칼 마르크스의 종교론에 관한 비판적 연구

Abstract

Religion has long been existing either positively or negatively in human history. Karl Marx (1818-1883) criticized religion as an opium of people. He is admired as an important thinker and philosopher. Although the Marxism started by Karl Marx has not been fully realized in human history, it is still highly evaluated by many scholars because it criticized Capitalism very harshly and objectively and provided us with alternatives to Capitalism. Marx’s thought gave us a new way to view human history and society and improve human awareness. Marx’s criticism of religion has important meanings for us even today. He basically followed Feuerbach’s concept of religion: ‘Humanity creates religion.’ He criticized religion as a tool of oppression, an inverted world consciousness, and an opium of people. The religion in his days was a fake and an illusion. Korean society has long been religiously plural. 50% of the total population in Korea belong to various living religions. This proves that Korean society is heavily influenced by religions. In this context, we cannot but ask the questions: “are religions playing their proper roles in society and realizing their true essences and functions?”, “are religions the agents of salvation and liberation?” and “are religions still the opium of people?” Marx’s criticisms of religion force us to ask many questions about religion itself. The purpose of this article is to study Marx’s understanding of religion from a critical perspective. The first part of this article explores his concept and criticism of religion and then his understanding of God, a foundational concept of religion. In conclusion, there will be discussions on the meanings and limitations of Marx’s understanding of religion.