Robert Alexander Hardie (; June 11, 1865 – June 30, 1949) was a Canadian physician and

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

evangelist who for 45 years served as a missionary in Korea. He is recognized as the catalyst for the Wŏnsan Revival (1903) and also inspired the Great Pyongyang Revival (1907) in what is now

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

Early life and education

Hardie was born on June 11, 1865, in

Haldimand County, Ontario Haldimand County is a rural city-status Census divisions of Ontario#Single-tier municipalities, single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River (Ontario), Gr ...

, south of

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. Of

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descent, he was the first of six children born to James and Abigail Hardie. Both his parents died before he was ten years old. Hardie was then raised by his aunt and uncle, Thomas and Fannie Shaw. He attended a school in Seneca, Haldimand County, earning a teacher's certificate in 1884, and worked as a teacher in Seneca for two years. In 1886, Hardie enrolled at the Toronto School of Medicine. On December 27, 1886, he married Margaret "Matilda" Kelly of

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. As a medical student, he studied under Oliver R. Avison, who later travelled to Korea as an evangelist. Hardie graduated from

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

with a

Bachelor of Medicine A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

degree in 1890.

Career

Physician to missionary

In the summer of 1890, Hardie moved his family to Korea to serve as an independent and

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medical missionary. The Toronto University Medical Student's

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

(MS–YMCA) had funded his endeavour for the next eight years. For six months in late 1890 and early 1891, he served as a physician in the ''Chaejungwon'' (Extended Relief House: Royal Hospital) in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

. On April 14, 1891, he moved to

Pusan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southe ...

and was later joined by his wife Margaret and two daughters at his residence which also served as the location of his medical practice. In 1892, the Hardies briefly moved to

Nagasaki , officially , is the capital and the largest Cities of Japan, city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Founded by the Portuguese, the port of Portuguese_Nagasaki, Nagasaki became the sole Nanban trade, port used for tr ...

, Japan, on account of his poor health; they returned to Pusan later that year. When Canadian missionary

James Scarth Gale James S. Gale (February 19, 1863 – January 31, 1937) was a Canadian Presbyterian missionary, educator and Bible translator in Korea. In old Sino-Korean, he was known as Ki Il (). Early life Gale was born on February 19, 1863, in Alma, Ontario, ...

ended his association with his supporters from the

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's YMCA (UC–YMCA) in order join the American Presbyterian Mission, the UC–YMCA lost its only representative in Korea. At Hardie's suggestion, the MS–YMCA and UC–YMCA joined forces to form The Canadian Colleges' Mission (CCM) with Hardie as their representative and beneficiary in Korea. However, he faced competition from other missionaries in the Pusan area and financial hardship due to the limited support from Toronto. In November 1892, he decided to move his mission to

Wŏnsan Wonsan (), previously known as Wonsanjin (), is a port city and naval base located in Kangwon Province, North Korea, along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, on the Sea of Japan and the provincial capital. The port was opened by Japanes ...

, where Gale and Malcolm C. Fenwick were then located. In Wŏnsan, Hardie began to emulate Fenwick's methods for self-sufficiency by supplementing his living with farming, "feeding cattle and growing fruit". The Hardie family stayed in Wŏnsan until 1896. In July 1896, Hardie relocated his family to Canada, and returned alone to Wŏnsan in October 1897. In 1898, Gale moved to Seoul, and Hardie joined the American

Methodist Episcopal Church, South The Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MEC, S; also Methodist Episcopal Church South) was the American Methodist denomination resulting from the 19th-century split over the issue of slavery in the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC). Disagreement ...

, when his contract of support from the CCM ended. With the American Methodist mission, he was first tasked with establishing a medical practice in

Songdo Songdo (), officially known as Songdo International Business District (Songdo IBD), is a smart city built on of reclaimed land along Incheon's waterfront, southwest of Seoul, South Korea. It is connected to Incheon International Airport by a r ...

