Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Seoul (Agenzia Fides) - The local Catholic Church dedicates the month of September to commemorating its martyrs in particular Saint Andrea Kim Taegon and companions (1821-1846), the first Korean priest and patron saint of Korean clergy. Their feast day is 16 September
Initiatives for the month are being organised in various dioceses. In the archdiocese of Seoul the head of the Commission for the Commemoration of Martyrs Mgr Choi Chang-hwa, has organised a series of conferences and masses in Seoul cathedral as well as a night prayer vigil with a pilgrimage to the Shrine of the Martyrs at Jeolduasn memorial.
Night time vigils and pilgrimages have also been organised by the dioceses of Daejeon and Incheon, and special initiatives are planned in the dioceses of Suwon e Wonju. In Pusan there will be theatrical and musical performances and performance on the lives of the martyrs, while in Choengju diocese the Lay Apostolate Council has organised prayer meetings. Conferences, debates and cultural events have been prepared by the dioceses of Masan, Andong and Kwanju.
“The martyrs bore witness to the faith and helped the Church to grow in Korea and Asia. Korean Christians raised to the honour of the altars planed the faith in the land of the most ancient traditions and religions. Their blood was the seed of more Christians and their martyrdom is a source of spiritual strength and evangelisation”.
Korea has more than 10,000 Christian martyrs killed in different waves of persecution in different times in the past. The Catholic Church already venerates 103 Korean martyrs canonised in 1984 by John Paul II, in the first canonisation not held in Rome. A memorable event for Korean Catholics. The diocesan stage of the cause for the beatification of Paul Yun Ji-chung and 123 companions, martyred in 1791 was opened in 2004 in Seoul. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 10/9/2007 righe 28 parole 294)
