Dong-Hak’s Theism and Its Cosmopolitan Spirituality

This paper examines the moral implications of the theism and spirituality of Dong-Hak, a religious and social movement that has deeply influenced the modern history of Korea. In this paper, I will discuss Dong-Hak’s possible contribution to the issue of global ethics. How can we address various problems, which have been caused by the market globalization and its neo-liberal ideology, and foster the hope of overcoming the current global crises with an appropriate ethic? With this question in mind, this work presupposes that a religious standpoint is related to the mode and scope of ethical acts, observes that many religious and non-religious answers fail to respond to the global predicaments, and proposes that the ideas of Dong-Hak offer alternative religious suggestions for addressing global moral problems.