2017, Vol., No.38

The Korean Journal of Chiristian Social Ethics 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 0.58

pISSN : 1229-8387 / eISSN : 2713-749X
https://journal.kci.go.kr/csethics

From the perspective of minjung theology that focuses on the subjectivity of minjung in history and politics, I have analyzed and compared the dynamics of candlelight vigils and the characteristics of the participants in candlelight rallies in 2008 and in 2016-2017. To begin with, regarding the characteristics of the crowd participating in candlelight vigils, I refused the attempt to interpret the candlelight crowd in 2008 as ‘multitude’ in the sense of A. Negri and M. Hardt. I tried to analyze the crowd as composed of the people who were exploited, suppressed, excluded and discriminated in the neoliberal Korean society, and to name them as the traditional term of ‘minjung’. Secondly, I pointed out that the candlelight crowd in 2008 could be characterized as network crowd. It is true that a form of “collective intelligence” has emerged in the crowd movements. But I didn’t accept the opinion that the network crowd could play roles as “organic intellectuals” in the sense of A. Gramsci. Thirdly, the candlelight vigils in 2016-2017 went one step further from those in 2008. The ‘President Retirement Movement’ as council of civic and social movement groups learned from the experiences of 2008, and showed some capacity to lead the candlelight crowd asking for retirement of the state president responsible for corruption and privatization of state authority and asking for liquidation of accumulated evils. Lastly, Minjung has a desire to fundamentally change Korean society and embody more justice, more democracy and more human rights. They are moving to realize that desire. Now it is one of the important tasks of minjung theology to refine desires of minjung into a clear language and to present politics of minjung for realizing their desires with conceptual and strategic consistency.

This study delves into Reinhold Niebuhr’s political thoughts on international politics based on Reinhold Niebuhr on Politics. In particular, this study concentrates on the imperial implication on Niebuhr’s idea on international politics. Barak Obama used a political rhetoric such as “the American Spirit” as he ignites the pride of American nationality, and he spoke one of the most influential political thinkers was Reinhold Niebuhr. After 9/11, not a few scholars have been criticizing America as a new Empire ruling over the world. With this idea, this research studies the Niebuhrian international politics as his political thoughts are related to the American Imperialism in that it emphasizes the imperial foundations such as American responsibility, American destiny, Christians as the chosen people, and the advocator for the freedom and democracy. And he justifies the usage of power for the world peace as other empires had done. Lastly, the unique formation of this research is that it tires to organizes a political speech as if Obama speaks his political ideas toward people in order to exemplifies “the American Spirit” as a political rhetoric for American Imperialism.

This research delves into North-Korea policy and foreign policy of America affecting directly or indirectly North-Korea policy of South-Korea since the Korean Peninsula has been segmented based on mainly ‘political realism’. Since 9.11 attacks, a political realism as standing of ‘just war’ assertive legitimacy of ‘use of force’ gains strength as a righteousness. However, a reason that this thesis interests political realism of America is because of taking affect of christian social ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr. That he has contributed for political realism of America is that has supported by theological theory war, violence, and foreign problems one of the sharp debates in international real. His christian realism affects to oppositional discourse for unification is for theological right with conquestism or triumphalism. But it is a resultant that does not understand his thought. Hereto, this thesis studied critically his main thought ‘christian realism’ within understanding his main conceptions ‘love and justice’, and especially studied misunderstandings to ‘use of force’ within christian realism in Korean churches. This resultant suggests threes: to ‘theology of reconciliation’(ethical righteousness) over ‘political theology’(use of force); to ‘balance of power’ in ‘US-centrism’; and to ‘God’s grace’ of ‘trans’ history in order to find a way escapable from enlarge-reproduction of opposition and confliction, nervous and fear due to segregation is not to be enlarge righteousness of ‘use of force’ but to beware of ‘self-interest and corruptibility of force’ and to take sanction methods.