길선주 吉善宙
Pastor of Jangdaehyeon Church in Pyongyang, one of the 33 National Representatives of the March 1st Movement, and a leader of the Pyongyang Revival; pen name Yeonggye
| Life | 1869 ~ 1935 |
| Era | 근현대 |
| Clan | 해평 길씨 |
Life & career
Gil Seon-ju (1869-1935) was a Presbyterian pastor and independence activist from Anju, South Pyeongan, of the Haepyeong Gil clan, with courtesy name Yunyeol and pen name Yeonggye. He studied the Chinese classics as a boy and was drawn to the Gwanseong religion and Taoist-style practice before being baptized by a missionary in 1897.
He became an elder of Jangdaehyeon Church in Pyongyang in 1901, and his public confession at an early-morning prayer meeting there in January 1907 is regarded as the spark of the Pyongyang Revival. He was ordained at the first meeting of the Presbyterian Council that year and in 1910 proposed a campaign to bring a million souls to Christ. He is remembered for establishing the dawn prayer meeting in Korean churches.
In 1919 he joined the 33 National Representatives of the March 1st Movement as a Christian delegate and was arrested and imprisoned. Korean Wikipedia states he was the only representative found not guilty, but this could not be cross-checked with other sources. After release he led revival meetings across the country and is said to have collapsed while preaching in Jaeryeong, Hwanghae, in 1935. He was posthumously awarded the Order of Merit for National Foundation, Independence Medal, in 2009.
Conversion and Years as an Elder
After studying the classics, Gil Seon-ju passed through the Gwanseong religion and Taoist practice without finding peace, and was baptized by a missionary in 1897. He became an elder of Jangdaehyeon Church in 1901.
The 1907 Great Revival
His public confession at the January 1907 early-morning prayer meeting at Jangdaehyeon Church is regarded as the trigger for the Pyongyang Revival. He is counted among those who rooted the dawn prayer tradition in Korean churches, and was ordained as a pastor that year.
The March 1st Movement and Final Years
In 1919 he took part in the March 1st Movement as one of the 33 National Representatives and was arrested. Jo Man-sik was another well-known figure of the Pyongyang area. He left writings such as Haetaron and Mansa seongchwi and a posthumous work on eschatology, and received the Independence Medal in 2009.
Grave
His burial place could not be confirmed.