Page 59 - A Dissertation for Doctor of Philosophy

Lastly, it promotes “privatism” so that the Korean church indulges in the individual

dimension of the Gospel and consequently looses the prophetic function for the society. The loss

of prophetic voice to the society causes the loss of the intellectuals in the Church. 124

Pragmatic Life-Situational Preaching

When the Gospel was first preached in Korea, the Koreans were facing many political,

spiritual, and economic difficulties. The traditional religions like Buddhism, Confucianism, and

Shamanism did not provide a solution to their enormous problems. To a new Western religion,

Christianity, they expected answers to their problems and uncertainty. Throughout modern

history, the Gospel has provided not only a future hope but also the power to see God’s people

through difficult times. Against this historical background, pragmatic life-situational preaching

developed.

Such preaching, however, did not prevail until the 1970s when the Church Growth

movement influenced the Korean Church. Robert Schuller became one of the most popular

preachers to Korea preachers. 125 His theory of “shopping centers” for successful retailing was

applied to his ministry and preaching. 126 The function of preaching became understood to serve

124
Young Kim, “Biblical Interpretation and Formal Analysis,” 23-24. Arthur Seters
criticizes conservative fundamentalistic preaching since it makes little attempt to analyze the
world in terms of its social structure, encourages a withdrawal into privatism, lacks a sense of the
common good, and fails to recognize the importance of tradition and history. Arthur Van Seters,
ed., Preaching as a Social Act: Theology & Practice (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1988), 19.

125
Boo Woong Yoo, “Biblical Preaching and its Application to the Pulpit of the Korean
Church” (D. Min. proj., Fuller Theological Seminary, 1984), 102.

126 Robert H. Schuller, Your Church Has Real Possibilities (Glendale, CA: A Division of
G/L Publications, 1974), 19-29.