• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.67
• /
• pp.77-116
• /
• 2021

The purpose of this study is to argue that religious maturity is necessary for the healthy life of the aged of Korean churches in the rapidly aging society. It is also to suggest educational method for the formation and development of a positive image of God for relations with God, which is essential factor in religious maturity. To this end, this study argues that the direction and task of senior education should be religious maturity through the search for prior research on church education of senior citizens. This study also looked at the variables involved in how religious maturity affects many areas of human life. To achieve the task of religious maturity, the biblical and theological concept of maturity and religious psychological concepts of maturity are summarized, and the concept of God's image for relations with God, which is important in religious maturity, and the variables related to mature human life are examined. This study was proposed methods of church education for the formation and development of a positive image of God in order to have the right relationship with God for the religious maturity of the elderly on intellectual, emotional and behavioral levels. In the intellectual aspect, it was proposed to educate the concept of biblical and theological God and and to educate the elderly to recognize themselves as beings that need to grow and mature in order to constantly establish relationships with God. In the affective aspect, it was proposed to educate the elderly to reflect on and identify the origin and formation process of God's image and to heal their distorted God's image with an educational counseling approach. In the behavioral aspect, it was suggested to educate their roles of faith education for the next generation as parents and grandparents and to educate using educational methods that induce them to practice their relationship with God to appear in daily life.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.78
• /
• pp.153-189
• /
• 2024

This study sought to find the characteristics of the Protestant faith that emerged during the early missionary work of Korean Protestants in the Andong region of Gyeongsang Province, where Confucianism was developed. In the early days of Korean Protestantism (1905-1935), it focused on the life and lifestyle of Elder Lee Sang-dong, a nobleman with a background in Toegye Confucianism, who converted from Confucianism. Elder Sang-dong Lee's life and journey of faith can be illuminated and the implications can be connected through the theology of the faith community by Christian education scholar J. h. Westerhoff III. Westerhoff viewed Christian education as forming the values and worldview of individuals in the community while the faith community adapts to society and culture. Westerhoff's view of Christian education is that these values appear as a way of life within social and cultural processes, and this life helps to reveal various aspects of life based on different environments. As Sang-dong Lee began reading the Bible, he came to believe in Jesus and accepted the worldview of the Bible. The values o f the Bible accepted in this way opened up a world view shown by the Christian Bible rather than Confucian Toegye Neo-Confucianism in the encounter between Confucianism in the late Joseon Dynasty and early Protestant church history. Thus, he lived the lifestyle of a believer who put the words of the Bible into practice in the life of a Confucianism nobleman. He founded the Posan-dong Church and started a church with a martyrdom faith community. He was the first in Andong to sing the March 1st Independence Movement on his own, advocated the Korean Independence Movement, liberated slaves and demonstrated the equality movement, and established new education at DeoksinSeosuk. By implementing it, it faithfully fulfilled its role as a teacher of the enlightenment movement and catechesis. In the early days of Korean Protestantism, Lee Sang-dong, a layman who held the office of elder rather than a minister in an institutional church, is a practical example of the values and lifestyle shown through the encounter between Confucianism and Protestantism in the Andong region, the stronghold of Confucianism. It can be seen as providing deep insight in modern church history and from the perspective of Christian education.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.79
• /
• pp.147-167
• /
• 2024

The purpose of this study is to explore the direction of Christian education for Christians in a consumer society based on Christian understanding. It examines how consumption has been understood over time and describes the problems of modern consumer society. Consumption is a universal desire, but in modern society it has taken on symbolic implications and has become a means to satisfy individual tastes and desires and realize identity. In a consumer society that stratifies people and causes inability to think and environmental problems, through biblical and theological understanding, Christians are described as beings who prioritize the existence of love over the possession of material goods. Based on this, it will be possible to establish our identity as Christians living in a consumer society, enjoy freedom from consumption through reflective introspection, and restore communality. This study proposed a Christian education that allows people to enjoy true freedom without being bound by consumption through establishing a Christian identity as a steward in a materialistic consumer society, reflective introspection that overcomes the inability to think, and restoration of communality.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.63
• /
• pp.377-406
• /
• 2020

The purpose of this study is to present a model for Christian peace education requested in the era of globalization. Globalization increases interdependence and unifies the global economy due to the development of innovative communication and transportation systems. The world is currently experiencing a period of unlimited competition without borders. Globalization has promoted growth and development, but has also caused problems. In the face of this absence of peace, this study was conducted to determine whether a Christian understanding of peace and peace education can serve as a way to overcome the challenges facing modern society and to meet people's desire for peace. It examines the concept of globalization and the situation of the absence of peace due to problems in the era of globalization, and examines the concept of peace and peace education from a Christian perspective. After that, the concept of Christian peace required in the era of globalization and the peace capability to be strengthened in peace education will be presented, and how to proceed. The christian peace education model strengthens students' peace capabilities which can be used to build a peaceful future world. The purpose of christian peace education in the face of globalization is to develop a peaceful relationship with oneself, others, the world, and the environment. The goal of christian peace education is to cultivate peaceful human beings by strengthening their peace capabilities, namely peace sensitivity, nonviolent communication, and peace imagination. This study's significance is that it presented an christian peace christian education model that strengthens learners' peace capabilities through a biblical and theological approach in the face of non-peaceful situations arising as a result of globalization.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.62
• /
• pp.285-311
• /
• 2020

