Organizer: Chong Bum Kim, University of Central Missouri
Chair: Donald L. Baker, University of British Columbia
Discussant: Timothy S. Lee, Texas Christian University
Christianity has played an integral role in the modernization
of Korea, representing a major conduit of Western culture and society. In addition
to establishing churches and other religious organizations, Christians have
built schools in spreading their faith. This panel examines the relationship
between Christianity and education for Koreans in the first half of the twentieth
century, focusing in particular on ideas and policies. The three papers explore
different issues raised by Christian education. Franklin Rausch looks at the
problem that modernity itself posed for the Roman Catholic Church in the early
twentieth century through the case study of the famous patriot An Chunggun’s
proposal for establishing a Catholic university in Korea. Anne Soon Choi discusses
the influence of Protestant Christianity and Wilsonian ideals on Koreans studying
in the United States (1919-1945) and the problems of colonialism and nationalism
that they helped to define. Chong Bum (Sean) Kim deals with the problem of
gender as it developed in the Protestant mission schools for women in Korea
during the early decades of the twentieth century.
Franklin Rausch, University of British Columbia
In 1909 the Catholic nationalist An Chunggun killed the first Resident-General
of Korea, Ito Hirobumi, hoping that doing so would help restore Korea’s
independence. However, Korea was annexed in 1910, and An was executed by
the Japanese state and excommunicated by the French Bishop Gustave Mutel.
Before resorting to violence, An had advocated establishing in Korea a civic
nationalism that emphasized the role of education in building national strength,
and he had sought Mutel’s support for the establishment of a Catholic
university in Korea. Mutel rebuffed this proposal on the grounds that
modern education would cause Catholics to become indifferent to their faith.
This alienated An from leadership in his Church and placed him on a trajectory
towards the use of violent means to achieve his nationalist goals. In
this paper, taking An's case as a point of departure, I address these questions:
What was Catholic educational policy in Korea during the close of the
Choson dynasty? What factors shaped it? Why was Mutel so wary of modern
education? What conflicts arose from Catholic policy and why? I will argue
that different visions of the relationship between Catholicism and national
identity influenced Catholic educational policy and caused the conflict
that led An Chunggun to turn to violence in his quest for Korean independence.
Anne Choi, University of California, Los Angeles
The history of Protestant Christianity in Korea has been closely tied
to the anti-colonial efforts of Korean nationalists during the period
of Japanese colonial rule (1910-1945). It is well-known that the March First
Movement of 1919 was a pivotal moment in the history of Korean nationalism
and that it brought about nationwide demonstrations, largely owing to
the participation of Protestant churches and the influence of Wilson's Fourteen
Points. What is not as well-known is that even though the movement failed
to bring independence to Korea, two of the ideological dynamics that
drove it – American Protestant Christianity (e.g., equality before God)
and Wilsonian ideals (e.g., democracy, self-determination) – continued
to inspire Koreans studying overseas to keep alive their nationalist
aspirations, especially those in the United States, many of whom would go
on to emerge as political and religious leaders in post-liberation Korea.
For Korean students, Protestant Christianity and Wilsonian ideals would
be negotiated in a larger context of their educational experiences in the
U.S., including their respective intellectual pursuits and their involvement
in quasi-religious/educational institutions such as the foreign mission
movement. Consequently, this paper brings to light such influences by focusing
on how Korean Protestant students such as Syngman Rhee and Louise Yim were
shaped by their educational experiences in the U.S. and also analyzes the
long-term impact on their careers.
Chong Bum Kim, University of Central Missouri
Protestant missionaries pioneered modern education in Korea, establishing
the first Western-style schools in the late nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries. The impact was especially dramatic for Korean women, for whom there
had been no previous system of education. Protestant mission schools thus provided
the first significant educational opportunities for women in Korean history.
This paper examines the Protestant discourse on the nature and purpose of
women’s education. On the one hand, the Protestants celebrated the schools
for ushering in an era of “liberation” from the centuries-old bonds
that kept women confined to the home and ignorant of the world outside. Yet
at the same time, the Protestants imposed limits and restrictions on how far
the liberation could go. In fact, they defined the ultimate goal of women’s
education with essentially the same feminine ideal as that of traditional Confucian
society – “wise mother, good wife.” Such contradictions and
conflicts run through the writings of the missionaries, educators, and students,
and they provide a window into the broader issues and problems concerning
gender that emerged with the advent of modernity in Korea.
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