Those who choose a religion in Korea do not concentrate on one specific religion but tend to choose from among various religions. The religion with the highest social trust would monopolize new members, but this does not happen. Although the situation has changed recently, Catholicism always ranked first among Korean religions in social trust (the most trustworthy religion in Korean society) until 10 years ago. There was always a large gap with second place. At this time, although Catholicism was not a monopoly, it gained more believers than other competing religions.
According to a recent survey, Catholicism has been ranked second in social trust, behind Buddhism, for several years. Although it is a small difference, it feels like a world away from 10 years ago. However, Catholicism still surpasses Buddhism in the number of converts. Protestantism has always had the lowest credibility among the three major religions but has gained the most believers. So why does this happen
There are over 250 religions in Korea. Among these, Protestantism, Buddhism, and Catholicism account for 98% of the total religious population. In terms of religious affiliation, the order is Protestantism, Buddhism, and Catholicism. This Protestant supremacy has never changed since 1907. However, the fact that Buddhists outnumber Catholics has become unclear, at least after the 2015 population census. Before that, there was no need to doubt this as many surveys showed that Buddhist believers were greater than Protestants and Catholics combined. However, since 2015, the proportion of Buddhist believers has fallen to less than half of the religious population.
In any case, Koreans choose and join different religions regardless of the results of the ‘popularity vote’ (social trust survey). This trend has not changed at least since the religious survey was conducted. Therefore, researchers like us see this as a result of the preferences of converts. Of course, when choosing a religion, those wishing to join are influenced by the results of the popular vote, but most follow their own preferences.
Over the 1,700 years of Buddhism, 240 years of Catholicism, and 140 years of Protestantism, each religion has interacted with Koreans and formed its own unique image. Of course, the doctrine had a great influence here. In particular, it greatly influenced the external appearance of buildings, worship styles, clothing, and the behavior of believers. Relationships with state power and social behavior patterns also influenced non-believers in forming images of the religion. All of these factors combined to create social trust (and image) in the religion. This difference is clearly evident in the reasons why converts chose the religion in question.
Looking at the survey results corresponding to these reasons, it is clear that Koreans have a taste for religion. People who prefer Buddhism dislike Protestantism, and people who prefer Protestantism dislike both Buddhism and Catholicism. Relatively speaking, one dislikes Buddhism more than Catholicism. People who choose Buddhism have an affinity with Catholicism. Conversely, people who choose Catholicism prefer Buddhism over Protestantism. These clear tastes of Koreans have prevented the monopoly of certain religions.
People who like Buddhism cite openness as the reason for choosing Buddhism. Regardless of affiliation, 'it doesn’t matter if you believe in it with your heart, and it’s good not to say that other religions are wrong'. However, perhaps because of a weak sense of belonging, the number of believers fluctuates wildly every time\ surveys are conducted. People who choose Protestantism say: ‘I like the bright and cheerful atmosphere.’ I also prefer a tight believer management method. At least on the outside, it seems that an atmosphere that welcomes new believers is helpful to beginners. Those who prefer Catholicism highly value the solemn and holy atmosphere and active service to the Great Society. In particular, those who prefer Catholicism tend to view the lightness of Protestantism as frivolous. Even when these people leave Catholicism, they rarely switch to Protestantism. So, it seems that this difference in taste is one of the main criteria for choosing a religion.
In one of the writer's previous studies, he shows how Catholicism is becoming a family religion,. he based this claim on the fact that more than half of new believers come from families. Of course, in terms of the rate of family transmission of faith, Protestantism is by far the best among Korean religions.
This is the secret to why Protestant churches always come first in terms of the number of converts, even if they come in last in the popularity polls. This phenomenon continued even when the popularity of Protestantism hit rock bottom. Protestantism was once the religion of the family. So, despite the worst social reputation, the number of believers continued to increase. Of course, Protestant believers' missionary zeal and the reality of mass production of pastors even during a period of decline in the religious population also had an impact.
This is also the secret behind why Buddhism ranks first in popularity polls but ranks last in the number of converts. Buddhism has the lowest rate of family transmission of faith among the three major religions. Since believers do not recommend their children to join them in belief there is no way they would recommend it to anyone else. Therefore, if the current trend of increasing the rate of family transmission of faith continues, Buddhism will be the first to decline. If we assume this, Protestantism will be the religion that continues to grow.
When one religion holds a monopoly position in a society, discrimination against minority religions occurs. In these societies, religion is often a threat to peace. In reality, most societies that experience religious conflict are places where there is a serious imbalance in religious affiliation. Peace can be broken even when small or medium-sized religious sects compete with each other. The most severe case is when there are multiple monotheistic religions within one society. In this case, if there is a large difference in religious affiliation between sects, conflict almost without exception arises.
In light of these general cases, Korea is a rare case in the world where various religions coexist and peace is maintained on the surface. I believe this primarily comes from the pluralistic nature of Koreans. Next is the religious population ratio. The current structure in which the religious population ratio is less than half of the population and no particular religion forms a dominant majority among the religious population is also seen as a factor suppressing religious conflict. If this is true, the Korean characteristics of free movement between religions and religious preferences not being biased towards one side serve as a background for maintaining religious peace.
