Andrew Kim Taegon

This article is about the Korean saint. For the MLB player see Kim Andrew.

Saint Andrew Kim Taegon
Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gon
Born	August 21 1821(1821-08-21)
Died	September 16 1846 (aged 25)
Venerated in	Catholic Church
Beatified	1925
Canonized	6 May 1984 by Pope John Paul II
Major shrine	Chŏltusan (Martyr's Mound), Seoul, South Korea
Feast	20 September (Roman calendar)
Patronage	Korean Clergy

Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gon is known as Korea's first Roman Catholic priest.

Early Catholic Church In Korea

During the 1592 invasion of Korea by Japan, Japanese soldiers introduced Christianity into Korea by baptizing Koreans. A Japanese commander, Konishi Yukinaga, took a Korean girl, Julia Ota-a to Japan and she became one of the first Korean Christians. Father Gregorious de Cespedes, a Jesuit priest, visited Konishi in Korea in 1593. Korean diplomat, Yi Gwang-jeong returned to Korea from Beijing bearing several theological books written by Matteo Ricci, a Jesuit priest living in China. Some two centuries later, members of the Silhak (practical learning) school were drawn to Christian thought because it advocated a social structure based upon merit rather than birth rank. Most early Christians had family ties to the Silhak school.1

During the late Joseon Dynasty and under its Confucian influence, Christianity was heavily suppressed and many Christians were persecuted and executed. Kim Taegon was born into this environment, and just one of several thousands of Catholic, Presbyterian, or Methodist Christians who were tortured and executed because of their faith during this time. In 1866, Regent Heungseon Daewongun (father of King Gojong) signed a decree to execute all Catholics. Over 2,000 Catholics were beheaded at Jeoldusan, "Beheading Hill." Their bodies were thrown into the Han River. Some were as young as 13. Fewer than 40 were identified. 2 Korea by Andrew Bender http://books.google.com/books?id=UrohIhkT_sUC&pg=PA89&lpg=PA89&dq=beheading+hill+korea&source=web&ots=MM_KaS27W7&sig=dcYcrt56neWID-x-n_DjcdxbOZc#PPA89,M1

At this time, Korea was isolated from the world; the only outside contact being with Peking, where taxes were paid. Jesuits in China managed to smuggle Christian literature into Korea. When Korea saw its first missionaries arrive from France and America in the mid 1800's, several thousand Koreans were already practicing Christianity.

Kim Family

Andrew Kim Taegon was born in in Nol-Mae (Solmoe), Chu’ung-Chong Province (in South Central Korea. At the age of 7, the Kim family moved to Golbaemasil Mankok-ri, Youngin-gun Coiunty (Mirinae) Kyungki Province. Kim’s great-grandfather, Kim Jin-Hu was martyred in 1814. Kim’s grand-uncle, Kim Han-hyun was also martyred in 1816. Kim’s father, Kim Je-jun (Ignatius Kim), was subsequently martyred in 1839 for practicing Christianity. 2 http://www.najumary.org/catholic/history_3 html With so many male relatives martyred, Kim grew up very poor; his mother reduced to begging.

Ordination and Mission Work

After being Baptized at the age of 15, Kim traveled over 1200 miles in 1836 to study at a seminary in the Portuguese Colony of Macau, China. He returned to Korea through Manchuria. That same year, he crossed the Yellow Sea to Shanghai, where he was ordained a priest in 1845 by the French Bishop, Jean Ferréol. He then returned to Korea to preach and evangelize. These grueling trips between China and Korea, on foot and by small unworthy fishing vessels, allowed Kim to explore the terrain and increase the accuracy of the maps he had been using to plan better routes for the French missionaries to infiltrate Korea.

Handwritten map by Father Andre Kim (Kim Tae Gon, the first Korean Catholic priest, who was executed because of his religion, but managed to make this map in the short time he was in Korea, 1846) (876 Kb) http://www.cartography.henny-savenije.pe.kr/quality/index.htm

Imprisonment

In June of 1846, while trying to arrange for passage for additional missionaries to enter Korea by boat along the southeast coast, Kim was arrested by the border patrol. While imprisoned and awaiting his fate, Andrew Kim Taegon wrote to his parish:

"My dear brothers and sisters know this: Our Lord Jesus Christ upon descending into the world took innumerable pains upon and constituted the holy Church through his own passion and increases it through the passion of its faithful....Now, however, some fifty or sixty years since holy Church entered into our Korea, the faithful suffer persecutions again. Even today persecution rages, so that many of our friends of the same faith, among who am I myself, have been thrown into prison. Just as you also remain in the midst of persecution. Since we have formed one body, how can we not be saddened in our innermost hearts? How can we not experience the pain of separation in our human faculties? However, as Scripture says, God cares for the least hair of our heads, and indeed he cares with his omniscience; therefore, how can persecution be considered as anything other than the command of God, or his prize, or precisely his punishment?...We are twenty here, and thanks be to God all are still well. If anyone is killed, I beg you not to forget his family. I have many more things to say, but how can I express them with pen and paper? I make an end to this letter. Since we are now close to the struggle, I pray you to walk in faith, so that when you have finally entered into Heaven, we may greet one another. I leave you my kiss of love.

