Pyongyang Theological Seminary

Pyongyang Theological Seminary
Former names	Pyongyang Chosun Jesus Presbyterian Seminary
Type	Seminary
Established	1901
Affiliation	Korean Christian Federation (KCF)
Location	Pyongyang, North Korea
	(1995)

The Pyongyang Theological Seminary (also known the Pyongyang Theological Academy,[1] but commonly known simply as the Pyongyang Seminary[2]) is a Protestant theological seminary in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea. It is run by the government-controlled Korean Christian Federation (KCF) and trains pastors and evangelists for it.

Founded in 1901 as the Pyongyang Chosun Jesus Presbyterian Seminary, the seminary has historically been associated with Presbyterianism. It became the center of Korean Christianity of the early 20th century. By 1916 its founder Samuel Austin Moffett was in disagreement over practical matters with another teacher, James Scarth Gale. The row developed into a schism on doctrinal matters and in 1959 the seminary split into the conservative Chongshin University and the liberal Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary.

In 1938, during the Japanese occupation of Korea, the seminary had been temporarily closed down after students defied orders to bow to Shinto shrines. After the division of Korea, the seminary was relocated to Seoul in South Korea and renamed the Presbyterian Theological Seminary.

The Pyongyang-based seminary resumed operations in 1972 after having been assumed by the KCF. When its funds ran out in 1995, the Korean Methodist Church (KMC) of South Korea assumed a share of its financial responsibilities.

History

Presbyterian roots

Originally called the Pyongyang Chosun Jesus Presbyterian Seminary,[2] it was founded in 1901 by Samuel Austin Moffett,[3] the father of Samuel H. Moffett.[4] Samuel Austin was motivated to found the seminary in Pyongyang because the city had been badly damaged in the First Sino-Japanese War.[5] Initially, the seminary would consist of two years of preparatory courses and the actual seminary lasting three years.[2] In the beginning, Samuel Austin taught his students at home.[4] He was its first president until 1918 and a faculty member until 1935.[2][4] The Seminary was the center of Korean Christianity of the early 20th century.[6]

In 1905 the seminary became affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in the United States.[3][7] The first class graduated in 1907.[8] A building was constructed in 1909 and renewed in 1922.[9] By 1916 Moffett was in disagreement with a teacher at the school, James Scarth Gale. Their differences concerning the quality of teaching, materials, and admission would develop into a schism between conservatives and liberals.[10] Initially, the seminary remained conservative and mission-oriented.[11]

The seminary was temporarily closed in 1938 following the Japanese occupation of Korea. The Japanese occupiers demanded that students of the seminary would bow to Shinto shrines, something that they could not agree to.[2] Until 1940, the seminary had been the only seminary in Korea maintained by the Presbyterian Church.[12] After the division of Korea, the seminary was relocated to Seoul in South Korea in 1948 and renamed the Presbyterian Theological Seminary.[2]

In 1959 the seminary finally split due to the doctrinal differences into the conservative Chongshin University and the more moderate Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary.[3][13]

Under government control

In 1972, the seminary was reopened and assumed by the government-controlled Protestant body Korean Christian Federation (KCF).[14][15] The seminary operated under KCF until 1995 when it ran out of funds. In April 1999, the Korean Methodist Church (KMC) of South Korea offered to fund the seminary to secure the continuation of its operation. KMC bid $600,000 to provide funding for three years.[15] It reopened in 2000,[1] and a new building was completed in 2003.[16]

Operation

The Seminary is run by the KCF,[17] which chooses its students and devises its curriculum. KMC, however, is consulted each semester. The seminary is located in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea.[15]

The seminary trains pastors and evangelists for the KCF.[1][16] Before 1995, the seminary had produced some 60 graduates.[15]

Attendees

Yi Seung-hoon[18]
Hahn Sang-dong (1933-1936)[19]
Bang Ji-il[20]
Yoo Jae-kee (1932)[21]
Kil Sun-joo[8]
Chu Ki-chol[22]
Kang Ryang-uk, president of KCF[15]
Kang Yong-sop, president of KCF[15]
Park Yun-sun (1934)[23]
Song Yang-wong (1938)[23]

