Although there are shamanistic influences on the praxis of Korean Pentecostalism, Korean Pentecostals intentionally have been trying to distance themselves from shamanism. It is impossible to remove indigenized shamanic elements entirely from Korean Pentecostalism. Shamanism has contributed
significantly to the indigenization of the higher religions into Korean contexts. In fact, Korean shamanism never disappeared while Buddhism and Confucianism were
becoming indigenized into the Korean context. One of the prominent reasons that Korean Buddhism and Confucianism are different from other Asian countries is due to the influence of an indigenous folk religion like shamanism. Korean Pentecostals
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have disagreed with the assertion that the spirituality of shamanism is syncretised in Korean Pentecostalism. Yet, if shamanism could be understood as a vessel containing the religiosity of Koreans, there is no reason not to accept the shamanic influences on Korean Pentecostalism. Just as Paul Tillich says that “religion is the substance of culture, culture is the form of religion”,369so shamanism has become part of Korean culture. Thus, it is not surprising that Korean Pentecostalism has adopted certain positive elements of shamanism.370 Korean Pentecostals have insisted that there are neither shamanistic influences on nor shamanistic elements in their movement. Yet, many Pentecostal/Charismatic scholars, including Korean scholars, such as Boo Woong Yoo and Hollenweger, think that shamanic influences have contributed to the extraordinary growth of Korean Pentecostalism. Throughout their history, shamanism has been used by Koreans as a way to express their joy, sorrows, desires and even their Hans. In fact, shamanism existed before the higher religions came to Korea and it provided a way for Koreans to express their religiosity. It is clear that for Koreans, shamanism is not only a folk religion but it has also been part of their culture for a long time. Shamanism became both the substance and the vessel for Korean folk culture. Korean Pentecostals have denied that there are shamanistic elements within Pentecostalism not because they do not accept cultural aspects of shamanism but because of their reluctance to accept that Pentecostal spirituality may be syncretistic. In its beginning, Pentecostalism was not welcomed by Korean Christians due to the
369
Paul Tillich, Theology of Culture (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1964), p. 42.
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similarity between Pentecostal manifestations and those of Korean shamanism. For example, there are similarities between Pentecostal modes of prayer and shamanistic ecstasy, between Pentecostal healing and shamanistic healing, and between speaking in tongues and spirit possession. However, it is important to regard shamanism as a form of Korean primal religiosity rather than compare it with the various ancient Canaanite religions in the Old Testament which were opposed to Judaism. Thus, the influences of shamanism on Pentecostalism and the contributions of shamanism to the growth of Pentecostalism need to be re-examined.
4. 1. Pentecostal Practices and Shamanism
After observing passionate Pentecostal services at the YFGC, Cox insisted that Korean Pentecostals overlook “a massive importation of shamanic practice into a Christian ritual”.371 He also suggests that one of the reasons for the extraordinary growth of Korean Pentecostalism is the “ability to absorb huge chunks of indigenous Korean shamanism and demon possession into its worship”.372 It seems he does not realize the fact that there is no collective demon possession phenomenon during Korean shamanistic rites. During a Korean shamanistic rite, only the shaman who conducts the shamanistic ritual can be possessed by a spirit and be an intermediary between the spirit and the audience. Although a member of an audience can be
371
Harvey Cox, Fire from Heaven, p. 222.
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possessed by a spirit instead of the shaman, the phenomenon of collective spirit possession does not happen during the ritual. Without having sufficient understanding of Korean shamanism, Cox simply equates Korean shamanistic rituals with the collective enthusiasm of African shamanism. In this sense, it is a theological
misunderstanding to equate the manifestations of the Spirit with shamanic enthusiasm in Korean contexts. In fact, to identify the manifestations of Korean Pentecostalism with the shamanistic enthusiasm of Korean shamanism would be like identifying the phenomenon of the Toronto blessing with Canadian shamanism.373 Nevertheless, there are shamanistic influences present in the practices of Korean Pentecostalism. These influences are evident in the prayers of Korean Pentecostals. Compared with other expressions of Christianity, the most prominent feature of Korean
Pentecostalism is its emphasis on prayer. Since the beginning of Pentecostalism in the early twentieth century, Korean Pentecostals have concentrated on prayer. As noted, after the Pentecostal revivals broke out, the practice of daily dawn prayer was started by Seon Ju Gil along with other early Korean Pentecostals.374 The prayer mountain movement, which was started by Woon Mong La (also known as Elder Ra) in 1952 and greatly contributed to the rapid growth of Korean Pentecostalism, has prevailed over the nation. In 1994, there were about 500 prayer mountains in Korea.
