지역공동체로 나아가는 기독교교육

Abstract

"Educatio Dei" in and with Local Communities Doil Kim Presbyterian University and Theological Seminary This article is a culmination of research on the role/essence of church and Christian education in relation to local community. According to sociological perspectives our modern era is characterized by uncertainty, perennial danger, absence of communication, and absolute loneliness. It also fails to keep healthy communities (마을: maeul) in which future generations can grow as it incubates according to anthropological perspectives. In addition, our modern era is one in which churches have been isolated from communities and have become ghettos in recent Korean history. Modern churches which focused on the Ecclesia visibilisand Ecclesia of gathering too much  seemed to have failed to be the Ecclesia invisibilis and Ecclesia of scattering into the communities. How can we take part in healing this modern society? Can the church cure this sick society? With these kinds of quests in mind this research had begun. Church is the body of Christ and is not a building or the system itself although such are important elements. The church, being the people of God, did not figure out the needs of local communities in general and lost its trust in society. As a result the church is experiencing stagnation both in quantity and quality. Churches in Korea need to realize that they are a faith community not apart from communities but coexisting with local communities as well. The role of Christian education for the church is to let the church (people of God) realize its role and reason for being the church in the local community. The church needs to be not only the faith community but to go beyond the boundaries of faith community and become the life community in local areas. It means that Christian education must not be limited to the inside of a church builidng. Christian education needs to go beyond its building and create a learning ecosystem that embraces families, churches, and local communities. If the mission of the church is in essence the mission of God (Missio Dei), then the education of the church is also the education of God (Educatio Dei). This means that although it seems that humans perform all kinds of education for God’s creation, it is God in fact that carries out education. If this education of God is fulfilled in local areas, then Christian education needs to focus on educating the church to be equipped with the language of both the faith and local communities—this is called a bilingual education. The church must not regard people who exist outside of faith community as objects of evangelization. In fact the church exists in local communities and is part of them. Moreover, God so loved the “world” (cosmos) and gave His only begotten Son for all people, not just the people who are inside the faith community. For many years the church and Christian education felt their responsibility was to only spread the Gospel and serve the community (spirit of diakonia). But the church needs to overcome this attitude of “help” and be able to coexist with people in local areas (spirit of koinonia). There was a time when churches in Korea played the role of saving individuals, awakening parents, and reviving both communities and the nation with the spirit of the Gospel. In the early 20th century, the church had its healthy identity in balance and was the symbol of pride for the local people. However iteventually became a target of criticism as it lost its trust from society. The church needs its trust back from society which will only be possible when it restores its true essence and identity as the church of Christ. In order to regain society’s trust the church, as God’s people in local communities, must be the life community and be an example of true believers with its words and actions in local communities. Therefore in order for the church to become not only a community of faith but be a community of local areas as well, Christian education must help the church see the importance of being the church in the local community not apart from the community. In so doing, Christian education needs to break down the wall in between faith and local community, if in reality there is such thing—it may only exist in human minds. Christian educators need to form the spirit of coexisting by teaching the church to feel the needs of local communities and making the church be the place of learning, caring, and loving in these communities; the church that pursues the education of God in/for the world.