Hwanghae Province Hwanghae Province (''Hwanghae-do'' ) was one of the Eight Provinces of Korea during the Joseon era. Hwanghae was located in the northwest of Korea. The provincial capital was Haeju. The regional name for the province was Haeseo (). It is a reg ...

, in present-day North Korea. He remained there for less than a year before relocating again to Seoul in August 1899. It was in Seoul, on November 11, 1900, that Bishop Alpheus Wilson ordained Hardie as a deacon in the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

Revival movements

Sometime after 1900, Hardie stopped practicing medicine to concentrate on his missionary work. From 1902 to 1909, he was charged with the task of

proselytising Proselytism () is the policy of attempting to convert people's religious or political beliefs. Carrying out attempts to instill beliefs can be called proselytization. Proselytism is illegal in some countries. Some draw distinctions between Chris ...

to the people of Wŏnsan and the greater Kangwon Province. In August 1903, at a Bible study with six other missionaries led by

Moses Clark White Moses Clark White (; Pinyin: ''Huáidé''; Foochow Romanized: ''Huài-dáik''; July 24, 1819 – October 24, 1900) was both an American Methodist pioneer missionary in China and a physician. Life Moses Clark White was born in Paris, Onei ...

who was visiting from China, Hardie spoke of prayer and the

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. He read from

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11:13 and confessed about his low spirits and disappointment with his efforts to proselytise the Kangwon Province. During later meetings with larger congregations across northern Korea, he made similar confessions that inspired many western missionaries and native Koreans alike to confess their own sins, leading thousands of congregates to accept the missionaries' Christian teachings. From 1901 to 1909, there were almost 100,000 new Korean converts to the Christian faith. Hardie's confessions became the catalyst for the Wŏnsan Revival which later inspired the Great Pyongyang Revival of 1907 in

northern Korea North Korea is located in East Asia in the Northern half of Korea, partially on the Korean Peninsula. It borders three countries: China along the Yalu (Amnok) River, Russia along the Tumen River, and South Korea to the south. Topography and d ...

. His expression of the feeling of "humiliation" at his failings in evangelizing people in the Kangwon Province had the paradoxical effect of inspiring a religious awakening that spread throughout the entire nation. Alfred Wasson, an American Methodist missionary to Korea, wrote in ''Church Growth in Korea'' (1934):

Academic career

In 1905, Hardie started a mobile theological school named ''Sinhakdang'' (Hall of Theology). The school initially had no defined physical location as he travelled between Inch'ŏn, Kongju,

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

, and Seoul to teach several months-long sessions. In 1909, he moved to Seoul and began teaching at the Pierson Memorial Bible School and the Methodist Biblical Institute. In 1913, he founded the ''Hyŏpsŏng sinhakkyo'' (Union Theological School) in Seoul. He served as the president of the school until 1922 and left the school in June 1923. From 1916, he also published a magazine entitled ''Sinak saekye'' (The World of Theology). In 1923, Hardie became the editor-in-chief of the ''Chosŏn Yesukyo Sŏhoe'' (now known as the Korean Christian Literature Society).

Family and later years

When the Hardies arrived in Korea, they had with them a two-year-old daughter named Eva, their second child. Their first son Arthur Sidney had died as an infant in 1888. Their second daughter Annie Elizabeth was born in Seoul during the first year of their missionary life. The Hardies' third daughter Marie Mabel died only a day old but they had two more daughters, Gertrude Abigail and Sarah Grace, who lived to adulthood. Their seventh child Robert and youngest daughter Margaret Joy died at eleven and six years old, respectively. The Hardie family also adopted a Korean girl named Chuponia. In 1935, Hardie retired from missionary work and moved with his wife to

Lansing, Michigan Lansing () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Michigan. The most populous city in Ingham County, Michigan, Ingham County, parts of the city extend into Eaton County, Michigan, Eaton County and nort ...

, to live with their daughter Grace. In total, he had served as a medical and then an evangelical missionary for about 45 years of his life. Margaret died in 1945 and Robert on June 30, 1949.