373
The Toronto Blessing started in 1994 at the Toronto Airport Vineyard Church led by pastors John and Carol Arnott. They were inspired by Argentinean evangelist, Caludio Freidzon who was an AG evangelist. The Toronto Blessing was a sort of a charismatic movement until late 1994, but it has been denied from conservative Pentecostals because of unusual physical manifestations such as laughing, rolling over, making strange animal sounds and others. Nevertheless about 250 to 300 people attend at weeknight meetings and about 500 are attending on weekends. See M. M. Poloma, “Toronto Blessing,” Stanley M. Burgerss and Eduard M. Van der Maas (eds.), The New
International Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements, pp. 1149-1152.
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Approximately twenty six percent of Korean Christians visited prayer mountains in order to pray for problems related to their family, business and personal struggles as well as for spiritual experiences and divine healings.375 The enthusiastic, audible prayer of Korean Pentecostals is unique. Regardless of denomination, audible prayer and overnight prayers have commonly been practised among Korean Christians. This kind of prayer showed undeniable shamanistic influences. In shamanistic practice, Koreans used to pray early at dawn with a vessel of water drawn from a well as an offering which nobody had touched or drank from. They prayed for the success of their children, in order to have a good harvest, and for the health of their households. They also used to go to a mountain to pray for one hundreddays.
Before Christianity arrived, the habit of prayer had been formed in Koreans already through shamanism. There are shamanistic elements in Korean Confucianism and Buddhism as well. These elements were absorbed into the higher religions which made them unique compared with their expressions in other nations. Likewise, through shamanistic influences, the practices of Korean Pentecostalism are unique compared to other expressions of global Pentecostalism. Every religion undergoes the process of indigenization and contextualization when it is exported to other nations from its place of origin. Cox says that certain elements of pre-existing religion must be included and transformed in any growing religion where they will remain as part of the cultural subconscious.376 However, from its early days, Korean Christianity
375
Yeol Soo Eim, “South Korea”, pp. 242-43.
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radically de-shamanized all shamanic elements and did not retain them. Korean Pentecostals need to reconsider whether pre-existing religions only had a negative influence upon Christianity and also whether Korean shamanism exerted only negative influences upon Korean Pentecostalism.
Normally Korean Pentecostals are persuaded that there are no shamanistic influences on Korean Pentecostalism.377 However, David Kwang-sun Suh calls shamanism “the religious soil of Korea”.378 Nevertheless, Korean Pentecostals disagree with the insistence that there are shamanistic influences or elements within Korean Pentecostalism because they have failed to differentiate between shamanistic spirituality and shamanistic elements. For instance, although the manifestation of divine healing is similar to demonic healing within shamanism, the origins of the healing and the spirituality are different. Those who have experienced divine healing would never agree that their healing originated from demonic spirits or shamanistic spirituality. Harvey Cox points out that “a massive importation of shamanic practice into a Christian ritual”379 has been denied by Pentecostals. Indeed, Korean
shamanism greatly contributed to the way Koreans appropriated Christianity as well as Pentecostalism in at least two aspects. First, Korean people were able to easily understand the sovereignty of God as a supreme being and the spiritual world of his
377
Allan Anderson, “The Gospel and Culture in Pentecostal Mission in the Third World,” represented at the 9th Conference of the European Pentecostal Charismatic Research Association, Missions Academy, University of Hamburg, Germany, July 1999, p. 4.
378
David Kwang Sun Suh, “Liberation Spiritual in the Korean Minjung Tradition: Shamanism and Minjung Liberation”, p. 31.
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subordinate spirits, devil and angels since Korean shamanism had a similar worldview. Second, the aspirations within Korean shamanism for this-worldly material blessings helped to indigenize the theory of the Threefold Blessing for Korean Christians.380 Korean Pentecostalism successfully adapted these indigenous shamanistic elements into the new movement and merged them into the life of the
Minjung. Thus, it is important for Korean Pentecostals to reassess these shamanistic
influences and not regard them as part of a pagan heritage that should be excluded from their new faith but as the praxis of their religiosity formulated through generations.
4. 2. Ki-Bock-Shin-Ang [Belief to have blessings through faith and religious practices]
In the early days of Korean Protestantism, Korean Christians did not focus on this-worldly blessings due to their imminent eschatology. As a result, they neglected to address practical matters of current concern to the Korean people. This changed after the Korean War when Pentecostalism began to respond to these concerns of ordinary people. Young Hoon Lee says that one of prominent influences of
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shamanism on Pentecostalism is “its [shamanism] emphasis on the present and material blessings”.381
Through their performance of a shamanistic ritual called Han-puri (resolution of Han), Koreans tried to overcome their bitterness of life. Shamanism was able to give temporary relief of sufferings to ordinary people during the actual performance of the ritual. Although most shamanistic rituals did not provide a permanent solution to their sufferings, Koreans clung to them since they were able to find temporary relief. Pentecostalism, with its emphasis on the divine blessings of health, wealth and eternal salvation, has replaced the function of shamanistic rituals in relation to the sufferings of ordinary people. Messages based on the Threefold Blessing were very appealing to Koreans in three ways. First, the audience of Pentecostal messages were referred to not as sinners but as heirs of God through Christ (Galatians 4:7). Second, it gave hope to those who were concerned about the future. Third, it corresponded to the needs of the times and indigenous shamanistic desires for wealth and health. The deep concern of Pentecostals for practical matters was one reason that Pentecostalism was successful in Korea. Heung Soo Kim, a theological professor at Mokwon
University, insists that, due to the Korean War, survival became the primary basis of Koreans’ action and cogitation. In order to satisfy this need for survival, the elements of blessings and prosperity in this world were emphasized in Korean Christianity.382
381
Young Hoon Lee, The Holy Spirit Movement in Korea, p. 13.
