The thesis of my research relates to the perceptions of college campus students in regards to religious faiths and practices in South Korea. Following the collections and analysis of the data, I will compare and contrast the student’s perceptions with actual practices prevailing in South Korea. The research is conducted primarily to get a sense of student understanding of religion in South Korea.
Religion, especially in South Korea, primarily comprises of the Buddhist faith despite the existence of a significant Christian population (Peterson and Philip, 11). The latter comprises of the Catholics and the Protestants from various denominations. Even though a sizable segment of the population attest that they are not religiously affiliated to any given organized religion, most of the households in South Korea continue observing their Confucian philosophies, along with their traditional ancestral rites. Both the Confucian philosophies and the rites in the traditional ancestry have been integrated to the Korean culture (Peterson and Philip, 23). Similarly, the Christianity and the Buddhism practices have been influenced by the strong legacies of the Korean Confucianism.
In my research study, I found that Kwang-sik's sisters, both from South Korea, thought that Christianity is the primary religion. Apparently, Kwang and his sisters did not receive any education about Buddhism or Confucian principles as they went to the Church every Sunday morning with their family.
Research Question
How do Korean college students view and identify the religious faiths in South Korea?
Are there any significant differences between American students Vs international students in regards to religious faiths in South Korea?
Background Research
Research studies on religion indicate that of the total population in South Korea, 46.5% are irreligious, 22.8% are Buddhist, 29.2% are Christians, and the rest are affiliated to other religious groups such as Taoism and Cheondoism, among others. Of the 29.2% Christians, 18.3% are Protestants Christians and 10.9% are Catholics (Peterson and Philip, 27). In addition, a small proportion of the Koreans belong to the Muslim faith. When compared with the countries in East and South Asia, South Korea is known to have a high percentage of Christians. Following East Timor and the Philippines, South Korea has the third highest percentage of Christians (Thiessen and Linda, 14). However, except for the group confessing the Christianity faith having a clear distinction of believers and the non-believers, some ambiguities prevails in these statistics. For instance, there are no specific criterions that can used in the identification of the Buddhists or the Confucians (Thiessen and Linda, 19). Even though the Buddhists in existence to other countries, the lineage in terms of the refuge, which is a commitment that differentiates the Buddhists from non-Buddhists, has been impracticable in Korea, thereby becoming difficult to find because religion is something that is hereditary (Thiessen and Linda, 22).
In the informal research study among South Koreans, for instance, I found that many of my roommate friends who are from Korea are rather well informed on religion. They were knowledgeable because their primary school teacher already taught them to read "The Four Books and Five Classics", which is the authoritative books of Confucianism.
On the other hand, as Buddhism is harmonized with the Korean culture, it has been viewed as a cultural background as opposed to a religion. In this regard, many people who are outside the formal groups tend to be influenced by these traditions (Thiessen and Linda, 18). Moreover, it is very common to see the non-practicing Koreans praying from the temples relating to the Buddhists, engage themselves in the ancestral rites performed by the Confucians, and also seek consultation from the shaman or at times sponsor the kut (Winzeler, 13). As a result, when it comes to factoring out the number of persons who have been influenced by such a wave, it is evident that almost half of the residents in South Korea are considered Buddhists and this is attributable to the influence from the Confucian principles.
In my case studies, I found that Kwang and Dong, both studying Electrical Engineering, are practicing Buddhists. In addition, they follow the principles of Confucian thought, rituals, and traditions. These findings suggest that a deep entrenched nature to the traditions and rituals of South Korean life in all walks of life, including the practicing Buddhists.
Moreover, given the status quo, that is, in terms of a greater diversity in the form of religious expression, it is seen that role of religion in the face of social development in South Korea has become complex (Winzelar, 17). People sticks to some traditions, considering them as important properties in their culture, rather than a rite of worship. However, Confucianism remains an essential social ethic; its influence is seen in the level of importance the Koreans impart to education. On the same note, the worship of ancestors as a result of the influence by the Mahayana Buddhist and the Confucian rites still remains an important social practice, and this is usually among the formal practitioners of faith, the non-practitioners, along with the Catholics (Winzelar, 29).
In regards to the practices prevailing among Christians, I find that more than eighty percent of Christian Korean students are influenced by the Mahayana Buddhist and the Confucian rites. In addition, I find that non-believers and non-practitioners of any faith also are well aware of South Korean traditions and rituals.
