Key points:
- Jin Kwan Kwon, a retired professor of the Anglican University in Seoul, South Korea, presented a lecture on Minjung theology March 31 at Vanderbilt Divinity School.
- Emerging in the 1970s in South Korea, Minjung theology is a liberation theology focused on the struggles of the marginalized and oppressed.
- Although Minjung theology emerged in Korea, Kwon argued that its relevance is now global, as stories of inequality and marginalization resonate across national boundaries.
Where does theology begin? In doctrine and tradition, or in the lived experiences of people?
That question stood at the center of a lecture delivered by Jin Kwan Kwon, a retired professor of the Anglican University in Seoul, South Korea, on March 31 at Vanderbilt Divinity School, where he invited listeners to reconsider theology not as an abstract discipline but as something born out of suffering, struggle and story.
The event, hosted by the Wendland-Cook Program in Religion and Justice, was introduced by program founder Joerg Rieger, Distinguished Professor of Theology at Vanderbilt University, who framed the gathering as more than a historical reflection on Korean Minjung theology.
“This gathering is about a specific form of theology that in Korea was called Minjung theology,” Rieger said. “But what we want to know is, what can we learn from that today?”
Emerging in the 1970s in South Korea, Minjung theology is a liberation theology focused on the struggles of the marginalized and oppressed, emphasizing social justice and the experiences of the “minjung” (the people). Proponents believe that the context of Korea is similar in many ways to the stories found in the Bible, and that God is demonstrably on the side of the poor and oppressed.
Rieger emphasized that while Minjung theology emerged in a particular historical context, its questions remain urgent.
“We all face our own struggles today,” he said. “So we ask: What does this mean in the face of autocratic systems? What does it mean for liberation? And most importantly, how is religion part of liberation?”
He added a critical tension that shaped the entire conversation: “Religion is part of the problem, but it is also part of the solution.”
For Kwon, Minjung theology is not merely an academic construct but a lived reality shaped by South Korea’s turbulent modern history.
As a university student in the 1970s, he was imprisoned for his involvement in pro-democracy movements during a time of authoritarian rule. That experience profoundly shaped his theological journey.
Rather than beginning in the classroom, his theology emerged from the margins — among those suffering under political oppression and economic exploitation.
“Theology begins in the lives of suffering people,” Kwon said.
It was in that context that he encountered pioneering Minjung theologians such as Ahn Byung-mu and Suh Nam-dong, whose work connected Christian faith with the lived experiences of the oppressed.
Minjung theology, Kwon explained, was not only a theology of the poor; it was also an act of repentance by intellectuals who chose solidarity over privilege.
At the heart of Minjung theology lies a bold claim: “The people are the subjects of history.”
But Kwon challenged his audience to move beyond repeating that claim and instead ask a deeper question: “How do the people become subjects of history?”
The question is especially pressing today, he said, as the historical conditions that gave rise to Minjung theology have changed. Though South Korea is no longer a developing country under dictatorship, there is still division, inequality and new forms of injustice.
Early Minjung theology centered on the concept of han — a deeply rooted sense of accumulated suffering, injustice and unresolved grief.
Theologians once believed that han could generate revolutionary energy capable of transforming society, but Kwon offered a critical reassessment: While han remains an important cultural concept, it is no longer sufficient to explain how transformation happens.
“Contradiction alone does not produce change,” he said.
Instead, Kwon pointed to structural contradictions — what he described as “holes” or cracks within the system.
These cracks appear in injustices like migrant labor exploitation, environmental destruction, gender inequality and economic disparity.
Such contradictions cannot be fully resolved by the system itself. Rather, they expose its limits.
“These are spaces of kairos,” Kwon said, moments when transformation becomes possible.
Yet even these contradictions do not automatically lead to change.
He argued that transformation begins with a “cry” of pain and injustice.
But a cry alone is not enough.
“When the cry becomes a story,” he said, “it can be heard, shared and joined by others.”
Stories turn individual suffering into collective awareness.
During South Korea’s democratization movements of the 1970s and 1980s, such stories spread through literature, music, art and film, becoming powerful tools of resistance.
Building on the work of Suh Nam-dong, Kwon described story as “the language of the body, but he pushed the concept further, drawing on psychoanalytic thought to suggest that stories function as “symptoms.”
Stories, he said, carry the embodied pain of Minjung: “They reveal what the system tries to hide.”
In this sense, stories are not merely expressions; they are disruptive forces.
“Story destabilizes the system,” Kwon said.
Good stories, he added, do more than inform. They evoke empathy, build solidarity and awaken collective agency.
Kwon also cautioned against romanticizing “Minjung.” He said Minjung are not a unified or purely virtuous group.
In South Korea, deep divisions persist between progressive movements and those aligned with existing systems of power.
“The people are divided, conflicted and sometimes complicit,” he said.
For that reason, Kwon emphasized the concept of “subject” rather than an idealized notion of “the people.”
Although Minjung theology emerged in Korea, Kwon argued that its relevance is now global, as stories of inequality and marginalization resonate across national boundaries.
“Minjung is no longer just a Korean concept,” he said. “It refers to all those marginalized within global systems.”
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The lecture culminated in a theological question: Was Jesus Minjung?
Kwon’s answer was both nuanced and provocative. He said that Jesus may not have belonged to the lowest social class, but he was born among the people, lived with them and ultimately became their leader.
“The story of Jesus is a Minjung story,” he said, one that has become global and enduring.
The lecture was followed by responses from doctoral students Daniel Cho and Taeha An, who extended and deepened the discussion.
Cho emphasized the need to situate Minjung theology within global systems of power.
“We must ask not only what hurts,” he said, “but what causes the hurt.”
He pointed to the interconnected nature of global capitalism, suggesting that Minjung theology must now address systemic forces operating beyond national boundaries.
An focused on the role of story itself, raising critical questions about voice and interpretation: “Who tells the story?”
Her question highlighted a key tension: Are the stories of the people told by the people themselves or mediated by intellectuals?
An also challenged the assumption that all stories are inherently liberating.
“What makes a story transformative?” she asked. “And what stories might reinforce division instead of solidarity?”
Together, the lecture and responses returned to Rieger’s opening question: Is religion part of the problem, or part of the solution?
Kwon’s lecture suggested that religion becomes a force for liberation when it listens to, interprets and amplifies the stories of the people.
His work continues to ask a pressing question: Whose stories are we listening to, and whose stories remain unheard?
God’s work, he suggested, continues in those untold stories.
“There are still many stories left,” Kwon said, “and they have the power to transform the world.”
Kim is director of Korean and Asian news at United Methodist Communications. Contact him at 615-742-5470 or [email protected]. To read more United Methodist news, subscribe to the free UM News Digest.
