순교자 김영학 목사의 생애와 신앙 연구 = A Study on the Life and Faith of the Martyr Rev. Kim Yeong Hak

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

1. Purpose and Necessity of the Study
This study aims to reexamine the life and faith of Rev. Kim Yeong Hak (1877–1933), who embodied the spirit of the Gospel as a“Good Shepherd” and was also a committed independence activist during the Japanese colonial period. He was the first overseas missionary sent to Siberia by the Korean Methodist Church, where he was ultimately martyred. Despite being a significant figure in the Korean Methodist Church, Rev. Kim’s specific independence activities—particularly his involvement in the March First Independence Movement in the Yangyang rigion and in the Korean Independence Patriotic Corps (Daehan Doknip Aeguk-dan)—have not been properly evaluated due to errors and omissions in local historical records, especially the Gazetteer of Yangyang County. Furthermore, considerable scholarly confusion remains regarding the nature of the persecution he endured under the Communist (Soviet) regime during his missionary work in Siberia, as well as the exact location and circumstances of his martyrdom. Accordingly, this study empirically verifies Rev. Kim’s independence activities, his missionary work in Siberia, and the reality of his martyrdom through an analysis of newly uncovered sources, including the materials from the State Archive of Primorsky Krai, the handwritten memoirs of his wife An Won-jeong, his prison letters, and findings from field research. Through this analysis, the study seeks to restore the forgotten legacy of this martyr’s faith within the history of the Korean Church—particularly the Methodist Church—and to contribute to its faithful transmission.
2. Despair and Calling: Early Life and Conversion
Kim Yeong Hak was born in 1877 into a wealthy yangban(noble) family in Geumcheon-gun, Hwanghae-do, where he received a traditional education in the Confucian classics. Amid the collapse of the feudal order and the loss of national sovereignty brought about by foreign encroachment during the late Joseon Dynasty, he spent his youth in deep despair and led a dissipated life. In 1906, however, he encountered the Christian Gospel through contact with an evangelistic team at Tosan Market and experienced a profound conversion. After receiving baptism and undergoing spiritual regeneration in 1907, he discovered new hope within the Christian faith—as a means of national renewal and of transcending the anguish of a ruined country. Following his service as a colporteur and evangelist, he was ordained as a pastor in 1914. Kim subsequently developed into a patriotic pastor who sought not merely to preach the Gospel, but to educate believers to“believe rightly in the Lord and embody patriotism in their daily lives.” His interactions with national leaders during his studies at the Methodist Theological Seminary (Hyeopseong), together with his extensive field experience, formed the basis for what may be described as a socially participatory ethnic faith.
3. Ministry in Yangyang and the Independence Movement
This study corrects longstanding errors in the local historiography of the Yangyang region and demonstrates that Rev. Kim Yeong Hak served as the principal leader of the March First Independence Movement in the area. Leadership of the Yangyang March First Independence Movement: After his appointment as superintendent of the Yangyang district in 1918, Rev. Kim actively instilled patriotic faith among local youth. During the March First Independence Movement of 1919, although the demonstrations in Yangyang formally involved both Confucian and Christian groups, the actual planning, mobilization, and execution of the protests were led by youths of the Yangyang Methodist Church—including Kim Pil-seon and Kim Jae-gwi—and other church members under Rev. Kim’s guidance. Contemporary Japanese reports corroborate this leadership by describing the demonstrators as “hundreds of people centered on Jesus-believers.” Rev. Kim was arrested on April 4, 1919, while directing the protests on site, and subsequently served six months in prison. Organization of the Yangyang Corps of the Korean Independence Patriotic Corps: Immediately following his release in October 1919, Rev. Kim collaborated with Gangwon-do provincial leader Cho Jong-dae to organize a secret association known as the Yangyang Corps of the Korean Independence Patriotic Corps (Daehan Doknip Aeguk-dan), serving as its corps commander. He engaged in fundraising to support the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai and facilitated the dispatch of young people to the Independence Army. In 1920, he was again arrested in connection with the so-called Chulwon Patriotic Corps Incident, sentenced to one year and six months’ imprisonment, and incarcerated at Seodaemun Prison. These facts demonstrate that Rev. Kim was not a peripheral supporter, but rather a central leader of the independence movement in the Yeongdong region of Gangwon-do.
4. Siberian Mission and Communist Persecution
After his release in April 1922, Rev. Kim volunteered at the SouthernMethodist Annual Conference in September to serve as a missionary to Siberia —a post that no one else was willing to assume. This decision arose from a pastoral conviction that missionary work and the independence movement were inseparable, and from a desire to care for suffering Korean compatriots abroad. Upon his appointment to the Sinhanchon Church in Vladivostok, he encountered systematic religious oppression under the Soviet Communist regime. Confiscation of Church Property and the Mechanisms of Persecution: Archival materials from the State Archive of Primorsky Krai (1923–1929), analyzed here for the first time, reveal the regime’s meticulous process of persecution. Soviet authorities confiscated church land and buildings in 1923 and coerced congregations into rental contracts imposing exorbitant fees. They repeatedly inventoried and monitored church property, while organizations such as the Revolutionary Communist Youth League harassed congregations through unauthorized occupation and disruption of church facilities. Deprivation of Religious Freedom: Within the rationing system, pastors and believers were deprived of food ration coupons—effectively denying them the means of survival—subjected to excessive taxation, and prevented from conducting missionary activities through restrictive worship permit requirements. The regime also attempted to coerce pastors into spying on one another. Rev. Kim firmly rejected such efforts. His outspoken defense of theism against Communist Party members during a public debate in 1924 further intensified state hostility toward him.