Professors

Samuel Austin Moffett
William Davis Reynolds[24]
Horace Grant Underwood
Hyuk Namkung, first Korean Doctor of Divinity[6] and first Korean professor at the seminary.[25]
Park Hyng-nong, became the second Korean professor at the seminary[25] (systematic theology) in 1931[26]

References

"Democratic People's Republic of Korea". 2012 Report on International Religious Freedom. U.S. Department of State. 20 May 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
McCord, Stephen K. (2015). "Chongshin University". In Kurian, George Thomas; Lamport, Mark A. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Christian Education. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 237–238. ISBN 978-0-8108-8493-9.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Chongshin University". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. pp. 104–105. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Moffett, Samuel Austin (1864-1939)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 311. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Corfield, Justin (2014). "Moffett, Samuel Austin (1864-1939)". Historical Dictionary of Pyongyang. London: Anthem Press. p. 140. ISBN 978-1-78308-341-1.
Hallmark, Kara Kelley (2007). "Joshel Namkung (1919-), photography (Korea)". Encyclopedia of Asian American Artists: Artists of the American Mosaic. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 139. ISBN 978-0-313-33451-1.
Kim, Sebastian C. H.; Kollontai, Pauline; Hoyland, Greg (2008). Peace and Reconciliation: In Search of Shared Identity. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 153. ISBN 978-0-7546-6461-1.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Kil, Sun-joo (1869-1935)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 245. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
"Pyongyang: Pyongyang Theological seminary". Smithsonian Learning Lab. Mowry Family Photographs of Korea. Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Gift of Miriam Stein. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
Cho 2010, p. 147.
Sunoo, Harold Hakwon (1976). Repressive State and Resisting Church: The Politics of CIA in South Korea. Korean American Cultural Association, CMC. p. 41.
Koreana Quarterly. International Research Centre. 1961. p. 123.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Presbyterian College and Theological Seminary". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 307. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Religious and Theological Abstracts. Religious and Theological Abstracts. 2004.
"North Korea's only seminary will be reopened with help from the South". Union of Catholic Asian News. 29 May 2000. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
"Democratic People's Republic of Korea". 2006 Report on International Religious Freedom. U.S. Department of State. 2006. Retrieved 14 August 2017.
Do, Kyung-ok; Kim, Soon-am; Han, Dong-ho; Lee, Keum-soon; Hong, Min (2015). White Paper on Human Rights in North Korea 2015 (PDF). Seoul: Korea Institute for National Unification. p. 221. ISBN 978-89-8479-802-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 February 2018. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Lee (Yi), Seung-hoon (1864-1930)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 262. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Hahn Sang-dong (1901-1976)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 200. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Corfield, Justin (2014). "Bang Ji Il (1991- )". Historical Dictionary of Pyongyang. London: Anthem Press. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-78308-341-1.
Benedetto, Robert; Guder, Darrell L.; McKim, Donald K. (1999). "Yoo, Jae-kee (1907-1949)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches. Vol. Lanham (1st ed.). Scarecrow Press. p. 355. ISBN 978-0-8108-6629-4.
Benedetto, Robert; McKim, Donald K. (2009). "Chu, Ki-chol (1897-1944)". Historical Dictionary of the Reformed Churches (2nd ed.). Lanham: Scarecrow Press. p. 107. ISBN 978-0-8108-7023-9.
Cho 2010, p. 149.
레이놀즈(한국명:이눌서, 李訥瑞, William David Reynolds, 1867.12.11~1951) 선교사. kcm.kr (in Korean). 16 May 2008. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
Chu, Weon Yeol (2006). The Confucian Roots of Fundamentalist Ethos in the Korean Presbyterian Church. Edwin Mellen Press. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-7734-5738-6.
Shim, Jay J. (2011). "The Doctrine of Scripture in the Calvinist Churches in Korea". In Burnett, Amy Nelson (ed.). John Calvin, Myth and Reality: Images and Impact of Geneva's Reformer. Papers of the 2009 Calvin Studies Society Colloquium. Eugene: Cascade Books. p. 210. ISBN 978-1-62189-197-0.

Works cited

Cho, Paul Hang-Sik (2010). Eschatology and Ecology: Experiences of the Korean Church. Oxford: Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. ISBN 978-1-870345-75-0.