"살고 싶고 죽고 싶은 마음은 늘 같이 있어. 그러나 사나 죽으나 그냥 욕심을 버리고 몸을 낮추어 하루하루 감사하며 살 뿐, 무슨 욕심을 더 내랴. 이것을 아는 것이 지혜이다."
—김영석
"The desire to live and the desire to die always coexist. However, whether living or dying, I simply let go of greed, humble myself, and live each day with gratitude; what more could I greedily crave? Knowing this is wisdom." —Yung Suk Kim
"Without a heaven in the present, tomorrow merely inherits yesterday's hell. Peace and spirituality are not distant destinations, but immediate realities forged in how we live, love, and coexist. We cannot expect a sacred future to bloom from a present we leave barren." --Yung Suk Kim
My Videos:
What does it truly mean to live a life of transformation? After two decades of research, teaching, and writing, I’ve come to realize that the core of meaningful change lies in a single, complex concept: Justice.
In this video, I share my personal journey as a scholar and a follower of Jesus, exploring how the "Good News" is inextricably linked to God’s righteousness. We will dive deep into the ten different facets of justice—from distributive and social to environmental and restorative—and look at how the subversive parables of Jesus challenge our normative thinking about fairness, work, and even the "weeds" within ourselves.
If you have ever asked "What is God?", "What am I?", or "What is the right thing to do?", I invite you to join me in this reflection on the value of today and the ongoing process of transformation.
I want to share a unique perspective on a well-known biblical narrative: the story of Hannah from the first book of Samuel.
The ideas I am sharing today are based on my research published in 2008 in the journal The Bible and Critical Theory, titled "The Story of Hannah (1 Sam 1:1–2:11) from a Perspective of Han: The Three-Phase Transformative Process."
In biblical scholarship, we often read Hannah’s story through spiritual, feminist, or liberation lenses. While these are valuable, they can sometimes fall into the trap of "identity politics"—a rigid "us versus them" mentality that can inadvertently exclude others. In my work, I propose an 'intercultural' reading. By using the Korean concept of Han, we can see Hannah’s experience not just as a personal struggle for a child, but as a three-phase process of holistic transformation that involves the self, the community, and society at large.
The One Rule That Unites the World: Jesus, Hillel, and Confucius
Is there a single truth that transcends time, geography, and culture? In this video, we explore the "Golden Thread" of human ethics—a principle discovered independently by the greatest minds of the East and West. From the teachings of Jesus on the Mount to Rabbi Hillel’s famous challenge while standing on one leg, and Confucius’s profound concept of reciprocity (Shù), we discover a shared moral compass.Join us as we break down these ancient texts to see how empathy and the "Golden Rule" serve as the foundation for human civilization. It turns out that despite our differences, we have always been guided by the same simple truth.
Is there a single truth that transcends time, geography, and culture? In this video, we explore the "Golden Thread" of human ethics—a principle discovered independently by the greatest minds of the East and West. From the teachings of Jesus on the Mount to Rabbi Hillel’s famous challenge while standing on one leg, and Confucius’s profound concept of reciprocity (Shù), we discover a shared moral compass.Join us as we break down these ancient texts to see how empathy and the "Golden Rule" serve as the foundation for human civilization. It turns out that despite our differences, we have always been guided by the same simple truth.
People Over Pillars: Reclaiming Human Agency from Ancient Wisdom
Do we exist to serve the system, or does the system exist to serve us? In a modern world filled with rigid rules and faceless institutions, it’s easy to feel like a cog in a machine. This video dives into a revolutionary "Human-Centered" philosophy shared by Jesus and Confucius.We examine Jesus’s radical claim that the Sabbath—a sacred divine institution—was made for the benefit of humankind, not the other way around. We then look at Confucius’s empowering insight that "The Way" (the Dao) only becomes great through the people who walk it. This video is a reminder that you are the subject of your life, not an object of the rules.
In this short video, Dr. Yung Suk Kim — author of the debut book Christ’s Body in Corinth: The Politics of a Metaphor — offers a fresh reading of Paul’s "body of Christ" language as a Christic formation: a community shaped by Christ’s faithfulness rather than merely an organizational unity. Watch to learn why the traditional organism model can enforce conformity, what a Christ-like (Christic) community looks like in practice, and three concrete steps congregations can take to prioritize the vulnerable.
Who are you, really? Is your identity just a collection of labels—your job, your ethnicity, or your citizenship—or is it something deeper? In this video, Dr. Yung Suk Kim explores the "Illusion of Identity." Drawing from his unique life journey—from a businessman representing a Korean company in Panama and Miami to becoming a U.S. citizen and a Professor of New Testament—Dr. Kim challenges the way we categorize ourselves and others. In this video, we discuss: The Limit of Labels: Why terms like "Korean American" only explain a small fraction of who a person is. Identity as Construction: Why you must be the architect of your own identity rather than letting society "label" you. The "Second Career" Perspective: How moving from the business world to biblical scholarship reshaped Dr. Kim’s understanding of the self. Beyond Identity Politics: Acknowledging the commonalities we share while honoring the vast differences in how we view justice, life, and purpose. "I often tell my students: 'Don't judge me based on what you know about me. I am more than what you describe.' This applies to all of us. We are all more than the boxes the world tries to put us in."