Korean Preaching, Han, and Narrative

189 Pages·2008·2.696 MB·English

by  Sangyil Park

Korean Preaching,
Han, and Narrative
american
university
studies

Series VII
Theology and Religion

Vol. 282

PETER LANG
New York (cid:121) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:121) Bern
Frankfurt am Main (cid:121) Berlin (cid:121) Brussels (cid:121) Vienna (cid:121) Oxford
Sangyil Park

Korean Preaching,
Han, and Narrative

PETER LANG
New York (cid:121) Washington, D.C./Baltimore (cid:121) Bern
Frankfurt am Main (cid:121) Berlin (cid:121) Brussels (cid:121) Vienna (cid:121) Oxford
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Park, Sangyil.
Korean preaching, Han, and narrative / Sangyil Park.
p. cm. — (American University studies. VII, Theology and religion; v. 282)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Preaching—Korea. 2. Narrative preaching. I. Title.
BV4208.K6P37 251.0089’957—dc22 2008037199
ISBN 978-1-4331-0449-7
ISSN 0740-0446

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Printed in the United States of America
To My Mother
Table of Contents

Acknowledgements ............................................................................... xi

Chapter One: Introduction: Scope, Nature, and
Methodologies .................................................................................... 1
Notes ........................................................................................... 10

Chapter Two: Narrative, Minjung Theology, and
Preaching .......................................................................................... 14
Minjung and Han: Terminologies and Context ......................... 14
Narrative, Minjung Theology, and Preaching ........................... 19
Conclusion ................................................................................... 26
Notes ........................................................................................... 28

Chapter Three: Chunhyangjun and Korean Preaching ................. 32
Nature and Development of Chunhyangjun .............................. 32
The Nature of Chunhyangjun ................................................. 33
Origin and Sources .................................................................. 34
Debates on Orality and Literacy ............................................ 41
Implication for Korean Preaching .......................................... 44
Aristotelian Understanding of the Plot ...................................... 46
Plot in Chunhyangjun ................................................................ 48
Love and Marriage .................................................................. 49
Separation ............................................................................... 51
Imprisonment and Higher Conflict ........................................ 53
viii Korean Preaching, Han, and Narrative

Denouement: Reunion and Resolution ................................... 55
Han and Catharsis in Chunhyangjun ........................................ 57
Other Devices of Narrative ......................................................... 65
Chunhyangjun and Christian Preaching ................................... 69
Conclusion ................................................................................... 75
Notes ........................................................................................... 76

Chapter Four: Theories of Narrative Preaching ............................. 86
Fred Craddock: Inductive Preaching.......................................... 87
Charles Rice: Preaching as Storytelling ..................................... 92
Eugene Lowry: Preaching as Narrative Plot ............................. 97
Upsetting the Equilibrium ...................................................... 98
Analyzing the Discrepancy ..................................................... 99
Disclosing the Clue to Resolution ......................................... 100
Experiencing the Gospel ....................................................... 101
Anticipating the Consequences............................................. 102
Henry Mitchell: Preaching as Celebration ............................... 106
Challenges and Relevance for Korean Preaching .................... 117
Experience versus the Gospel ............................................... 117
Narrative versus Non-Narrative .......................................... 119
Open-Ended Sermon and Other Cultures ............................ 119
Authority and Other Cultures .............................................. 120
Conclusion ................................................................................. 122
Notes ......................................................................................... 124

Chapter Five: Toward A Korean Narrative Preaching
Theory .............................................................................................. 132
A Proposal for Korean Narrative Preaching ............................ 132
Table of Contents ix

Suggestion for Further Studies ................................................ 146
Notes ......................................................................................... 148

Chapter Six: Conclusion ................................................................... 150

Sample Sermons ................................................................................ 152
Glossary ............................................................................................... 159
Bibliography ....................................................................................... 163
Index .................................................................................................... 175
Acknowledgements
_____________________________________

Many people are owed my gratitude for this work which was my
doctoral dissertation at the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley,
CA: first of all, I want to thank Jana Childers, my teacher for a
decade, of San Francisco Theological Seminary. Without her
thoughtful support and encouragement throughout the years I
could not have finished this work. I also thank many other teach-
ers throughout the consortium schools at the GTU: Mary Donovan
Turner, Linda Clader, Tom Rogers, and the late Doug Adams who
guided me through my academic discipline. Also, I appreciate Dr.
Young-Chan Ro, of George Mason University, for his important in-
put and suggestions to the project and very grateful to Charles
Rice whose words of generous commendation let me into my grad-
uate studies in homiletics while I was in his seminary classes at
Drew University, NJ.
Secondly, I want to thank the members of the congregations
where I have served as pastor. Both Concord Korean United Me-
thodist Church, Concord, CA and Marysville Korean United Me-
thodist Church, Yuba City, CA gave me practical insight for this
work. The Methodist parish of Port Carbon and New Philadelphia,
PA and Meridian United Methodist Church, Meridian, CA also
provided me with different experiences in ministries of American
culture, which was of great help in this study. I also thank the
friendly members of Albany United Methodist Church, Albany, CA
for their support for my humble preaching ministry.
Thirdly, I want to say many thanks to Keith Russell and J.
Alfred Smith Sr., two great preachers and teachers in preaching,
and other faculty colleagues at American Baptist Seminary of the
West, Berkeley, CA for their friendship and support. .
Lastly, I want to thank my family—my wife, Sungsook, and my
two children, Grace and Samuel-- for their love and understanding.
More importantly, I give my special thanks and honor to my moth-
er in Korea, who is recovering from a stroke, and I dedicate this
book to her.