Execution

On September 26, at the age of 25, Kim was tortured and beheaded near Seoul on the Han River. His ears were pierced with arrows; his face covered with lime. 3 Le Christianisme et l’Extrême-Orient: Missions Catholiques de l’Inde, de L’Indo-Chine, de la Chine, de la Corée, by Canon Léon Joly (P. Lethielleux: Paris, 1907). A group of Christians led, by Yi Min-Sik, later moved his body to Mt. Mi-ri-nai, about 35 miles from Seoul.

When Father Ferréol died from exhaustion in 1853, he wanted to be buried beside Andrew Kim, stating: “You will never know how sad I was to lose this young native priest. I have loved him as a father loved his son; it is a consolation for me to think of his eternal happiness.”

Beatification and Canonization

Both Andrew Kim and his father, Ignatius Kim, were beatified on July 25, 1925. In 1949 the Holy See named Andrew Kim Taegon the principal patron of the Roman Catholic Clergy in Korea. On May 6, 1984 Pope John Paul II canonized Andrew Kim Taegon along with 102 other martyrs, including Paul Chong Hasang.

In an unprecedented visit to Korea, on May 6, 1984 Pope John Paul II canonized Andrew Kim Taegon along with 102 other martyrs, including Paul Chong Hasang. At the canonization, Pope John Paul II 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. Even today their undying spirit sustains the Christian in the Church of silence in the north of this tragically divided land." http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saintofday/default.asp?id=114

On May 6, 1984 Pope John Paul II canonized Andrew Kim Taegon along with 102 other martyrs, including Paul Chong Hasang. His feast day is on September 20.

Feast Day

Kim's feast day is on September 20.

Honoring Kim

There are a number of Catholic Churches and schools throughout the world named in honor of Saint Andrew Kim; even a Credit Union in New Jersey.

Macau's famous Camoes Park (in Portuguese, Jardim Luis de Camoes) contains a statue dedicated to Andrew Kim Taegon. A plaque below it contains dates and events depicting major milestones in his life. Macau's famous Camoes Park (in Portuguese, Jardim Luis de Camoes) contains a statue dedicated to Andrew Kim Taegon. A plaque below it contains dates and events depicting major milestones in his life.

Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions; Gerald Harry Anderson; p. 364. Korea’s Martyr-Patron, American Ecclesiastical Review 137 (1957; pp 33-0341.

	MLA style:

"Kim Dae-gon, Saint." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2 Nov. 2007 <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9045454>.

	APA style:

	Kim Dae-gon, Saint. (  2007). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved  November   2,   2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9045454

Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions by Gerald Harry Anderson http://books.google.com/books?id=oQ8BFk9K0ToC&pg=PA364&lpg=PA364&dq=%22ch+ung%22+andrew+kim&source=web&ots=_43dfNgt90&sig=wlSIhWJoXJ4ETl4EB9Vif1-uIQM

[edit] See also Christianity in Korea Korean Martyrs Roman Catholicism in Korea The First Korean Priest http://magnificat.ca/cal/engl/09-16b.htm

[edit] External links Patron Saints Index: St. Andrew Kim Facts about St. Andrew Kim Andrew Kim Taegon, Paul Chong Hasang and his Companions

Catholicism in Korea http://english.tour2korea.com/03Sightseeing/TravelSpot/travelspot_read.asp?oid=3267&kosm=m3_8

Photos of the Shrine of St. Andrew Kim Taegon Villa Modesta Lolomboy, Bocaue, Bulacan Philippines http://www.flickr.com/photos/robby_dela_vega/sets/72157602976483156/with/1898891961/

St. Andrew Kim Catholic Church Web Site http://www.standrewkim.org/modules/main.php?top_id=1&grp_id=1

Map that Kim drew: http://www.cartography.henny-savenije.pe.kr/quality/index.htm

Map Caption: This map was handmade made by André Kim or Kim Tae Gon. The map is archived in the Département des Cartes et Plans, Bibliothèque Nationale de France (reference number: Ge C 10622).

Naju, Korea: http://www.najumary.org/catholic/history_2html

External links

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New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:

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