01 July 2021
Interreligious Relations (IRR) Issue 25 – Introducing Dasŏk Yu Yǒng-Mo’s Korean Spiritual Disciplines and his Poem “Being a Christian” by Heup Young Kim
Abstract:
This paper is intended to provide an introduction to, and critical analysis of, the religious thought of Dasŏk Yu Yŏng-mo (1890-1981), one of the most innovative religious thinkers in Korea’s modern history. His thought profoundly influenced a generation of thinkers both in Korea’s Christian tradition and in Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism. It will argue that Dasŏk’s thought, though currently unstudied and hardly known outside Korea, is an important form of inculturation of Christian thought in the Korean context, and with potential wider learning points for theological construction beyond this context. Dasŏk integrated indigenous resources from the Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist traditions to contextualise Christianity to a multi-religious Korean context. The paper situates Dasŏk’s spirituality and thought in broader discussions of religious pluralism and will attempt to answer the question of whether Dasŏk can be considered a pluralist. A further original contribution is the translation and commentary on one of Dasŏk’s most important works, “Being A Christian.”
Abstract:
This paper is intended to provide an introduction to, and critical analysis of, the religious thought of Dasŏk Yu Yŏng-mo (1890-1981), one of the most innovative religious thinkers in Korea’s modern history. His thought profoundly influenced a generation of thinkers both in Korea’s Christian tradition and in Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism. It will argue that Dasŏk’s thought, though currently unstudied and hardly known outside Korea, is an important form of inculturation of Christian thought in the Korean context, and with potential wider learning points for theological construction beyond this context. Dasŏk integrated indigenous resources from the Confucian, Daoist, and Buddhist traditions to contextualise Christianity to a multi-religious Korean context. The paper situates Dasŏk’s spirituality and thought in broader discussions of religious pluralism and will attempt to answer the question of whether Dasŏk can be considered a pluralist. A further original contribution is the translation and commentary on one of Dasŏk’s most important works, “Being A Christian.”
