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| Courtesy of Dickson Phua |
By David A. Tizzard
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At least, it used to be.
An idea that fascinates me is how ideologies with very real effects on people's day-to-day lives can act as either forces of change or tools of oppression, according to the environment in which they manifest.
Here in South Korea, Confucianism and Christianity (admittedly very broad terms which don't always accurately convey the various denominations and approaches found under the singular umbrella) both arrived as anti-establishment forces. With the passage of time, they've become negatively associated by many with the status quo, as well as of holding the country and people back from achieving modernity.
Let's address Confucianism's progressive arrival first. The Silla Dynasty is sometimes said to have been a time of great gender equality, giving rise to three Korean queens as well as the provocatively dressed Hwarang soldiers. Beyond the largely modern representations of these figures, however, life was incredibly tough.
The dynasty was marked by a strict hereditary caste system and it was this system that allowed queens to ascend to the throne, rather than any noticeably progressive gender views. Moreover, Silla's territorial expansion required it to enslave various people and send them to inhabit settlements far away from the capital in the Korea's southeast.
The many years of warfare that characterized Silla's unification efforts gave rise to impoverishment among the common people. Social class divisions grew wider and wider, while slaves and unfree people led brutal lives.
Retreating into alienation from the world around them, and gripped by a sense of despair provoked by the great inequalities of a society with a strict caste system, many people found salvation in Pure Land Buddhism. This particular form of Buddhism was easily accessible, as it didn't require knowledge of abstract concepts or esoteric texts. One only had to invoke the name of the Buddha by chanting a simple mantra, and it can still be heard today in many temples around the country: Nammu Amit'a Pul.
It was into this environment that the state civil service examination was introduced, reflecting a Confucian desire to emphasize learning and meritocracy (at least in principle) as the basis for selecting government officials, rather than the prevailing hereditary caste system. Essentially the Confucianism that arrived in Silla was in conflict with the social order maintained by the aristocrats and slaveholders, as well as the Buddhist beliefs held by the people of the land ― it was a counterculture.
While we cannot easily pin down the presence of Confucianism in modern Korean society to a singular manifestation, we still see an all-too-ready deference to age, rank, and status. Friendships and social relations are often determined by a hierarchical world view rather than individual desire or merit. We cannot, and should not, attribute all of society's ills to Confucianism; however, we should not discount it completely either.
And then there is Christianity in Korea. Contemporary Korean Christianity, or Protestantism, has been in the headlines for a few reasons again this week. Perhaps most interestingly, one incident is that Reverend Lee Dong-hwan was suspended by the Korean Methodist Church for two years on the charge of disobedience. His crime was to bless people through prayer at the Queer Culture Festival in Incheon two years ago.
In defending himself and his blessing of sexual minorities, he asked why the pastors praying for military dictators and other unsavory types are not given similar treatment. More pertinently, Reverend Lee asked, "How can a blessing be seen as a sin?
Lee was essentially trying to protect the vulnerable and contribute to the betterment of society. Yet, he was not allowed to do so because it challenged the status quo.
However, when Christianity first arrived here, it was capable of doing exactly that. I would like to note, in particular, the Protestantism that arrived on the Korean Peninsula in the 19th century, which was seen by some as progressive, modern, and beneficial to the country.
Under the laws of the Korean government, figures such as Horace Allen, Horace Underwood, Mary Scranton, and Henry Appenzeller were not allowed to preach or proselytize. So, instead, they founded a series of schools, hospitals, and universities ― among them, the still reputable and prestigious Ewha Girls School and Yonsei University. Dr. Rosetta Sherwood Hall meanwhile promoted Western medicine and learning. In 1894, she was helping to teach blind children in Korean, and by 1909 she had founded a place to help deaf children.
These early Protestant institutions were remarkably important for helping spread education and healthcare to a larger demographic of society ― rather than just the male-dominated aristocracy ― as well as being a catalyst for other academies to open. Despite having a much longer and stronger presence in the country, denominations such as Buddhism, Confucianism, and Catholicism did not seemingly entertain the idea of education for the majority until faced with the need to compete.
So Confucianism and Christianity were both once concerned with helping subvert the existing social order in Korean society, and, to a large extent, they both succeeded.
Now, old in the tooth, and wielded as tools by those fearful of change, they need something to arrive and challenge them in turn, just as they did previously. That something may arrive from overseas or, more preferably, it may arrive from the Korean people themselves.
But we should not forget that such ideologies, rather than being something we can gleefully disparage or dismiss, have had a varied and multi-faceted existence on the Korean Peninsula, as will have the ones that eventually replace them.
Dr. David A. Tizzard (datizzard@swu.ac.kr) has a Ph.D. in Korean Studies. He is a social/cultural commentator and musician who has lived in Korea for nearly two decades. The views expressed in the article are the author's own and do not reflect the editorial direction of The Korea Times.
