일제하 한국 기독교인의 ‘내지=일본’ 개념 수용 과정: 무단통치기(1910~1919)를 중심으로

Abstract

This paper seeks to investigate how the Korean Church under Japanese Colonial Rule (especially during the Military Rule Period of 1910-1919) recognized Japan in terms of the concept of naeji(內地), or 'inland.' The word naeji was 'a common noun for Chosun,' yet after the forced annexation of Chosun to Japan, the term became 'a proper noun solely referring to Japan.' In other words, by contemplating just how did the Korean Church accept 'Japan as the inland', while, at the same time, considering how did the church internalize its 'ego, which had degenerated from naeji, or inland, to its opposite concept of woeji(外地), or foreign territories,' this paper will inquire into the 'idea of Japan' by Korean Christians of the time period. First, prior to the annexation of Korea by Japan Era(1894-1905) the church recognized western modernization as an important means and channel for achieving their missions goals, and, in contrast to the anti-Japanese sentiment widespread in Chosun, viewed Japan, a nation which had accomplished the very image of Westernization from modernization achieved via the Meiji Restoration, as a mandatory target to know and learn from. Thus, this led to a time where the ‘Knowing Japan,’ or ‘知日’(an anti-Japanese ideal which begrudgingly accepted that one must know Japan to protect Chosun’s future) and ‘Learning from Japan,’ or ‘學日’(a pro-Japanese ideal looking to Japan as a role-model/ teacher)’ boundaries of awareness towards Japan were uncertain. However, after the annexation of Korea by Japan came about the ‘Military Rule Period’ (1910-1919), the period right after ‘inland Chosun’ had just lost its proper ‘inland-ness(內地性)’ and was degraded to be referred to as a ‘foreign territory(外地).’ At the same time, it was a rather turbulent stage where ‘inland Japan’ emerging as the new ‘inland’ created a loss of self-identity and coerced non-ego. Thus, under such an overturned state of anomie, Korean Christianity strengthened its resistive stance towards Japan. The Japanese government tried to impose the ‘inland-ification(內地化)’ of Korean Christanity through the Japanese Kumiai(Congregational) Church’s ‘Chosun Mission Doctrine(朝鮮傳道論)’ but that attempt was unsuccessful. The reason lay in the fact that the Korean Church was deeply involved in the Korean Declaration of Independence of February 8 and the March 1st Independence Movement in 1919, events which greatly changed the idea of Japan for the masses. Therefore, by marking its end with the March 1stMovement, the Military Rule Period can be viewed as an era where the Korean Church sought to overcome the reality of being robbed of its sovereignty (‘loss of inland/foreign territory-fication’) by ‘boosting its resistance against Japan.’(抗日) In the foundation of such anti-Japanese sentiment within the Korean Christian lay an opposing and resisting mentality towards the newly enforced concept of “Naeji=Japan.”