Glocalization of Korean Migrant Churches in West Germany
Sabrina Weiß (CERES)
At the present time around 30.000 Koreans live in Germany. Since the 1970s, some of them established up to 30 immigrant churches alone in North-Rhine Westphalia. These immigrant churches changed over time into diaspora churches, which no longer serve as sanctuaries for the first generation of Korean migrants. One reason for processes of change was intern diversification due to further immigration of Korean students and businessmen and intergenerational conflicts. A glocal perspective is, considering the Korean diaspora churches in their social field, stretched out between their place of residence, countries of origin and the globally connected communities as the starting point of analysis. The paper focuses upon three specific glocal religious activities: the exchange of guest preachers, passion for foreign mission and civic engagement, and donation behavior. It concludes by noting that globalization facilitates the growth of glocal networks of religious actors.
This paper will be presented in panel A Balancing Act: Minority Religious Communities and Processes of Transformation (28-116 | 126)
