So the Taliban have coldly butchered two Korean Christian aid workers in Afghanistan. I am interested in soliciting your opinions on this sorry saga. Do you think the Korean aid workers should be sympathised for what was arguably a foolish, albeit noble, move?
It was evident that the aid workers were engaged in missionary work in what is otherwise a devoutly pious Muslim country. The appearance of proselytising Christianity forments widespread rancour in a nation that still rigidly adheres to conservative tenets of Islam. The aid workers might have been brave in taking the initial decision to go to Afghanistan; they should also follow the exemplary lead set by early Christian matyrs by dying for their faith, if necessary. I am resolutely opposed to any underhanded deal made with the Taliban - no exchange of hostages should even be considered by the negotiators.
I know South Korea is a very Christian nation. When I was there in 1997, the tour guide revealed that 40% of the population are Christians as opposed to 50% Buddhists. Actually, I wondered if Christianity is actually the most popular faith there; I never saw a single Buddhist temple during my time at Seoul - it was crucifixes dotting the city skyline everywhere. It is pretty ironic, really, that Korea was once a strong Buddhist kingdom before Japan snuffed out all pretences of independence.
So South Korea have to come to grips with excessive religious fervour and the dangers of sending her missionaries into inhospitable places. Pastors should remember that their duty exists to administer spiritual solace to their flock and not be goaded into inter-church competition for the evangelisation of souls overseas.
I hope the remaining Korean hostages emerge unscathed. I am crossing my fingers though - the Taliban's religious credentials are wearing thin and whatever veneer of Islamic charity that they used to boast about is now replaced by bloodthirsty insurgency. I am not surprised if all the hostages are killed one by one.
If it is of any comfort to them, they died doing God's work. There are worse ways to die in life.
PS: I hate to sound callous, but I obviously disapprove of missionary activities that seek to ultimately displace the native culture. Besides, they should have known the risks they were taking and they should be prepared to accept all responsibility for their actions.
KSa
Loic,
I'm perplexed. On one hand I want my religion to be disseminated throughout the world but never at a cost of native religions/cultures. What is wrong if the missionaries come and offer you another alternative if they don't do it by force?
Still going to the Muslim countries to speak about Jesus is a crazy task and I would never encourage anyone to do it.
Uriel
I would have to strongly agree with your PS, loic.
The only thing about this whole mess that makes me shake my head in wonder is the irony of two religious groups who so strongly believe in the sanctity of martyrdom -- Islam and Christianity -- being at once so gung-ho about being martyrs and yet so pissed off when others give them exactly that fate....
Make up your minds!
Loic
I am the sort of person who, while believing in God, also hold the view that all religions are somehow good and that religious faith is more a totem of cultural identity than about personal salvation and what not.
I am just annoyed that evangelical Christianity has such a strong foothold in South Korea. I wish the Korens had clung on to their unique interpretation of Buddhism; if they had wanted to embrace another faith, at least let it be Roman Catholicism.
It appears that eight Korean legislators have been dispatched to Washington to urge the american administration to show some 'flexibility'. I think there is a greater chance of Osama bin Laden being caught than Washington to agree to bend over backwards to secure the release of a group of foolish people.
Some Koreans said that their army should be dispatched to secure the release of the hostages by force. This is one option which I gladly agree with. After all, it would give the much vaunted Korean army good military training in real life conditions that would bear them in good stead in the event of a sneak North Korean attack.
I know this is not so much a religious discussion than a socio-political one. However, a salient feature of this crisis is the religious motivations of the aid workers and how it has spectacularly backfired this time round. I sincerely call upon the new UN Secretary-General Mr Ban Kee Moon to pass a resolution proscribing all Protestant Christian missionary activities as they are a bane to humanity and clearly the source of conflict between the Christian and Muslim world.
Llatai
Loic wrote:
I am just annoyed that evangelical Christianity has such a strong foothold in South Korea. I wish the Korens had clung on to their unique interpretation of Buddhism
If your figures are correct (40% Christian) then I agree. I also agree that if they were stupid enough to believe they could successfully prothelytise to Muslims in a Taliban controled area then they should take responsibility for that misjudgement. After all wasn't it the Afghan government who nearly executed one of their own for being audacious enough to convert to Christianity while he lived in England? Karsai is certainly more moderate than the Taliban, and he defended this action until world pressure threatened to wreak havoc on his image as a man leading his country's embarkation on a voyage to modernity. Apparantly they're still at the docks.
So what sense does it make to try and convert people to Christianity in a country where by law, converting to it is punishable by death? Common sense and reasonable foresight could not hold sway against the torrent of the South Korean's religious zealotry perhaps. That alone should be evidence enough to dissuade anyone from taking them seriously, but at any rate they should have realized the lunacy of preaching to the psychologically like minded who've embraced Islam. Blind zealotry requires abdication of the throne of independent thought as a prerequisite, and blind faith in being led by God in one's actions is undermined by common sense in the extremist's mind. At best there may be conflict enough presented by reason to be interpreted as a challenge to faith. That may be presumptuous on my part, but I suspect its a prime motivation for eveangelicals, particularly those going into areas overtly hostile to their efforts.
So what can you say "you made your bed now lie in it?" To some degree perhaps, yet the greater tragedy to me is the loss of minds to religious fanaticism in the first place. The actions of both parties in this mess rest on the foundations of that initial misadventure as do so many other of the world's tragedies, both current and historical. In a world where so many are enthusiastic about throwing reason in the garbage for the phantom securities of religious zealotry, I don't know what to do short of to air-drop copies of Eric Hoffer's The True Believer. Yet somehow I don't think its ignorance of the choices before them that's the problem.