Many people are suffering from the economic crisis and poverty that are deepening due to the recent spread of the COVID-19 epidemic. In this situation, this study focuses on the biblical Jubilee in order to seek how "Jubilee justice" can be realized in the modern context. The Law of Jubilee consists of four contents: the liberation of slaves, debt remission, land return and fallow. Ultimately it aims to prevent human slavery and preserve equality. Nevertheless, the thought of Jubilee has been distorted theologically and situationally, and as a result, it has been overlooked in the field of Christian education, and there is a limit in Christian practice for social justice. The thought of Jubilee, however, can be an alternative to overcome various problems of modern society such as the issue of the privatization of Christianity or the deepening of polarization caused by neoliberal globalization and can contribute positively to the practice of social justice. In other words, the thought of Jubilee can act as a biblical initiative in reforming wrong laws and establishing institutions for the poor on the institutional level; on the personal level, it can be a great motive in terms of the change of perception and the practice of the sharing economy. Jubilee education, which aims for Jubilee justice, helps to break the misconceptions and change the existing meaning perspectives on the basis of various interdisciplinary knowledge and supports social behavior for transforming social structure through activation of public opinion and fund raising at the practical level. Therefore, the learners of Christian education can play a public role in transforming the unjust society.

• Journal of Korean Philosophical Society
• /
• v.126
• /
• pp.295-320
• /
• 2013

This thesis amis to demonstrate basically that language has the potential enough to be able to determine human's belief, attitude and behavior for Spinoza. As long as the language could be conceived with the potential to do, then it is very important in human community. And it is through dynamic and changeable, not fixed state, that meaning of this language is revealed. For Spinoza, even sign and its meaning compose one language system, but both of which are different from the other community. Because language as sign used in a specific society is articulated expression of body image, each imagination as idea is necessarily followed by its sign. This fact makes us say that language express imaginal knowledge. But language should not be considered as an means to express adequate idea of it. By the reason that order of meaning is only determined by the connection of signs, and that of meanings, each meaning of sign is not fixed. In this respect, certain meaning is changeable on account of changing new order of ideas. Through re-arranging new order of meaning, language could express more adequate and better idea than before. but what the most important fact is that it is not sufficient to express adequate idea by the means of language. Power of language determining human's belief and attitude does not depend on whether meaning of sign is true or not, but on hegemony of order of meaning. with this regard, this world could be seen as battle area of conflicting for orders of meaning. The more members accept newly created rational thought through newly arranged words, the more new views of value gain power. Solidarity of man using common language can change the world. For this purpose, first step depends on freedom of thought, freedom of deliverance of thought in which spinoza insists through A Theological - Political Treatise.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.74
• /
• pp.81-106
• /
• 2023

The purpose of this study is to find the implications for the more appropriate educational ministry for the 3040 generation congregation through a critical and holistic understanding of the 3040 generation of Korean churches in the view of the discourse on understanding congregation. To this end, this study studies the biblical, theological, and educational grounds of the discourse on understanding congregation in terms of the connection between congregational theory and educational ministry, describes the characteristics of the 3040 generation congregation through human-developmental, faith-developmental, and socio-cultural approaches, and presents educational implications for the 3040 generation from a congregational point of view. Through this study, This study presents four implications of educational ministry from a congregational perspective by paying attention to the characteristics and intergenerational dynamics of Korean churches in their 30s and 40s: 1) Renewal of family-friendly educational ministry considering various types of families, 2) Reinforcement of life-long discipleship where the Gospel and life issues encounter; 3) Reinforcement of collaborative small groups based on all-line ministry; 4) Presenting the development and practice of creative and evangelical ESG ministry.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.62
• /
• pp.257-283
• /
• 2020