382
Heung Soo Kim, Hankook Jeonjaeng gwha Gibokshinang Hwaksan Yeongoo [a Research for the Korean War and the Expansion of the Health and Wealth Gospel] (Seoul: Hankook Gidokgyo Yeoksa Yeongooso, 1999), p. 199.
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Cho distinguishes his theory of blessing from the shamanistic desire for blessings. He says that the Threefold Blessing will be dispensed by God when people believe in Jesus as their Saviour, confess their sins and have faith to seek first his kingdom and righteousness.383
Although Korean Pentecostalism was able to successfully assimilate shamanistic elements, shamanistic influences have proved to be a double-edged sword for the movement. For instance, most Korean Christians tend to say “if you believe in Christ, you will be blessed” when they evangelize non-believers, instead of introducing Christ as the Saviour. In fact, many Koreans come to Church in order to receive this-worldly blessings.384 This materialistic belief is called Ki-Bock-Shin-Ang. Thus, for many, being blessed in Christ became equated with being rich, healthy, and successful in this life. This was reinforced by the example of Korean pastors. Leading a large church with a high salary and having a luxury car became the standard mark of a being successful pastor.385 Sebastian C. H. Kim insists that Kibock sinang was rooted in shamanism.386
According to the Korea Gallup Poll, 39.2 percent out of 328 Korean
Protestants and 12.1 percent out of 119 Roman Catholics answered positively to the inquiry “Do you think a person who does an offering will be blessed more than the
383
Yonggi Cho, Oh Jung Bok Eum Kwa Sam Jung Chuk Bok [Fivefold Gospel and Triple Blessings], p. 42.
384
Byung Gu Jee, Shamanism gwa Hankook Gyohoi [Shamanism and Korean Church] (Seoul: Sae Han Publishing House, 1996), p. 227.
385
Byung Gu Jee, Shamanism gwa Hankook Gyohoi [Shamanism and Korean Church], p. 227.
386
Sebastian C. H. Kim, “The Problem of Poverty in Post-War Korean Christianity: Kibock Sinang or Minjung Theology?” Transformation vol 24 No 1 (January) 2007, p. 43.
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amount of offering he made?”387 This suggests that, regarding the relationship between offering and blessing, Korean Protestant responses demonstrate more evidence of shamanistic influences than Roman Catholic responses. Pentecostal preachers often preach “Tithe, and the Lord will bless you”,388 and they have a tendency to misinterpret the relationship between offering and material blessing in terms of cause and effect. The Bible neither implies that material blessings are evil nor justifies the accumulation of wealth in the midst of poverty.389 For instance, the wealth of a tax collector was not acceptable in Jewish society. Rather, it was shameful to the ordinary people of Israel. Tax collectors accumulated their wealth without consideration of the suffering of others and were reluctant to share their wealth with others (Matthew 9:10-13 and Luke 19:1-10).
The shamanistic desire for wealth is self-centred. Although the prayer of Pentecostals for blessing is not necessarily intended as a shortcut means of becoming rich, it can be interpreted as being self-centred. Pentecostals tend to pray diligently in order to resolve their own problems and for personal blessings rather than for the benefit of their neighbours and the wider society.390 Thus, unless their focus on personal blessings is broadened to include neighbours and the wider society, their beliefs will be criticized as shamanic materialism. It will also be regarded as Ki-Bock-
387
Available from
http://panel.gallup.co.kr/Gate/Panel/F025.aspx?seq=10919&DaeBunryuCd=02&BunryuGb=D&Bu nryu=02&SearchGb=&SearchKey=&PageID=F055&date=Tue May 24 10:27:10 UTC+0100 2011, accessed 8 June 2011.
388
Harvey Cox, Fire from Heaven, p. 231.
389
D. L. Munby, God and the Rich Society (London: Oxford University Press, 1961), p. 54.
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Shin-Ang if they do not emphasize the future aspects of the gospel as much as earthly
blessings.