Prophetic Lament: A Call for Justice in Troubled Times

by Soong-Chan Rah

Han must be addressed on the level in which it operates. Andrew Park suggests “that with a vision of new relationships or the Hanless society, we confront the Han-causing elements and transform them.”15 The guilt of individual sin leads to individual confession, but the shame of han should lead to social transformation. As previously stated, Americans often have a difficult time addressing the issue of race. The tendency in the dialogue on race in the United States contrasts to the acknowledgment of shame in the book of Lamentations. American culture tends to hide the stories of guilt and shame and seeks to elevate stories of success. American culture gravitates toward narratives of exceptionalism and triumphalism, which results in amnesia about a tainted history. The reality of a shameful history undermines the narrative of exceptionalism, so it must remain hidden.