초기 개신교 내한 선교사들의 영적 세계관 -영적 존재에 대한 실체적 인식을 중심으로 (The View about the Spiritual World of the Early Western Protestant Missionaries to Korea −In Special Focus on the Perceptions of the Reality of the Spiritual Beings)

서지정보

· 발행기관 : 한국선교신학회
· 수록지 정보 : 선교신학 / 19권 / 19호 / 249 ~ 272페이지
· 저자명 : 장남혁

초록

Since 1884, many western Protestant missionaries came to Korea.
The missionaries initially treated of the spiritual perspective of Koreans
as superstitious and ignorance-oriented. Especially in the field of
medicine, the Western perspective seemed to be far advanced than
the Korean traditional perspective. According to the Korean traditional
view, sicknesses was in many cases caused by intrusions of spiritual
beings. Therefore, to cure the sick, one had to cast out those spiritual
beings out of the bodies through placations or by force. With such
perceptions, Korean people were not able to overcome the hard
situations caused by the contagious diseases such as pestilence, small
pox, and typoid fever. Western missionaries could take advantage on
those matters in order to help Koreans and thereby achieving the
trust of Korean government.
Even though Western science and medicine proved their effectiveness
through such medical works, excessive reliance can cause one to fall
into the idolatry of worshipping medicine instead of God. Throughout
the development in the area of science and technology, Westerners
have tended to look everything through the scientific perspectives.
Through such trends Western societies were believed to run the course
of secularization throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. God and
His supernatural world have been marginalized especially in public
areas.
According to Professor Paul G. Hiebert, even missionaries with severe
Western cultural backgrounds have difficulties in understanding the
spirit world of the native people. Early missionaries to Korea were
not exceptions. They also had difficulties when they first met the
Koreans and tried to understand their spiritual view points. In contrast
to the Westerners who generally do not recognize the spiritual beings
around them, the Koreans recognized the spiritual beings such as
ghosts, ancestors in almost every aspect of their lives. Koreans were
famous in maintaining the practices related to such spiritual beings
throughout their ancient history.
When the missionaries first observed practices related to the spiritual
beings, they judged Koreans to be ingnorant or superstitious. However,
the missionaries continuously tried to understand the people and their
worldviews. When they were unable to understand the Korean
worldview on the spiritual beings, they resorted not to the Western
naturalistic perspective but to the Bible. Through comparison between
the Korean traditional perspectives and the Biblical perspectives, they
discovered that the Biblical perspectives were more similar to the
Korean traditional perspectives. And with careful observation and
examination of the Korean ministers’ deliverance works, they changed
their thought about the spirit world. The demons and spiritual beings
which were regarded to harass Korean people were not supterstitions
or fatacies. They were real beings confirmed by the Bible.
The native Korean ministers contributed a lot in the paradigm shift
from Western perspective to the Korean perspective on the reality
of spiritual beings. The Korean ministers viewed the Bible differently.
They believed Bible stories where the possessed were released by Jesus
and his disciples. The faith of Korean ministers proved to be simple
and firm enough to follow the practices of Jesus and his disciples
in casting out demons. When the missionaries heard about the stories
of deliverances by the Korean ministers and believers, they did not
stop but rather carefully examined such behaviors in light of the Bible.
The final criteria of missionaries were not the western but the Biblical
perspective. With such criteria, they accepted and recognized the
deliverance ministries of the Korean believers. Some missionaries, when
asked if they could cast out demons out of troubled, succeeded in
the deliverance ministries.
In my estimation, the Nevius mission plan contributed greatly in
making harmony and cooperation between the missionaries and the
Korean ministers. God brought Koreans who were troubled with
spiritual bondage into the Kingdom of God through such faithful
servants of God.
The reasons the early protestant missionaries to Korea brought such
great success in evangelizing Korea were foremost their deep reliance
to the Bible as the Word of God and secondly their deep understanding
of Koreans and their ways of thinking.

영어초록

Since 1884, many western Protestant missionaries came to Korea.
The missionaries initially treated of the spiritual perspective of Koreans
as superstitious and ignorance-oriented. Especially in the field of
medicine, the Western perspective seemed to be far advanced than
the Korean traditional perspective. According to the Korean traditional
view, sicknesses was in many cases caused by intrusions of spiritual
beings. Therefore, to cure the sick, one had to cast out those spiritual
beings out of the bodies through placations or by force. With such
perceptions, Korean people were not able to overcome the hard
situations caused by the contagious diseases such as pestilence, small
pox, and typoid fever. Western missionaries could take advantage on
those matters in order to help Koreans and thereby achieving the
trust of Korean government.
Even though Western science and medicine proved their effectiveness
through such medical works, excessive reliance can cause one to fall
into the idolatry of worshipping medicine instead of God. Throughout
the development in the area of science and technology, Westerners
have tended to look everything through the scientific perspectives.
Through such trends Western societies were believed to run the course
of secularization throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. God and
His supernatural world have been marginalized especially in public
areas.
According to Professor Paul G. Hiebert, even missionaries with severe
Western cultural backgrounds have difficulties in understanding the
spirit world of the native people. Early missionaries to Korea were
not exceptions. They also had difficulties when they first met the
Koreans and tried to understand their spiritual view points. In contrast
to the Westerners who generally do not recognize the spiritual beings
around them, the Koreans recognized the spiritual beings such as
ghosts, ancestors in almost every aspect of their lives. Koreans were
famous in maintaining the practices related to such spiritual beings
throughout their ancient history.
When the missionaries first observed practices related to the spiritual
beings, they judged Koreans to be ingnorant or superstitious. However,
the missionaries continuously tried to understand the people and their
worldviews. When they were unable to understand the Korean
worldview on the spiritual beings, they resorted not to the Western
naturalistic perspective but to the Bible. Through comparison between
the Korean traditional perspectives and the Biblical perspectives, they
discovered that the Biblical perspectives were more similar to the
Korean traditional perspectives. And with careful observation and
examination of the Korean ministers’ deliverance works, they changed
their thought about the spirit world. The demons and spiritual beings
which were regarded to harass Korean people were not supterstitions
or fatacies. They were real beings confirmed by the Bible.
The native Korean ministers contributed a lot in the paradigm shift
from Western perspective to the Korean perspective on the reality
of spiritual beings. The Korean ministers viewed the Bible differently.
They believed Bible stories where the possessed were released by Jesus
and his disciples. The faith of Korean ministers proved to be simple
and firm enough to follow the practices of Jesus and his disciples
in casting out demons. When the missionaries heard about the stories
of deliverances by the Korean ministers and believers, they did not
stop but rather carefully examined such behaviors in light of the Bible.
The final criteria of missionaries were not the western but the Biblical
perspective. With such criteria, they accepted and recognized the
deliverance ministries of the Korean believers. Some missionaries, when
asked if they could cast out demons out of troubled, succeeded in
the deliverance ministries.
In my estimation, the Nevius mission plan contributed greatly in
making harmony and cooperation between the missionaries and the
Korean ministers. God brought Koreans who were troubled with
spiritual bondage into the Kingdom of God through such faithful
servants of God.
The reasons the early protestant missionaries to Korea brought such
great success in evangelizing Korea were foremost their deep reliance
to the Bible as the Word of God and secondly their deep understanding
of Koreans and their ways of thinking.

참고자료

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