By Kim Ae-ran
"Are you a faithful Catholic?" Father Andrew Kim Dae-geon was asked this question during his interrogation in prison.
He replied, "Yes, I am a faithful Catholic!"
Overcoming the fear of death, he confessed his deep faith and willingly accepted martyrdom. This daring reply invites us to confess that God alone is everything and only faith guarantees eternal happiness. It also invites believers to declare that they bear witness to God's love and mercy and desires to be the salt and light of the world!
UNESCO has chosen a universal patron who has put spiritual values into practice since 2004.
"Dasan Jeong Yak-yong" (1762-1836) was chosen as a universal patron in 2012 in memory of his 250th birth anniversary. In 2013, "Dongeui Bogam," complied by Heo Jun (1539-1615) and published in 1613 during the Joseon Kingdom, was chosen at its 400th publication anniversary.
This year, we celebrate the 200th birth anniversary of Saint Andrew Kim Dae-geon (1821-1846), the first Korean-born priest who became the patron saint of the Korean clergy. He was chosen as a universal patron in 2021.
Kim Dae-geon lived for only a short time after being ordained. During his pastoral activity, he wrote twenty-one letters addressed to his father (Ignatius Kim who was martyred during the persecution of 1839), a teacher, a local government official, four missionary priests, Bishop Ferreol, and lay Catholics.
Some of them were written in Latin and French, and the late Cardinal Jeong Jin-seok translated them. "Your glory in this empty field," a collection of his letters was first published by "Pauline" in 1997, and its revision in hardcover came out in 2021.
Being essential for spiritual renewal, his letters testify to his strong faith. Several missionary priests in the seminary once worried about his health and lack of judgment, but he lived like a flame with the help of the Spirit of God.
Among 21 letters written between 1842 and 1846, the last three letters (19th, 20th, and 21st) were written in prison, and the last letter was written in hangeul (the Korean script) for ordinary lay Catholics to encourage them to hold on to their faith, love each other and serve God as one body.
Kim Dae-geon was born on Aug. 21, 1821, in a Confucian family in Solmae, Dangjin. He was baptized at 15 and traveled to a seminary in Macau, China together with Choi Bang-je and Choi Yang-up. He was ordained as a priest in Shanghai and secretly returned to his homeland after six years of study.
He was assigned to arrange for more missionary priests to enter by the sea route, but he was arrested and beheaded at "Saenamteo" near the Han River in Seoul. His death came only 13 months after his ordination.
Together with 102 martyrs, he was canonized in 1984 when Pope John Paul II visited Korea.
On Aug. 21 this year, 1,750 Catholic Churches across the country are celebrating a Mass in memory of his 200th birth anniversary.
In the upcoming September and October, various events such as the concert "The Last Letter," the creative musical "Our Friends," the street play "The Fortieth Night, the Twenty-second Letter" will be presented in some dioceses.
The author is a member of the Daughters of St. Paul (fsp.pauline.or.kr.) living and giving the Good News to the world by means of social communication.