Protestantism in Korea:from Banning Christianity to the Largest Megachurch in the World

This article examines Protestantism in Korea and the role of Protestantism in public life. The reasons for the success of Christian mission are analyzed, as well as peculiarities of Korean Protestantism in the international Christian movement. The development of Protestantism is shown as a holistic phenomenon in relationship with Catholicism and Buddhism. In addition to domestic and foreign historiography, official sources of statistical information are used. The activities of Protestant missionary organizations, the country's religious policy and the involvement of Protestant organizations in political activity are studied. Mega-churches and their role in Korean Protestantism have also been studied. The study revealed that the main reason for the strong expansion of Protestantism in the postwar period was due to both U.S. influence in postwar Korea and the «anti-superstition» policy. After independence, the majority practised folk religions and the state encouraged their conversion to Christianity or Buddhism. Today, Protestants constitute 20 percent of Korea's population, Buddhists 16 percent, and Catholics 8 percent. Mega-churches have become widespread; the Yoido Full Gospel Church is the largest church in the world, attended by half a million people. A peculiarity of Korea is the large number of missions sent abroad – the country is second only to the United States in the number of Protestant missionaries. It is concluded that Christianity will remain the most numerous religion in the country. At the same time, the influence of religious systems will diminish and individual religiosity will come first.