한국 선교사(宣敎史)에 나타나는 제례문제와 의미

Abstract

Since Christianity was introduced in Korea, sacrificial rituals have been a major issue in this area. A number of preceding researches on the review of Christianity in Korea examined the matter of sacrificial rituals. The first incident related to sacrificial rituals occurred when Western Learning was accepted as a religion after the related books were introduced during the late Joseon period. In this event called ‘Jinsan Incident,’ the issue of sacrificial rituals came to the fore for the first time. Thereafter, little effort was put into replacing Confucian rituals for a long period of time. After Jinsan Incident, two different views on ancestral rites were developed: First, some performed Confucian procedures without ancestral rites to exercise due courtesy; and others rejected ancestral rites due to the religious nature. Such customs have been followed with no settlement on this issue yet. Although there have been great demands for replacement of Confucian rituals, Christian rituals are still at a standstill in Korea mainly because conservative missionaries have strictly prohibited ancestral rites, regarding them as idol worship, or neglected condolence for the dead and the relation between the dead and people currently living in the society, which is the very purpose of ancestral rites. Recently, memorial service of Christianity was defined in various perspectives, and there have been many attempts to replace Confucian rituals although they were neglected or rather roused antipathy in various religious or social situations. Thus, there is a fundamental question to be discussed seriously in this regard: How should Christianity view meeting with the dead and what rituals can Christianity suggest for it? In addition, there need to be sufficient space and rituals for condolence through which local Koreans who have been influenced by Confucian culture can approach Christianity easily. There needs to be a new modern definition of ancestral rites. Since such rites involve religiosity and moral conducts, how to redefine this coexistence in terms of Christianity needs to be thoroughly discussed.