Political Consciousness of Early Korean Mission Schools (1907-1937) (Focusing on Gwangju Soong-il and Speer Schools)

Abstract

During the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945), all Koreans, with the exception of a few, were against Japanese colonial rule. To be sure, this did not mean that all Koreans physically resisted the Japanese government, which coercively governed Koreans using strong military power. This is because the human instinct for survival is strong and therefore people tend to submit when threatened with death. In other words, since challenging the Japanese colonial government would surely end in death, Koreans generally complied because they did not have enough military power for any physical resistance. However, when their submission was challenged or pushed to its limit by various factors, the Koreans rose up and resisted the Japanese. In this study, we will investigate how this resistance was present in mission schools in Gwangju. In conclusion, the resistance being displayed in the schools at the time was generally in line with the traditional Korean resistance religious culture. It can be argued, however, that the main reason for the resistance of Japanese Shrine Worship was the unique conservative theology of Protestant evangelical Christianity.