No more ideological war

As a woman theologian and Christian, I once researched the historical backgrounds of the anti-communist ideology of conservative Korean Christianity and the lives of women who were victims of civilian massacres caused by this ideology. In addition, I tried to examine how such suffering is described in Christian historical literature and then to analyze sermons and books by two famous Korean pastors, one man and one woman serving mega churches, from a feminist theological perspective.

The reasons for the formation of anti-communist ideology are ideological conflicts between the left and the right during the Japanese colonial rule, persecutions of Christians by communists in North Korea as well as the anti-communist policy line of Syngman Rhee, the first president of Korea, and his government. In addition, communism has been regarded as bad or evil by most Christians, as it never acknowledges God.

Women’s suffering in relation with anti-communist ideology has not been clearly revealed or discussed, historically, and the most representative examples are drawn from victims of civilian massacres.

As these women were excluded from the public sector and education, they could not even demand investigation of the truth of the massacres or proper compensation. After their husbands were massacred, many women had to serve their parents-in-law in their husbands’ absence and depended on them financially and socially, owing to Korea's strong Confucian ideology. Christian historical literature and books (for example, "History of Women of Presbyterian Church in Korea" and "History of Women Christians of the Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea") have neither dealt with nor described women’s suffering in depth, instead presenting traditional, patriarchal views about women.

Reading about the tragic lives of these women, I could not help but feel pity and sorrow, with most of them being innocent victims of politics. As powerless, fragile individual women with little education, they seemed to have few choices as they were battered in an ideological war and the upheavals of history.

The books and sermons of the two mega church pastors I examined showed adherence to anti-communist, pro-American ideologies, and a Christianity combining patriarchy and militarism. Both pastors still adhere to anti-communist ideology. These results seemed to be closely related with current political and religious landscapes, which means that conflicts and confrontations have intensified.

These ideological disputes and strife are not just confined to Christian factions but found in almost every aspect of our daily lives. This is why we need to learn how to cope with such disputes peacefully and harmoniously. In short, we need to learn to respect other opinions, try to converse with patience and sometimes concede, even when we do not agree with them. What matters the most is not the ideologies themselves but that we live safely, happily together with one another. Ideologies are just tools for that goal. We must have no more ideological war.

Lee Nan-hee studied English in college and theology at Hanshin University.