Our current society is experiencing a mass upheaval through globalization: mobility, hybridity, and cultural diversity are part of this world phenomenon. We can say that these changes are a result of people crossing borders due to international travel, immigration, emigration, studying abroad, labor, international marriages, fast and comfortable transportation, and the Internet. According to 2018 UNPD(Untied Nations Population Division)'s data, the international migrants have exceeded 258 million as of 2017. The increased number of migrants signifies that people with various backgrounds move from their own culture to a drastically different one. Interacting with different cultures can give people the chance to experience abundant lifestyles and improve life qualities. During that process, however, the differences between cultures can cause not only misunderstandings, conflicts, and violent collisions, but also xenophobia or radical nationalism. The current society is confronted with a problem: the people cannot stubbornly cling to a homogenous ethnicity anymore, which makes the coexistence between the citizens and immigrants necessary. Through these circumstances, I aim to suggest an educational model and a practical curriculum from a Christian perspective as the aim of this study. It seeks to encourage Christians to flexibly respond to these conflicts and collisions, and to fulfill their social responsibilities faithfully. For this reason, I will explore and seek sharing practical values through both shalom's communality as a theological approach and postconventionality in mature adults as a social-scientific approach. Consequently, I have few requests for the readers. First, approach with openness, understanding, and respect for other culture. Second, see this study as one step of confronting the global problem for coexistence and coprosperity of all social agents in the earth, a limited space. Third, notice that this study uses the interdisciplinary approach (theological and social scientific view) for a shareable, practical value that consistently leads the curriculum of my thesis, and a scientific method to eliminate bias. Lastly, understand that this study will eventually be used in educational practice, and as a result it prioritizes giving thought to the Christian educational environment. This study begins by exploring the conflicts and collisions between diverse cultures of our current society in international and national cases. Afterwards, I will reflect on how we can manage these conflicts and collisions by exploring the social-scientific view, postconventionality in mature adults, the theological view, and shalom's communality as a complement for the postconventionality's personal dimension. In conclusion, I suggest a curriculum that achieves peace as a practical value based on postventionality and shalom's communality for this study's goal.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.62
• /
• pp.161-186
• /
• 2020

This study was conducted with the aim of opening a new horizon in understanding the church, which is a community of faith, in the context of losing social credibility with selfishness and closedness, and spreading social distance due to the epidemic. First, the concept and meaning of 'Ecclesia', a representative term for the church, was studied historically, biblically, and theologically, and Paul's intention was frequently used. Second, we explored the new horizons of the community of faith through a discussion of Roberto Esposito's Communitas and Immunitas, which unraveled the relationship between community and individual with an immunological concept. Not only dis lose social trust for a variety of reasons, but it has been pointed out as a target of social distancing due to the spread of the epidemic virus and is facing a crisis of weakening or loss of the faith community of the "church". Since the second epidemic has been predicted since Covid-19, the partial loss of daily life and the weakening and loss of meeting worship and fellowship in the church are inevitable. The church in the future needs to transform and build a true community of faith that understands the concept of immunity and can lead the transformation of society while revealing the spirit and life scent of Jesus Christ. To this end, innovation and practice of the paradigm of the community of faith appropriate to the rapidly changing times and situations is required. In Chapter 1 of this paper, we propose innovation by pointing out the problems of the church and the faith community, which have lost social credibility, and which are the objects of social distance, with selfishness and closedness. Chapter 2 studies and analyzes the 'Ecclesia' used in ancient Greek to transform the paradigm of the faith community, and identifies the intention of the apostle Paul to apply the 'Ecclesia' to the church's faith community. Chapter 3-4 discusses the concept of immunity, summarizes the reinterpretation of Esposito, who looked at the relationship between the individual and the community through the concept of positive immunity beyond negative immunity. And It draws application points for transforming the faith community of various communities, individuals, and churches. In conclusion, Chapter 5 restores precious gatherings and participation that are weakened and lost through the meaning of 'Ecclesia' and suggests expansion to higher level public gatherings and democratic participation. In addition, based on the reinterpretation of the concept of immunity, we present unity in diversity and diversity in unity as alternatives to the church and community of faith.

• Journal of Christian Education in Korea
• /
• v.67
• /
• pp.339-375
• /
• 2021

The author considers that contemporary society has entered the era of 'life on earth in peril' as a very serious situation in comparison with the past, and assumes that this life-in-peril situation, known as 'life crisis,' is one of the most urgent and important issues in Christian education as well as in public education. This urgency and importance is mainly based on the belief that Christianity is the religion of life that values all living beings' life and all Christians have the sacred vocation to cope with this crisis of life on earth, given by the life-giving God. For this reason, this study aims at identifying some tasks that Christian education should perform in the era of imperiled life, premising that diverse life-threatening situations and circumstances in today's world are closely related to the Christian Sabbath. More specifically, first of all, this article analyzes some notable phenomena of the life crisis in the contemporary world, such as deaths from intentional self-harm (suicides), deaths from industrial accidents and disasters, the real-life situation of vulnerable populations, people's indifference and insensitivity to the situation, and natural environmental degradation, by reflecting on current global issues as well as issues in Korea. This paper also criticizes neoliberalism, productivism, consumerism, economic materialism, egotism, and anthropocentrism as ideologies for causing these phenomena. After the criticism, the author interprets, from biblical and theological perspectives on the Christian Sabbath, main purposes and meanings of the Sabbath for contemporary society that are deeply connected with the crisis of life on earth: confessing that God takes the initiative to govern every creature's living and being; building the relationship with the God who has given the power of life to all living beings; practicing the Sabbath rest by living a holy life; and participating in the Sabbath rest as 'life-giving ministry.' In conclusion, this article suggests Christian educational practices that confront the life crisis, rooted in the purposes and meanings of the Christian Sabbath: reminding participants of the belief that God is the source of life on earth; cultivating 'life literacy'; helping people to resist the crisis of life; and encouraging humans to pursue the well-being and peace of both humanity and the earth.