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The Understanding of Islamophobia and Its Missiological Implication

  • Muslim-Christian Encounter
  • Abbr : MCE
  • 2016, 9(2), pp.9-43
  • DOI : 10.30532/mce.2016.09.9.2.9
  • Publisher : Torch Trinity Center for Islamic Studies
  • Research Area : Humanities > Christian Theology > Mission Theology
  • Received : September 17, 2016
  • Accepted : September 27, 2016
  • Published : September 30, 2016

Chung Seung-hyun 1

1주안대학원대학교

ABSTRACT

The prejudice of Islamophobia did not suddenly appear after the terrors of 9/11 2001. It has had long and deep historical roots. In November 1997, the Runnymede Report, Islamophobia: A Challenge for Us All launched in the UK launched discussions in public and studies in academic level as well. According to Runnymede, “Islamophobia refers to unfounded hostility towards Islam. It refers also to the practical consequences of such hostility in unfair discrimination against Muslim individuals and communities, and to the exclusion of Muslims from mainstream political and social affairs.” Chris Allen insists that there are three different components of Islamophobia; 1) Islamophobia is an ideology, 2) it operates and functions in the public and privates spaces through a vast range of different actions, and 3) it performs as exclusionary practices against Islam and Muslim, including prejudice, discrimination, and vandalism and so on. One of prejudices of Islamophobia is monolithic view towards Islam and Muslim, although there are huge diversities among them. Muslims in Europe and the US have lived in different social and economic settings. Terrorists based on Islam like IS kill many Muslim themselves. In South Korea, the diversity of Muslims is growing as the population of them is increasing caused by the influx of immigrated labor population. Like the case of tragic accidents in France in 2015, most media only focus on religion of people who committed terror or massacre rather than deal with fundamental issues like discrimination which Muslims have to face daily lives. They are excluded and marginalized in a wider society of Europe. The sense of Islamophobia is increasing in Korea in relation to growing immigrant workers, terrors in the globe, and prejudice of the mass media. Since Christians experiences the unconditional love and grace of Jesus Christ, we need to view them in different ways compared to ordinary people. Like Jesus who talked to a woman in Samaria called Sychar, Christians should talk with them without prejudice so that they may get an opportunity to be introduced to the Kingdom of God.

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