Kosuke Koyama
Encyclopedia
was a Japan
ese, Protestant Christian theologian. Koyama was born in Tokyo
in 1929, of Christian parents (Cohn-Sherbok, 1998). He later moved to New Jersey
in the United States
, where he completed his B.D. at Drew Theological Seminary and his Ph.D.
, on the interpretation of the Psalms
of Martin Luther
, at Princeton Theological Seminary
, completing his Ph.D. in 1959. After teaching at a theological seminary in Thailand
, he was the executive director of Association of Theological Schools in Southeast Asia with his office in Singapore from 1968 to 1974, and the editor of Southeast Asia Journal of Theology, and the Dean of Southeast Asia Graduate School of Theology. After that he worked as Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Otago
in Dunedin
in New Zealand
, from 1974 to 1979. He later worked at the Union Theological Seminary
in New York
, where he stayed until his retirement in 1996 as John D. Rockefeller Jr. Professor Emeritus of World Christianity. To his close friends and family, he was known as "Ko". Along with Kazoh Kitamori
, he is considered one of the leading Japanese theologians of the twentieth century.
In works such as Waterbuffalo Theology and Three Mile an Hour God, he defended a theology that he considered to be accessible to the peasantry in developing nations, rather than an overly academic systematic theology. One of his most well-known books, "Waterbuffalo Theology", was described as "ecological theology, liberation theology
and contribution to Christian-Buddhist dialogue". In No Handle on the Cross: An Asian Mediation on the Crucified Mind (1976), Koyama explained how the cross can be considered the symbol of Christian suffering, and began the book with a chapter entitled "The Cross and the Lunchbox". Koyama explained, in the preface to this book, which he wrote in Tokyo
at Christmas
1975, how he did Christian missionary work in Thailand
from 1960 to 1968, and how his experiences in Thailand rekindled interest in Asian religion in him (Koyama, 1976). He also explained in the preface how the book grew out of the Earl Lectures
which he delivered at the Pacific School of Religion
in California
. Koyama also spoke at a conference in Edinburgh
in 1985, in which he described God
as "a hot God", suggesting a certain dynamic quality to the attributes of God.
In his book "No Handle on the Cross" he reflected on his interest in the relationship between history
and theology
, and also pointed out the imperial nature of Indo-European languages among those speakers of languages such as Sinhalese or Japanese
. He also told, in this book, of an incident which happened to him in Singapore
, where he met a Buddhist monk from Sri Lanka
. He told the monk about crusades for Jesus Christ and the monk looked puzzled. "Why do you need to crusade?" asked the monk. The monk indicated that if one felt a need to crusade, then one was not a true disciple. Instead, the monk championed, true to his Buddhist beliefs, the virtue of self-denial
.
"Water Buffalo Theology" is probably Koyama's best-known work. The book was partly inspired by Koyama's work as a missionary in Northern Thailand.
His other works include Mount Sinai and Mount Fuji. Waterbuffalo Theology is, in part, an examination of Christian theology within the context of Thai Buddhist society, growing out of Koyama's missionary experience in Thailand
. Koyama was an editor of the South East Asia Journal of Theology, for which he himself wrote a considerable number of articles. Koyama published at least thirteen books, including "On Christian Life" (currently available only in Japanese) and over one hundred scholarly articles. Koyama's work has been described as helping to bridge the boundaries between East and West, between Christianity and Buddhist thought, between the rich and the poor. It has been pointed out that he has no over-arching system in this theology, which shows commitment to serving a "broken Christ trying to heal a broken world". He was named as an important figure for the development of a global Christianity
(Cohn-Sherbok, 1998).
Koyama died at a hospital in Springfield
, Massachusetts
, of pneumonia
complicated by oesophagal cancer
, on March 25, 2009. His wife Lois passed away April 13,2011. He is survived two sons, a daughter, and five grandchildren. (Source: New York Times online, accessed September 7, 2010). His last work was "Theology and Violence: Towards A Theology of Nonviolent Love", published in Japanese in 2009 by Kyobunkwan, a publishing firm in Tokyo (Source: www.pres-outlook.com/news-and-analysis/1/8640.html, accessed April 2009).
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese, Protestant Christian theologian. Koyama was born in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
in 1929, of Christian parents (Cohn-Sherbok, 1998). He later moved to New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where he completed his B.D. at Drew Theological Seminary and his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
, on the interpretation of the Psalms
Psalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
of Martin Luther
Martin Luther
Martin Luther was a German priest, professor of theology and iconic figure of the Protestant Reformation. He strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money. He confronted indulgence salesman Johann Tetzel with his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517...
, at Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
, completing his Ph.D. in 1959. After teaching at a theological seminary in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, he was the executive director of Association of Theological Schools in Southeast Asia with his office in Singapore from 1968 to 1974, and the editor of Southeast Asia Journal of Theology, and the Dean of Southeast Asia Graduate School of Theology. After that he worked as Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
in Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, from 1974 to 1979. He later worked at the Union Theological Seminary
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York
Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York is a preeminent independent graduate school of theology, located in Manhattan between Claremont Avenue and Broadway, 120th to 122nd Streets. The seminary was founded in 1836 under the Presbyterian Church, and is affiliated with nearby Columbia...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, where he stayed until his retirement in 1996 as John D. Rockefeller Jr. Professor Emeritus of World Christianity. To his close friends and family, he was known as "Ko". Along with Kazoh Kitamori
Kazoh Kitamori
was a Japanese theologian, pastor, author, professor, and churchman. His most famous work in the West is The Theology of the Pain of God, which was published in 1946 in Japan and in the United States in 1965. He was a longtime professor at Tokyo Union Theological Seminary...
