The Parliament of Histories: New Religions, Collective Historiography, and the Nation

Historiography is a social process, and professional historians are not the only ones to create images of the past. Therefore an understanding of what history means within a particular society requires an examination of the views of nonprofessional contributors to the historical debate. In this article, the problem of collective historical representation and identity construction at different levels of social organization is mainly illustrated with the recent historiography of religious groups that base themselves on the teachings of Chyngsan Kang Il-sun (1871-1909). In the conclusions, it is argued that a focus on national history, shared by such groups, is not necessarily repressive but offers them an opportunity to carve out a collective identity.