Category: Asia

After 400 years of Kingly rule, shut off from the outside world, Korea was pried open by western imperialists in the 19th century. As soon as the doors were cracked Christian missionaries entered with the zeal of Middle Age crusaders. Their goal was to save as many souls as possible from the uncivilized waste of heathenism. By the 1890s Protestantism was experiencing explosive growth. While there must be numerous explanations for why trading indigenous beliefs for a belief in a savior and everlasting life after death, it is not the point of the book.