한국교회의 이주민 환대 가능성－ 다문화주의의 한계와 상호문화주의적 보완을 중심으로

Abstract

This paper identifies the limitations of multiculturalism in Korean churches’ hospitality towards immigrants and discusses the possibility of overcoming them through the intercultural contact. It is correct that multiculturalism, which respects and accepts other cultures, is more likely to enable immigrants to settle down while maintaining their own cultures than monoculturalism or transculturalism. However, multiculturalism has fundamental limitations. The tolerance and acceptance that multiculturalism seeks to implement reveal a superficial respect for other cultures, as it only tolerates immigrant cultures to a level that does not threaten the culture of the indigenous people, and ultimately runs the risk of justifying ignorance and alienation of immigrants. The possibility of overcoming this limitation of multiculturalism can be found in interculturalism, which can open up the possibility of new coexistence centered on mutual exchange and contact between immigrants and indigenous people. Korean churches by promoting mutual exchange and contact which are not one-sided assimilation of one side, but rather, based on the overlapping commonalities between cultures, help encouraging them to build new cultural identities while creating a new community of solidarity.