We
honor today the men and women who were slain because they refused to deny
Christ in the nation of Korea. The faith was brought to Korea in a unique
fashion. The intellectuals of that land, eager to learn about the world,
discovered some Christian books procured through Korea’s embassy to the Chinese
capital. One Korean, Ni-Seung-Houn, went to Beijing in 1784 to study
Catholicism and was baptized Peter Ri. Returning to Korea, he converted many
others. In 1791, when these Christians were suddenly viewed as foreign
traitors, two of Peter Ri’s converts, named Paul and Jacques, were martyred. The
faith endured, however, and when Father James Tsiou, a Chinese, entered Korea
three years later, he was greeted by four thousand Catholics. Father Tsiou
worked in Korea until 1801 when he was slain by authorities. Three decades
later the Prefecture Apostolic of Korea was established by Pope Leo XII, after
he received a letter smuggled out of Korea by faithful Catholics. In 1836,
Monsignor Lawrence Imbert managed to enter Korea. Others arrived, and they
worked until 1839, when a full persecution started, bringing about the
martyrdom of the European priests. Young Korean seminarians were sent to Macau
for ordination.
The first native priest, Andrew Kim Taegon, returned to Korea in 1845 and was
martyred the following year. Severe persecution followed, and Catholics fled to
the mountains, still spreading the faith. In 1864, a new persecution claimed
the lives of two bishops, six French missionaries, another Korean priest, and
eight thousand Korean Catholics. The Korean martyrs of 1839, 1846, and 1867
were canonized in Korea in 1984 by Pope John Paul II. During that ceremony, the
Pope said: “The Korean Church is unique because it was founded entirely
by lay people. This fledgling Church, so young and yet so strong in faith, withstood
wave after wave of fierce persecution. Thus, in less than a century, it could
boast of 10,000 martyrs. The death of these martyrs became the leaven of the
Church and led to today's splendid flowering of the Church in Korea.” Since Pope Francis just announced that the next
World Youth Day will be held in South Korea, a renewed interest among the Catholics
of this country has grown significantly. And the rest of the world is looking at Korea with hope and faith-filled anticipation.
Wednesday 20 September 2023
The Korean Martyrs
The Korean Martyrs canonized in 1984 by St John Paul II
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