The Wounded Heart of God: The Asian Concept of Han and the Christian Doctrine of Sin

Traditional doctrines of sin and salvation center primarily on the moral agency of the sinner. Andrew Sung Park addresses the relational consequence of sin--the pervasive reality of victims' suffering and the scar from the sins of others who have wronged them. He asserts that one cannot grasp the full meaning of the sin and guilt of siners until one has looked at the concept han or the shame of the victims. If reconciliation with God and with other humans is to take place, not only must one's sin be repented and one's guilt forgiven, but the han of those who have been wronged must be healed.

Andrew Sung Park is associate professor of theology at United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio.
He is the author of The Wounded Heart of God, also published by Abingdon Press.