5. Suffering, Resistance, and Martyrdom
Around 1929, as threats to personal safety reached a critical level, the Methodist Mission Board ordered missionaries to withdraw. While fellow pastors and many believers fled to Manchuria, Rev. Kim chose to remain, declaring that he “could not leave as long as a single saint remained.” Arrest and Exile: On January 2, 1930, Rev. Kim was arrested by the GPU (State Political Directorate) on fabricated charges of being a“vicious reactionary,” allegedly a Japanese spy and counter-revolutionary. He was detained in Vladivostok Prison for over a year without trial and subjected to intense pressure to apostatize, which he steadfastly resisted. In 1931, he was sentenced to ten years of hard labor and transferred to a Gulag in the Kolyma region of northeastern Siberia. Clarification of the Location and Circumstances of Martyrdom: Considerable confusion has long surrounded the place and cause of Rev. Kim’s death, with theories ranging from freezing, drowning, to death in prison. Through field investigation and textual verification, this study clarifies that Na-kang, cited in the 1933 obituary written by Do In-kwon, refers to present-day Magadan. The reported cause of death, nong-gareum, is identified as a natural phenomenon describing a fissure that forms between sheets of sea ice under extreme cold. Rev. Kim was forcibly mobilized for snow removal and ice-clearing labor—work necessary to maintain transport routes for supplies and prisoners during the early construction of the Magadan port. He fell into such an ice fissure and died in January 1933 (lunar December 1932). This was not a mere accident, but a death directly resulting from his refusal to renounce his faith and his deliberate decision to remain amid persecution—thus constituting genuine martyrdom.
6. Conclusion and Implications
The life of Rev. Kim Yeong Hak represents a profound journey: overcoming the despair of the late Joseon period through Christian faith, devoting himself to national salvation and independence under Japanese colonial rule, and ultimately sacrificing his life to preserve the integrity of faith under Communist persecution in Siberia. Historical Restoration: By empirically establishing Rev. Kim’s leading role in both the March First Independence Movement and the Korean Independence Patriotic Corps, this study calls for corrections to local historical records, including the Gazette of Yangyang County, as well as to commemorative practices. Confirmation of Martyrdom: By clarifying both the location (Magadan) and circumstances (death in a nong-gareum during forced labor) of his martyrdom, this study rectifies long-standing historical inaccuracies. Denominational and National Significance: The reinstatement of Rev. Kim Yeong Hak’s martyrdom in the Doctrines and Discipline after a thirty-year absence, ratified by the 2025 Methodist Legislative Assembly, marks a realization of historical justice. Furthermore, his posthumous award of the Patriotic Medal of the Order of Merit for National Foundation by the Republic of Korea in 1990 confirms his national significance. At a time when the Korean Church faces declining public trust due to materialism and ideological excess, the spirituality of suffering participation and martyr faith exemplified by Rev. Kim offer essential values that must be recovered. His death is not merely a historical episode, but a compelling witness that challenges contemporary Christians to reconsider the meaning of authentic discipleship.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Ⅰ. 서 론 1
• A. 연구 목적 1
• B. 연구 방법론 4
• C. 선행 연구 6
• Ⅱ. 절망과 소명(召命) 9
• A. 시대 상황에서 오는 절망 9
• B. 복음수용과 소명(召命) 12
• C. 목회자로의 여정 15
• Ⅲ. 양양의 시대적 상황 24
• A. 보수적 성향의 유림 24
• B. 기독교 전래와 복음의 확장 26
• C. 신학문 유입(현산학교) 31
• Ⅳ. 기독교 민족주의와 독립운동 35
• A. 기독교 민족의식의 형성 과정 35
• 1. 신앙과 민족운동의 결합 35
• 2. 사회 참여적 신앙 38
• 3. 민족주의 인사들과의 교류 46
• B. 양양의 만세운동 48
• 1. 선언서 입수와 만세운동 계획 48
• 2. 만세운동의 전개 과정 56
• C. 대한독립애국단(大韓獨立愛國團) 65
• 1. 강원도단(江原道團) 66
• 2. 양양군단(襄陽郡團) 69
• Ⅴ. 시베리아 선교사 75
• A. 한인 이주 시기와 동기 75
• B. 남감리교회의 시베리아 선교 78
• C. 선교사 자원과 선교 활동 83
• 1. 선교사로의 자원 83
• 2. 시베리아 선교활동 87
• 3. 한인 선교사업 93
• Ⅵ. 고난과 저항 97
• A. 소비에트 공산주의의 박해· 97
• 1. 교회 재산 몰수 97
• 2. 교회인사 박해 104
• 3. 배급제 실행과 여권 미발행과 예배의 자유 박해108
• 4. 한인 사회의 붕괴 112
• 5. 거듭되는 흉년 116
• B. 저항과 선교지 철수 117
• 1. 저항(抵抗) 117
• 2. 선교지(宣敎地) 철수132
• C. 순교자(殉敎者)의 길 136
• 1. 체포 구금과 가족의 고난 136
• 2. 러시아 탈출과 옥중서신(獄中書信)142
• 3. 순교(殉敎)의 길148
• Ⅶ. 결론 187
• 참고문헌 194
• 부 록 202
• ABSTRACT219