우리 대학 데이비드 윌리엄 김(DAVID WILLIAM KIM) 교양대학) 교수가 문화를 초월한 성지 관련 연구로 세계적 출판사인 「Palgrave Macmillan」에 도서를 출간했다. 데이비드 윌리엄 김 교수의 연구는 ‘지중해, 아시아, 호주 및 북미 지역 역사에서 신성한 공간과 관련 서사에 대한 글로벌 관점’에 관한 내용이다.

연구 프로젝트의 범위는 현대 사회에서 민족 공동체의 정체성, 문화까지 매우 다양하다. 이번 연구는 성지와 성스러운 이야기라는 테마로 예술과 건축을 비롯하여 다양한 국가의 사회 종교 현상에 대한 신선한 시각을 제공한다는 높은 평가를 받았다. 나아가 현대 역사의 맥락에서 지역 사람들의 실제적인 고통과 슬픔을 이해하는 데 중요한 통찰력을 제공한다. 이러한 평가의 영향으로 글로벌 전문가들로부터 높은 평가를 받아 최근 스위스의 유럽 학술 출판사 인 Palgrave Macmillan이 출판했다. 아래는 연구의 내용에 관한 원문이다.

 Research Outcome
Sacred Sites and Sacred Stories:
Transmissions of Oral Tradition, Myth, and Religiosity
Asso. Prof. Dr. David William Kim
Graduate School of Design, Kookmin University

The contemporary society witnesses numerous travellers visiting the sacred sites of different culture or custom in the 21st century. Their curiosity is expanded when they discover new historical facts through the origin stories of a particular tribe, region or nation. The transmission of oral tradition and myth carries on the significant meaning of those religious sites, such as temples, mountains, castles, churches, house, animals, etc. Asso. Prof. David William Kim’s research project is about the global perspective of sacred spaces and its related narratives in the regional history of Mediterranean Sea, Asia, Australia, and North America. The new research demonstrates the unique meaning and its impact on the social and philosophical culture of particular regions. The detailed knowledge of each religious community’s transformation is explored in the context of cultural diversity in the development of modernisation.

The Sacred Sites and Sacred Stories: Transmissions of Oral Tradition, Myth, and Religiosity unveils multi-angle perspectives of symbolic and mystical objects through the case study of each religio-political environment. Kim analyses the religiosity of local people as a lens through which readers can re-examine the concept of iconography, syncretism, and materialism. In addition, the research interprets the growth of new religions as another viewpoint of anti-traditional religions. The new approach offers significant insight to comprehend the practical agony and sorrow of regional people in the colonial context of contemporary history. The scope of the research project covers the identity, culture, and teachings of ethnic communities in the modern society. The cultural influence of regional reliefs on local people is the primary focus, with less attention on scientific prospect. The critical insights and innovative approaches of the scholar help apprehend oral history, ethnology, and traditional religions as the study of sacred sites is a prominent feature in a number of disciplines. In particular, the outcome of the new research is a useful source for the readers of the following regions: Greece, India (Malabar Coast), West Bengal, Vietnam, Tibet, Taiwan, China, Korea, the United Kingdom, Japan, US, and Australia.

The topics of enquiry range from the role of sacred sites in religious traditions to how sacred sites form a part of the development of modern tourist industries, the role of sacred sites in international relations and the ways in which sacred sites are its focus for disputes. As several sacred sites and their stories face challenges due to economic development, environmental change and the impact of mass pilgrimage and tourism, this research offers an opportunity for wide-ranging understanding of the past, present and future of the subject and their significance in the world today.
The project of the Sacred Sites and Sacred Stories offers a fresh view of the socio-religious phenomena of various countries through examining the structure (arts and building) and unique narratives of those spaces. The inquiry of religious persecution and social apprehension under political and military influence underlines the new cultural landscape of those areas. Kim’s work covers subjects of history, philosophy, politics, diplomacy, gender studies, religion, education, archaeology, sociology, anthropology, linguistics, and cultural studies. It theoretically investigates the external and internal phenomena of each religious custom.

The outcome of Kim’s research ultimately delivers the uniqueness and originality of cultural heritage in the world. The hagiographic narratives of indigenous people and pilgrims transmit the oral tradition of sacred sites that is based on mystical imagination. The regular rituals and regional festivals display the spontaneous religiosity of particular region or culture. Here, he argued that most of ethnic communities would have certain patterns of socio-religious symbolism by which their identity is displayed in the formation of arts and architecture. Such approaches of sacred sites and stories in contemporary society are an alternative method that can draw a conclusion that religious traditions can be transhistorical regardless of the official recognition of government or authority.
This critical research has been given high stand evaluations by global experts of the field and was recently published by Palgrave Macmillan, a European academic publisher in Switzerland:

https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9783030565213#reviews