both inside and outside of Korea led many to convert to Christianity (Winzeler, para3). In addition, Korean diplomats who encountered Roman Catholicism in Manchuria and Japan, not foreigners first brought Christian teachings to Korea. Another important point of contact that strengthened the appeal of Christianity in South Korea more than in Japan was the affinity between Korean traditional religious culture and Protestant Christianity. In South Korea, Christian conversion did not involve or require the repudiation of traditionally held beliefs. Instead, the new faith was advanced as a continuation or an extension of Korean religious tradition and this made millions of South Koreans to embrace Christianity eagerly. In an effort to make Christianity more acceptable, Korean clergy also modified or emphasized certain doctrines and messages particularly those pertaining to shamanistic worldview to suit the disposition of the Korean people. Shamanism was the enduring core of Korean religious and cultural thought (Kim, Para2). The faith grew exponentially from the period of the countrys remarkable modernization that is early 1960s to the end of the 1980s and caught up to Buddhism despite slower growth in the 1990s. The number of Christians increases faster than in any other country, more than doubling every decade. The Protestant Church in South Korea is one of the most vital and dynamic in the world. In 1989, South Korea alone accounted for over 14 percent of the total Protestant population in Asia, which has approximately 73 million Protestant Christians. This comprises about 2 percent of the total Asian population. The largest Christian denominations in Korea constitutes Roman Catholics with around 2.5–3.8 million, Methodists with 1–1.4 million, Pentecostals with around 1–1.7 million and Presbyterians with around 6.5–7.8 million members. Compared to Japan, this is an enormous number. Christians are especially strong around Seoul, the capital, where they comprise about 50 percent of the population. In the year 2000, Seoul contained eleven of the worlds twelve largest Christian congregations (Cannon, Para1). South Korea contrasts with Japan in that her great number of Christians has made a real impact on the political, commercial and industrial centers of power. Other religions in Korea comprise only about 9.4 percent of the population. They include Cheondogyo, an indigenous religion combining elements of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Christianity and Shamanism or traditional spirit worship. Cannon further adds that second to the United States, South Korea is a major missionary-sending nation and that in 2000 there were 10646 Protestant missionaries in 156 countries. A number of Korean Christians have attained worldwide influence. For example, Dr David Yonggi Cho who is the Senior Pastor of the great Yoido Full Gospel Church which is reputedly the largest in Christendom. Like in Japan, Christianity in South Korea was not without opposition. Most intellectuals and Confucian government officials were against it as they believed that it was a threat to the basis of a Confucian society. In their view, Christian doctrine had many elements, which conflicted with the basic ritual and ethical principles of Confucianism. The Catholics did not participate in Confucians’ rites and this provoked government persecution. There were severe persecutions of the church for over a hundred years, during which about ten thousand Catholic followers were martyred. Examples of persecutions were the Shinyu persecution of 1801 that took the lives of at least three hundred Catholic martyrs and led to more than a thousand arrests. It made the church go underground to avoid conflicts with the court. There was also the Ulhae persecution of 1815, which was most severe, and hundreds of Catholics were massacred among others (Kim, Para3). However, the Catholic Church grew impressively. This is unlike in Japan where Christianity became extinct at a certain time. According to Vino, Shintoism and Buddhism are Japan’s main religious influences. Many Japanese do not generally consider the two religions mutually exclusive. One can be both a Buddhist and a Shintoist. 13.8% of Japanese population describe themselves as atheists and 59.7% describe themselves as not religious. Japanese society is quite secularized. In addition, some forms of Buddhism do not believe in a god like Islam or Christianity. Japan may have quite a few atheist Buddhists Per se. South Korea on the other hand is a religiously polarized society. Despite her rapid advance in Christianity and producing the second largest number of missionaries in the world over the last few decades, South Korea remains a society with many Buddhist traditions. Per se, the country is divided between Buddhists and Christians. 31.4% of South Koreans describe themselves as atheists. Many of the Buddhists in South Korea may well consider themselves atheists especially if they associate the word used for God with the Christian concept of God. Conclusion In as far as Christianity is concerned, it is evident that Japan lags far much behind compared to South Korea. From the coming of the missionaries up to date, South Koreans have passionately embraced the faith whereas Japanese seem contented in their traditional religions. Works cited Cannon, D. Christianity in Korea, (2005). Retrieved 17th April, 2009 from: http://everything2.com/title/Christianity%2520in%2520Korea Kim, A.E. Korean Religious Culture and its Affinity to Christianity: The Rise of Protestant Christianity in South Korea, (2000). Retrieved 17th April, 2009 from: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0SOR/is_2_61/ai_63912429/ Kristof, N.D. Lack of Oppression Hurts Christianity in Japan, (1997). Retrieved 17th April, 2009 from: http://www.anusha.com/japan-ch.htm Roth, M. Christian Commentary, (2002). Retrieved 18th April, 2009 from: http://www.martinrothonline.com/MRCC35.htm Sumimoto, T. Religious freedom problems in Japan: background and current prospects. Retrieved 18th April, 2009 from: http://www.gmu.edu/academic/ijps/vol5_2/sumimoto.htm Vino. Religion as a social phenomenon, (2009). Retrieved 17th April, 2009 from: http://vinospoliticalblog.blogspot.com/2009/04/religion-as-social-phenomenon-in.html Winzeler, R.L. Anthropology and Religion, (2007). Retrieved 18th April, 2009 from: http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=uPJb-Yka0xAC&pg=PA270&lpg=PA270&dq=Compare+and+contrast+christianity+in+Japan+and+in+South+Korea&source=bl&ots=rxxvl4DGfV&sig=Y57U0_3T5uIT-1Vh7uA4mGvHnXY&hl=en&ei=qFvoSfeNIsfwnQfp0JiPBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#PPA270,M1 Read More