Christianity between South Korea and Japan Essay

Christianity between South Korea and Japan - Essay Example Japan has a long history of Christianity. The first Europeans from Portugal landed on Kyushu, Western Japan in the year 1542 bringing with them the two historically most important things namely gunpowder and Christianity.Japan has continually rejected Christianity throughout her history. She continues to see Christianity as not only something foreign, but also, as having Western influence. This is especially so because many churches have Western architecture and decor. The hymns sung, and the styles of worship are predominantly Western. Unlike in Japan, the practice of Christianity in Korea has a relatively short history. Catholic missionaries were the first to arrive in Korea in 1784, followed by the American Presbyterians and Methodists Protestant missionaries in 1884. The missionaries used invaluable evangelistic tools during the first two decades of their arrival. Christians constitute approximately 25 percent of South Korea’s total population. Many observers agree that the dynamism of Korean Christianity is an outgrowth of the peninsula's unique history as well as the early role of indigenous leadership. In as far as Christianity is concerned, it is evident that Japan lags far much behind compared to South Korea. From the coming of the missionaries up to date, South Koreans have passionately embraced the faith whereas Japanese seem contented in their traditional religions.