A Theological Assessment Of Reconciliation For Missiology In The Korean Context

In the discourse of mission as reconciliation, in spite of existing consensus about God as the author of reconciliation, and the inseparableness of the dimensions of reconciliation, there is a disagreement on the issue of to what extent the vertical dimension of reconciliation should be addressed and sought in pursuing the horizontal dimension of reconciliation. After engaging the theologies of four Christian thinkers and practitioners of reconciliation, Karl Barth, Miroslav Volf, Son Yang-won, and Desmond Tutu, this dissertation argues that the vertical and horizontal dimensions of reconciliation are in mutually promoting relationship, direct and indirect promotion respectively. This study evaluates that the vertical dimension of reconciliation should be reinforced in Robert Schreiter’s theology of reconciliation. Schreiter notes that the church has traditionally tended to focus on the vertical dimension, overlooking its responsibility in the horizontal dimension. The indivisible dimensions of reconciliation have mistakenly been separated. However, as a reflective reaction, if the church concentrates on the horizontal reconciliation, merely assuming the vertical reconciliation, the church runs the risk of making the same mistake conversely. The vertical reconciliation should be the foundation on which the horizontal reconciliation is based and should continuously guide all the aspects of the church’s work of reconciliation. The vertical reconciliation enables horizontal reconciliation. Also, the alpha and omega of the Christian understanding of reconciliation is the vertical reconciliation between God and humanity. Grounding South Korean churches’ missiology in reconciliation regarding the North Korea mission is an urgently needed job. A more wholesome and robust theology of reconciliation should be presented for the missiology in the Korean context. The national division between South and North Korea has resulted in the South-South conflicts and the issue of North Korean refugees. South Korean churches should exert themselves in the ministry of reconciliation, concentrating on justice, hospitality, and renewed spirituality.

Any Christian who lives in such a broken world may ask God what their role would be as the person who is reconciled with God, and about the implications of the vertical dimension of reconciliation. Many would agree that the vertical and horizontal dimensions of reconciliation should not be separated. It is, however, still necessary to examine further. For instance, what does the inseparableness of the two dimensions actually mean—in theory and practice? How does the vertical dimension of reconciliation become the source and foundation of the horizontal dimension? How should the church maintain its theology of reconciliation, which includes both dimensions? All these questions point to an underlying question: what is the relationship between the vertical and horizontal dimensions of reconciliation? This book explores this question, interacting with the four thinkers and practitioners of reconciliation, Karl Barth, Miroslav Volf, Son Yang-Won, and Desmond Tutu, and assessing the theology of a leading theologian in the discourse of mission as reconciliation, Robert Schreiter. Based on the discussions, it presents a proposal for a more wholesome and robust understanding of reconciliation for the discourse in mission studies, which can be applied to any broken context, including the Korean peninsula.

In this bracing work, meant as a bridge of healing across historic divisions, theologian Meehyun Chung plots the emergence, development, and special issues of Korean feminist theology against the complex historical and religious context of South Korea. With a strong moral voice grounded in biblical, religious, and cultural analysis, Chung demonstrates the pertinence of feminist contextual theological insights to the decades-long divisions in South Korea, but also to a critical understanding of power, spirituality, and social justice in the whole oikoumene. *** Korean feminist theology comes alive in these pages. - WATER (Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics, and Ritual), June 2015 (Series: Visions & Voices) [Subject: Sociology, South Korean Studies, Women's Studies, Feminist Studies, Religious Studies, Cultural Studies, Human Rights]

Asia Pacific Pentecostalism, edited by Denise A. Austin, Jacqueline Grey, and Paul W. Lewis, yields previously untold stories and interdisciplinary analysis of pioneer foundations, denominational growth, leadership training, contextualisation, and community development across East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Oceania.

(Peeters 1994)