, he is considered one of the leading Japanese theologians of the twentieth century.
In works such as Waterbuffalo Theology and Three Mile an Hour God, he defended a theology that he considered to be accessible to the peasantry in developing nations, rather than an overly academic systematic theology. One of his most well-known books, "Waterbuffalo Theology", was described as "ecological theology, liberation theology
Liberation theology
Liberation theology is a Christian movement in political theology which interprets the teachings of Jesus Christ in terms of a liberation from unjust economic, political, or social conditions...
and contribution to Christian-Buddhist dialogue". In No Handle on the Cross: An Asian Mediation on the Crucified Mind (1976), Koyama explained how the cross can be considered the symbol of Christian suffering, and began the book with a chapter entitled "The Cross and the Lunchbox". Koyama explained, in the preface to this book, which he wrote in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
at Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
1975, how he did Christian missionary work in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
from 1960 to 1968, and how his experiences in Thailand rekindled interest in Asian religion in him (Koyama, 1976). He also explained in the preface how the book grew out of the Earl Lectures
Earl Lectures
The Earl Lectures are a series of public lectures on religion held at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California. Founded in 1901, they are supported by an endowment of Edwin T. Earl. They are open to members of the general public, and since 1921, a pastoral seminary has been linked...
which he delivered at the Pacific School of Religion
Pacific School of Religion
Pacific School of Religion is an ecumenical seminary located in Berkeley, California. It maintains covenantal relationships with the United Church of Christ, the United Methodist Church and the Disciples of Christ, providing all necessary expectations for candidates to their ordained ministries....
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Koyama also spoke at a conference in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in 1985, in which he described God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
as "a hot God", suggesting a certain dynamic quality to the attributes of God.
In his book "No Handle on the Cross" he reflected on his interest in the relationship between history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, and also pointed out the imperial nature of Indo-European languages among those speakers of languages such as Sinhalese or Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
. He also told, in this book, of an incident which happened to him in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, where he met a Buddhist monk from Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. He told the monk about crusades for Jesus Christ and the monk looked puzzled. "Why do you need to crusade?" asked the monk. The monk indicated that if one felt a need to crusade, then one was not a true disciple. Instead, the monk championed, true to his Buddhist beliefs, the virtue of self-denial
Self-denial
Self-denial is altruistic abstinence - the willingness to forego personal pleasures or undergo personal trials in the pursuit of the increased good of another. Various religions and cultures take differing views of self-denial, some considering it a positive trait and others considering it a...
.
"Water Buffalo Theology" is probably Koyama's best-known work. The book was partly inspired by Koyama's work as a missionary in Northern Thailand.
His other works include Mount Sinai and Mount Fuji. Waterbuffalo Theology is, in part, an examination of Christian theology within the context of Thai Buddhist society, growing out of Koyama's missionary experience in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. Koyama was an editor of the South East Asia Journal of Theology, for which he himself wrote a considerable number of articles. Koyama published at least thirteen books, including "On Christian Life" (currently available only in Japanese) and over one hundred scholarly articles. Koyama's work has been described as helping to bridge the boundaries between East and West, between Christianity and Buddhist thought, between the rich and the poor. It has been pointed out that he has no over-arching system in this theology, which shows commitment to serving a "broken Christ trying to heal a broken world". He was named as an important figure for the development of a global Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
(Cohn-Sherbok, 1998).
Koyama died at a hospital in Springfield
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
complicated by oesophagal cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
, on March 25, 2009. His wife Lois passed away April 13,2011. He is survived two sons, a daughter, and five grandchildren. (Source: New York Times online, accessed September 7, 2010). His last work was "Theology and Violence: Towards A Theology of Nonviolent Love", published in Japanese in 2009 by Kyobunkwan, a publishing firm in Tokyo (Source: www.pres-outlook.com/news-and-analysis/1/8640.html, accessed April 2009).
Sources
- Cohn-Sherbok, L. (1998). Who's Who in Christianity. London: Routledge.
- Koyama, K. (1976). No Handle on the Cross: An Asian Meditation on the Crucified Mind. London, Bloomsbury: SCM Press
- Morse, M. (1991). Kosuke Koyama--A Model for Intercultural Theology: Peter Lang
- The Oxford Companion to Christian Thought. (2000). Edited by Hastings Mason and Pyper. p373. "Koyama, Kosuke." Oxford University Press
Further reading
- Dale T. Irvin & Akinade, A.E. (Co-editors). (1996). The Agitated Mind: The Theology of Kosuke Koyama. New York: Orbis Books.
- Lane, Tony (2006). A Concise History of Christian Thought. Baker Book House. (Revised edition of Lion Handbook).
External links
- Water Buffalo Theology: Review by John Eggen