is the director of retreats at Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center, Sierra Madre, California. May their faith and courage inspire us to live our lives faithful to the Gospel and have the strength to be fearless witness for Christ in our everyday lives.įr. We celebrate these heroic martyrs on this day. There were intense persecutions of Christians in Korea in 1839, 1846, 18 and 103 Christians were martyred for their faith. He ministered in Korea only a year before he was arrested and put to death. He was the first Korean to become a priest and returned home shortly after his ordination to help organize the Church and bring the sacraments to the faithful. He traveled to Macau to attend the seminary and was ordained in 1845. Andrew was baptized at fifteen and soon expressed his desire to become a priest. Andrew’s parents, members of the Korean nobility, were an important part of that early community and secretly remained faithful to their life with Christ. As Christians were arrested, tortured and put to death the Church quickly moved underground. ![]() At first they just discouraged it but soon enough outlawed this practice and began to actively persecute anyone who took it up. ![]() The rulers in Korea were not at all pleased to have this foreign religion thriving in their country. It’s the only known Catholic Christian community that first developed completely from the witness and work of lay Christians. By the time the first foreign priest arrived in Korea in 1836 there was already a substantial Christian community flourishing there. The Christian Japanese soldiers baptized the first Korean Christians and the Christian community began to grow quickly. It is believed that Christianity had been brought into Korea by some Christian Japanese soldiers in the latter part of the 18 th century. By the time he was born in 1821, Christianity had been growing in Korea for about fifty years. He wasn’t the first Korean Christian by a long shot. Andrew is tied closely to the foundation of Christianity in Korea. Andrew and his companions are fellow Christians that we need to know because they are powerful witnesses to living the Gospel in real life. Though new to the liturgical calendar, St. Andrew is a “new” saint, canonized by Pope Paul II. Memorial of Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn and Companions
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