Westerners in Korea mostly had a friendly relationship with the Government-General during the 1920s. This was because the Government-General actively adopted conciliatory policies with which Westerners complied. In particular, Governor-General Saito Makoto met with many Western delegates and missionaries. He hosted meetings of Japanese leaders and Western missionaries, invited missionaries to banquets hosted by himself or the Commissioner of State Affairs, and sent officials to gatherings of missionaries. When he visited local areas, Saito met with local missionaries and invited them to receptions. Such receptions were more frequent in the Northwestern region where Christianity was more influential than in other areas. As a latecomer to imperialism, Japan was conscious about how it was viewed by Western powers. By promoting the message that Japan was civilizing Korea and by forming favorable relations with the West, Japan tried to prevent Western powers from intervening in Korea.

In colonial Korea, Westerners were conciliators as well as competitors with Japanese imperial rule. Japan had to maintain friendly relations with Western powers and needed to allow missionary activities, which did not necessarily comply with Japan’s own goals in Korea. In addition, Korean people considered the Western medical techniques and school education of Christian churches as being much “superior” to those of the Japanese. Accordingly, the Japanese authorities promoted friendship with Western missionaries, while observing their behavior closely. The Benedictine Order of Wonsan (est. in 1920) was one of the Western religious organizations in Korea. The Benedictine Order, a German mission board, began its missionary work in Korea from 1909 and moved its diocese from Seoul to Wonsan. As the Manchurian area was incorporated into its district, the Benedictine Order of Wonsan expanded its missionary work and education into Hamgyeongnam-do, Hamgyeongbuk-do, and Manchuria. Considering its financial situation and circumstances, it established an abbey and theological school in Deogwon in 1927. It managed a monastery, the Haeseong Common School, Haeseong Kindergarten, Hosu Angel Charity School, and a school for the deaf around the main church in Wonsan. It also ran churches and schools in Samwonbong, Yongjeong, and Paldogu in Kando. As of 1927, there were 14,005 believers, 1 bishop, 27 priests, 25 monks, and 25 nuns at the Wonsan diocese of the Benedictine Order. There were Korean priests as well. The Wonsan diocese of the Benedictine Order was able to expand because of friendly and active interaction between Government-General officials and Western missionaries, as seen in the example of Governor-General Saito Makoto and Acting Governor-General Ugaki Kazushike visiting the abbey, which was commemorated by the Benedictine Order with the presentation of a commemorative photo album.