알렉산더 윌리엄슨(Alexander Williamson)의 중국선교: 문서, 해방, 그리고 상업

Abstract

This study examines the thought and practice of a Scottish Christian missionary to China, Rev. Alexander Williamson (1829-1890), who worked in the second half of the nineteenth century. Born at Falkirk and educated at the University of Glasgow, he decided to dedicate himself to the Christian work in China. Sent by the London Missionary Society (LMS) in 1855, he started his missionary life with his wife in Shanghai although they were to come back home in a couple of years due to his failure of health. Having been recovered from the illness, he was appointed as the first missionary of the newly organized National Bible Society of Scotland (NBSS) to China in 1863. In addition to his work for the NBSS, he worked as the missionary of the United Presbyterian Church (UPC) of Scotland to North China since 1871 until he died in Chefoo (now Yantai), Shandong. Helped by the Treaty of Tianjin(1858) and the Treaty of Beijing(1860) that allowed foreigners to practice Christian evangelism in the new treaty ports of the northern coast and in the hinterlands, Williamson carried out great evangelistic journeys in North China, Manchuria, and Inner Mongolia to distribute the Bible and other Christian literature. He also established a few important societies, such as the Christian Literature Society for China (CLSC) and the Society for the Diffusion of Christian and General Knowledge among the Chinese (SDCGK), with some other fellow missionaries for the cause of spreading the Bible and Christian literature among the Chinese. Furthermore, he wrote more than twenty books and essays related to the Christian work in China either in English or in Chinese. He became the first Protestant missionary to spread the gospel in Manchuria or the Northeast China, with his Bible journeys since 1864 even before the entry of the first resident Protestant missionary William C. Burns of the English Presbyterian Mission. Williamson also successfully persuaded the new missionaries John Ross and John MacIntyre to go to Manchuria and greatly helped the Board of Foreign Missions of the UPC create a new mission there. Having a keen interest in the evangelism to Korean people, he helped a missionary of the LMS Robert Thomas to go to the west coast of Korea to distribute the Bible under the support of the NBSS. It is evident that John Ross, who translated the Bible into Korean in Manchuria, was also greatly influenced by him. He was distinctive in respecting for the humanitarian rights of the Non- Western people and in recognizing the merits of the people and their civilizations. He highly appreciated the capacity of Chinese people and the greatness of their ancient civilization. However, he also recognized that every person and every civilization need to have the knowledge of God. He believed that by the word of God Chinese would be emancipated from ignorance and superstition which have covered their potentiality in personal and collective levels. He was able to look out that Chinese would build a Christian civilization in the near future. Finally, he was a great advocate for the British merchants participation in the development of the Chinese natural sources and having commercial interactions with them. As several lectures and books of him display that idea very well, his 1867 lecture Notes on the North of China conduced before the Royal Geographical Society is a good example of it. He also supported the idea in which the British may use diplomatic or military ways for Korea to open up to the gospel and international commerce. His idea seems to come out of the distinctive tradition of Scottish and British society, politics, and religion. It seems that he had a very posi- tive notion on development and commerce in the Non-Western world, a narrower sense of imperialism, an approval of the possibility of evil methods serving good purpose, and an influence from the close relationship between the state and church in Scotland and England.