On the other hand, Christianity is associated with civilization and the introduction of social reforms. Many South Korean Christians has been the key outspoken advocates in relation to critiquing the government, and in the field of human rights (Thiessen and Linda, 34). In addition, Christian sponsored institutions such as the urban industrial mission has promoted labor organizations and other movements in the union. It has also noted that the emerging religions usually tend to draw from both the traditional beliefs and Christianity, thereby achieving a diversified and an integrated view. Research reveals that there have been more than 5,000 religions in South Korea by the end of the 19th century, despite some of them being small in size (Winzelar, 33).
It appears that male students from South Korea espouse social reform, advocate critiquing the government, speak for human rights and labor rights much more than their female counterparts. These results suggest that female South Koreans are much more traditional and respectful of authority.
History claims that Buddhism was first introduced in South Korea during the period of three kingdoms, which is between the 4th and the 7th century (Yoo, 7). After some time, Buddhism was known to be a dominant influence in terms of culture and religion, and this was during the Shilla and Koryo dynasties. Thereafter, Confucianism was the introduced from china during the early centuries, but it just occupied a minor position untill the invasion of Choson dynasty and the efforts by the Kings relating to the Choson dynasty, to persecute Buddhism.
In addition, there are many schools related to the Korean Buddhism, and this includes Seon. However, most of the temples belonging to the Buddhists form part of the Jogye order, which are a syncretic sect that is associated with the Seon traditions. Similarly, most of the old temples in the country are operated under the Jogye order. In addition, many people who adhere to Buddhism usually combine Shamanism and the Buddhist practice. Other Buddhist traditions that are found in South Korea include the lineages of Taego and Cheontae.
My research among Korean friends and relatives indicated that even though they are well aware of the Buddhism, their knowledge of various schools of Buddhist thought are limited or non-existent.
Besides Buddhism, Christian faiths are also in practice in South Korea. The Roman Catholics were known to have entered Korea in 1794, and this was a decade after the return of a Korean, who was known to be the first one to be baptized while on his visit to Beijing. At this juncture, the writings that related to Jesuit missionary by the name Mateo Ricci, Beijing’s imperial court resident, had already been delivered to Korea from China in the 17th century (Peterson and Phillip, 18). In this regard, it appears that the Sirhak scholars, or rather practical learners expressed their interest in the writing. In this case, the converts resisted in performing the ancestral rites relating to the Confucians, and this pushed the government to prohibit the penetration and spread of Christianity. Despite that, Catholic practice had established by the early 19th century, and the law on anti-Christianity had not been strictly put into force by this time.
In this regard, I came across a handful of devote Roman Catholic students from South Korea on a Sunday morning. Apparently, it is very important for them to attend Church prayers on Sundays.
The Protestants, on the other hand, advanced to South Korea in the 1880’s, together with some catholic priests who are known to convert many more Koreans. Missionaries who belonged to the Presbyterian and the Methodists proved to be so successful. The latter opened up hospitals, universities, schools, and orphanages that are attributable to playing a very important role in South Korea’s modernization (Peterson and Phillip, 21).
It is noted that the Christian faith in South Korea comprises of four main denominations namely; the Baptists, the Methodists, Presbyterians and the Roman Catholics, other minor denominational churches also existed (Peterson and Phillip, 21). Catholicism had some similarities to the non-practitioners as they had integrated the traditional customs and rites of the Buddhists. In this regard, the Korean Catholics are still observant to Jesa, which is ancestral worship and various Buddhist, as well as the Confucian philosophies. The Protestants, on the other hand, did not observe the traditional customs (Peterson and Philip, 23). Furthermore, the Orthodox parishes in Korea, have several members from South Korea and the Monastery. The latter grew out of the missionary relating to the Russian Orthodox endeavors, and this was in the 19th century.
Despite my considerable efforts to meet South Korean students practicing different denominations of Christianity, I was only able to meet Catholics or Protestants, thus far.
Confucianism is another important faith in Korea that could not be ignored, even though it is only 0.2% of the South Koreans professing to it (Thiessen and Linda, 31). The influence of Confucianism in terms of ethical thoughts on the practice and the Korean culture is pervasive and ubiquitous. Despite the small membership, Confucian rituals are still in practice during the year (Yoo, 52). In this case, the annual rates are usually occasioned at the Confucius shrine in Seoul.
There are no confessed followers of Confucianism among the students I researched. This goes to demonstrate the rarity of Confucianism in the present day.
