Born in 1821, Kim was the first native Korean priest and one of the country’s earliest martyrs. He was tortured and beheaded by the Korean Joseon Dynasty at only 25 years old.
“With the prophecy of martyrdom, the Korean Church reminds us that we cannot follow Jesus without embracing his cross and that we cannot proclaim ourselves Christians without being willing to follow the way of love to the end,” Pope Francis said.
Looking at this saint, he continued, “how can we not feel exhorted to cultivate apostolic zeal in our hearts, to be a sign of a Church that goes out of itself to joyfully spread the seed of the Gospel, including through a life spent for others, in peace and with love?”
The blessing of the 6-ton, 12-foot-tall marble statue of St. Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn took place on Sept. 16, the anniversary of his martyrdom.
The statue depicts the Korean martyr with his arms outstretched and wearing a traditional Korean dopo and a flat hat.
Korean Cardinal Lazzaro You Heung-sik, prefect of the Dicastery for the Clergy, celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica for the delegation before the statue was blessed by Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica.
Credit: Source link
