대한제국기 파리외방전교회 선교사들이 본 서울과 전남

Abstract

Missionaries from the Paris Foreign Mission Society, who entered Joseon in 1836, met many Koreans while carrying out missionary activities in various places on the Korean Peninsula. Therefore, understanding how those missionaries thought and acted toward Korea and Koreans is another path to understanding that era. Seoul was the base for church administration and the center of politics for missionaries. Missionaries residing in Seoul and its vicinity frequently visited Seoul, where the diocese office was located, and missionaries residing in rural areas also visited Seoul during missionary retreats. In Seoul, there was one parish each inside and outside the Four Great Gates, and the missionaries paid attention to the faith of the believers living in Seoul and the attitude of the people of Seoul to changes in the political situation. Yongsan was also of interest as the location of a seminary, and a Benedictine missionary who made a brief pastoral visit to Korea realized that the Japanese invasion of Seoul was centered around Yongsan. The Paris Foreign Mission Society missionaries who had been there for a long time were unable to understand this. Paris Foreign Mission Society missionaries were also sensitive to the movements of the Japanese colonial government. From the establishment of the Residency-General, they felt Japan's invasion and power and showed an attitude of cooperation with Japan. The missionaries' idea of Jeonnam was that it was a remote, rural area with poor transportation, so information was lacking and foreign cultures were exclusive. From Seoul, Jeonnam was geographically far away. Missionaries placed Seoul at the center both ecclesiastical and external, and wanted to be active in the vicinity of Seoul. Missionaries dispatched to Jeonnam emphasized the remoteness of Jeonnam and complained about transportation inconveniences. Missionaries also complained to the bishop that Jeonnam residents were exclusive to foreign cultures. However, the parishes established in Jeonnam region during the Korean Empire were not located in the central area of Jeonnam. It is said that a parish was established in Mokpo in anticipation that Mokpo would develop due to the opening of the port. Mokpo was a port built to export goods plundered from Korea to Japan. The place where Ujeok-dong Parish was established was a rural area recognized by missionaries. The same was true where the Naju parish was established. Missionaries dispatched to these parishes were not welcomed by the residents where the parishes were located. The reason Korean clergy were treated poorly was not because of the regional exclusivity of Ujeok-dong, but because of their rejection of unfamiliar Catholic culture. And this reaction and attitude was not limited to Ujeok-dong, but was similar nationwide. The missionaries' view that the Jeonnam region was remote and therefore exclusive was a biased view based on Seoul.