Other religions also existed in South Korea apart from the ones described above. Perhaps, the main among these includes the Chendoism. Considered as the first new religion in South Korea, Chendoism is essentially a religious tradition. Chendoism is a synthesis of Buddhist, Neo-Confucianism, Daoist, Catholics, as well as the Shamanist influences (Thiessen and Linda, 32). This new religion emanates from the Donghak movement that was established by Choe, who was executed by the government to be a heretic in the year 1863. Donghak spread to many poor Koreas especially in Jeolla region, and is known to be the cause of the revolt that was against the government in 1894. However, the members of the Chendoism movement were not united and this is evident whereby not all members were of a similar opinion when it came to renaming Chendoism (Thiessen and Linda, 33). Even though the movement was not so united, history reveals that the group played a very significant role in conjunction with the Confucians and the Christians in the Nationalist movement that was formed in Korea.
Furthermore, the basic beliefs relating to the Chendoists are based on essential equality of all people. In this case, the religious group is of the opinion that each person should be treated with respect since all people have divinities. In addition, men and women are expected to cultivate themselves in a sincere manner for them to express and bring forth the divinity in their lives (Thiessen and Linda, 14). The only way to salvation is self-perfection and not rituals or ceremonies. Even though Choe and his believers did not make efforts to overthrow the social order and set up a radical egalitarianism, Cheondoism revolutionary potential is seen in the basic ideas that appealed to the poor, scholars, and the high officials. At this juncture, it is believed that Chendoism played a significant role in developing a democratic and an anti-authoritarian thought in Korea (Peterson and Phillip, 23).
It is surprising that I did not come across any South Korean practicing Cheondoism, given that so many male students subscribe to its principles of radical thought and equality of people.
Apart from Chendoism, the other minority religion is the Islam religion. The total number of South Koreans who are Muslims is estimated to be around 40,000 persons. However, the number mainly comprises of people who had converted during the Korean War with their descendants. Besides, the number does not include migrant workers, who emigrated from South and South East Asia (Winzela, 15). In connection to the Islam religion, many mosques are distributed in major towns all over the country, with a bigger mosque being situated at Seoul. On top of the native Muslims in South Korea, there are 100,000 foreign workers originating from the Muslim countries, and this is especially from Malaysia, Pakistan, and Indonesia (Yoo, 65).
One of my close friend is a devote Muslim. He is a student from Pakistan and settled in South Korea.
Finally, Hinduism is the other minority denomination that is practiced in South Korea. Hinduism faith is practiced by small communities from India and Nepal. The Hindu traditions such as the Yoga, as well as the Vedantic thought, are seen to have attracted interest among the youths in Southern Korea (Peterson and Phillip, 26). In connection to Hinduism, there are two temples at Seoul region, with the distance being approximately 2 hours to the city centre. Hinduism is practiced in South Korea primarily because of the migrant students from countries such as Nepal and India. Last, but not the least, Judaism is the other minority religion, and this began with the outbreak of the Korean War. Judaism is the only religion in South Korea that has proved to have very few converts (Winzela, 18).
Two of my girl friend’s classmates are Hindu and came to South Korea from Nepal.
Data Collection
Campus students were asked to fill up a questionnaire (Table 1) to inquire their knowledge and perceptions of South Korea in regards to religious faiths. Surveys were conducted at various times to seek wider student participation and diverse opinion collection.
Survey Instructions:
Please respond to each of the following statements by inserting an “X” into the box with the answer you most agree with.
Survey 1 Questions:
Survey 2 Questions:
Analysis of Data
The data collected from the above survey is summarized in Table 2 below. Most Americans consider South Korea to be primarily a Christian Nation and predominantly catholic. On the other hand, International students considered Buddhism as the predominant faith in South Korea. Both female and male students consideration of South Korea’s religious faith are about the same. None of the minor religious denominations is registered in the student surveys.
The results do provide clear answers to the research questions. American students consider South Korea as a Christian nation where as the international students view it as of Buddhist faith.
On the other hand, from the examples of South Korean students I cited throughout the paper, it is apparent South Koreans do have a real sense of existing faith structure in South Korea.
Work Cited
Peterson, Mark, and Phillip Margulies. A Brief History of Korea. New York, NY: Facts On File, 2010. Internet resource.
Thiessen, Gesa E, and Linda Hogan. Ecumenical Ecclesiology: Unity, Diversity and Otherness in a Fragmented World. London: T & T Clark, 2009. Print.
Winzeler, Robert L. Anthropology and Religion: What We Know, Think, and Question. Lanham: AltaMira Press, 2008. Print.
Yoo, David. Contentious Spirits: Religion in Korean American History, 1903-1945. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 2010. Print.
