The approach advocating a selective acceptance of Western ways begins with the Confucian scholars of the late-Joseon period. These thinkers held that the East was proficient in the "Do" (Way) while the West had technical know-how. This view was particularly developed by early progressives such as Yu Gil-jun (1856-1914). Adherents of this view believed that Eastern spiritual values were superior, but that Western technology and institutions were more advanced; therefore, the East should only accept those things which it lacked. This attitude represented a transitional approach, and was soon pushed aside by an approach calling for full-scale acceptance of Western culture. Even so, in Korea, this attitude of selective acceptance is still a common intellectual position.

As seen before, this kind of cultural-specific attitude towards the acquisition of foreign culture is apparent when looking at the wall paintings of Goguryeo tombs. The Goguryeo people accepted the expanding classical Chinese culture along with its mythology; however, they expressed this mythology according to their own aesthetic sense. This approach signifies the beginning of a critical attitude towards culture. This critical and independent stance is also clearly evident among the Neo-Confucian scholars of the Joseon Dynasty. These scholars, noting that the classical spirit of Confucianism had already disappeared in Qing China and thus only remained in Korea, referred to Korea as "Small China." While accepting the fact that Korea was militarily under the influence of the Qing, they proudly maintained that Korea was culturally at the center of East Asia. Thus, an attitude of selective acceptance is a legacy that has endured since Goguryeo times, through the Joseon period to the present. Yet, this attitude has not been able to shield Korea from the turbulent waves of history. Korean society has thus been caught up in the currents of world history. Even so, Koreans have managed to carefully assimilate the world's cultural heritage within the context of their own cultural sentiments and traditions.

From the above discussion, we have seen how a diverse range of religions and value systems, including Korea's unique sense of identity, classical Asian religions such as Confucianism and Buddhism as well as Christianity and modern ideologies from the West, have coexisted in Korea. Thus, since ancient times, Korea has thus been a multi-religious society, but it was only in the 20th century that this took on any great significance.

One more aspect of Korea's multi-religious society that deserves mention is folk beliefs, including shamanism. Korean folk beliefs still exist in many diverse forms, and thus have a strong influence on everyday life. For example, many people travel on dates that are traditionally held to be auspicious, with the result that big cities often become chaotic during this time. These folk beliefs are still very much alive in farming and fishing villages. Among folk traditions, shamanism is the most prominent. Nobody knows the number of shamanist devotees in Korea, but at present, there are well over 50,000 fee-paying members of shamanist organizations throughout the country. In other words, the number of shamans in Korea far exceeds the number of Protestant ministers. Moreover, Korea is a country in which dazzling shaman rituals still take place. Yet, religious surveys typically fail to include the shamanist population.



multi-religious Societies and the Future

Korean society is presently a unique multi-religious society. Confucian ethics dominate the daily life of Koreans, and Hyanggyo, Confucian educational institutions, are found scattered throughout the country. At every scenic spot, there is a Buddhist monastery, and most of the nation's tangible cultural assets are Buddhist. Yet when entering any Korean city, one is immediately impressed by the number of Protestant churches. During the 1980s, Catholic churches have served as the representative of the conscience of Korean society. According to a 1995 social statistics survey, 50.7 percent of Koreans follow a specific religious faith. Buddhists account for some 46 percent followed by Protestants at 39 percent and Catholics at 13 percent of the religious population. In addition to these groups, there are numerous shamanism devotees, new religions and, in particular, Confucianists, who are still not represented in religious surveys. For this reason, Korea's religious population is much larger than superficial survey-counts indicate.

In addition, an Imam attached to the Turkish army (one of the 16 U.N. forces which participated in the Korean War) introduced Islam to Korea. Through his efforts, some Koreans worshiped with the Turkish soldiers and converted to Islam. In 1966, a Korean Islamic organization was formed and in the same year, a mosque was erected in Seoul. Since then, seven more have been established. There are now more than twenty-thousand Moslems in Korea.

Confucianism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam are the representative world religions which have made a decisive contribution to the formation of the various aspects of world culture. Confucianism, Buddhism and Christianity, in particular, respectively represent the classical cultures of China, India and Western monotheism. Although these religions all coexist in Korea, at present none of them is able to represent Korean culture.

In addition, since the prehistoric period, shamanism, diverse folk beliefs and countless indigenous religions have developed in Korea. As a result, Korea has an abundance of religious holidays, i.e. New Year's Day, which is celebrated according to both the solar and lunar calendars, Buddha's Birthday, Chuseok (the Harvest Festival), Gaecheonjeol (National Foundation Day) and Christmas. Korea is probably the only country in the world to have such a diverse range of religious holidays.

Other multi-religious societies live under the threat of disintegration, but Korea's diverse religions have managed to coexist since ancient times. During Korea's long history, dynastic change has been brought about under the name of religion, but religion has never led to the division of the people. Even among Koreans today, there is nobody who wants to divide the Korean people on religious grounds. To this extent, Korean's homogeneity is considered to be more important to Koreans than any religious value.

From mythical times onwards, Koreans have been confident about their unique identity as a people. On the other hand, Koreans have zealously imported foreign culture. By looking at these seemingly divergent aspects of their culture as complementary, Koreans have been able to develop a creative culture and philosophy. Ideologically, when a synthesis of divergent aspects has been reached, harmony prevails. For this reason, Koreans' creative efforts, regardless of which form they take, always culminate with the ideal of harmony.

From ancient times, this harmonious spirit has enabled Koreans to maintain their cultural identity while actively introducing culture from the rest of the world. Classical Confucian and Buddhist culture has gloriously upheld its prestigious position in Korean society, and Christianity is alive and well. Through Buddhist art, aspects of ancient Greek culture are still alive, and the cultures from the nomadic peoples of Central Asia have established deep roots in Korea as well. In this sense, Korea serves as a repository of the world's classical cultures.

In the 1960s, Korean society entered the path towards industrialization. Since then, numerous universities and research institutes have competitively acquired modern thought. As a result, Korean society now embraces the cultural traditions of both the East and West. Western technology, modern social thought and the Christian faith are no longer seen as foreign. Within the East Asian sphere of traditional cultures, Korea represents the greatest success of Christian Evangelism. In this sense, Western culture has been assimilated by Korean culture. This harmonization of diverse cultural elements is a legacy from the ancient past that gives Koreans confidence to meet the changes of the modern world. Yet, it must be kept in mind that Koreans did not begin to actively acquire modern thought until the 1960s, so time is required before they can recreate modern thought in a Korean form.

A multicultural society easily slides into chaos. Moreover, the Korean people have passed the last half century amid continual, violent social upheavals. Within this turmoil, Korea has not yet been able to overcome conditions forced upon it by history. For this reason, Korea is often seen by outsiders as an unstable and aggressive society that is inherently chaotic. However, the problems that Korea faces are actually a miniature version of the shrinking "global village." In this sense, Korean efforts to solve their own problems may also lead to solutions for the world at large. Koreans, with their unique history, have thus assumed an important role in the history of mankind.