Eumseong Bongam Shrine

Overview

Bongam Shrine is a shrine of the Diocese of Cheongju located in Bonghyeon-ri, Maengdong-myeon, Eumseong-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do, referring to the villages of Bangchukgol and Gyemadae where believers settled after the Gihae Persecution in 1839 and formed a Catholic village and lived their life of faith. It was proclaimed a shrine on November 29, 2020 and is administered by Eumseong Maengdong Parish.

History

〔Formation of the Catholic Village〕 The Diocese of Cheongju explains that Bangchukgol and Gyemadae in Bongam are villages where Catholic believers migrated after the Gihae Persecution in 1839 and formed a Catholic village and lived their faith in secret. At that time, Kim Baek-sim (Ambrose, 1794~1866), Song Gun-myeong (Paul), Kim Gyeong-jang, and the family of Peter Yi lived here, and soon after, the family of chairman Min Yun-myeong (Francis, 1822~1867), who had lived in Gwangbeol, Chungju (Gwangwol-ri, Sinni-myeon, Chungju-si), moved to Gyemadae.

〔Father Choe Yang-eop and John the Apostle〕 Father Thomas Choe Yang-eop stopped at Bangchukgol and Gyemadae during his pastoral visit, gave the sacraments to the faithful, and selected the youngest son of Kim Baek-sim, John the Apostle, as a seminarian and sent him to the Joseon Vicariate seminary at Baeti, Jincheon. John was eighteen years old at the time. After studying at the Baeti seminary, he went to study at the Penang seminary in Malaysia in March 1854, but as soon as he returned in 1863, he returned to lay life and did not become a priest.

〔Byeongin Persecution and Martyrs〕 The community was discovered during the Byeongin Persecution in 1866 by officers and constables dispatched from the Chungju garrison, and the believers were arrested. Ambrose Kim was taken to Seoul and martyred in 1866, his second son Kim Seong-seo (Fabian) and Francis Min, chairman of Gyemadae, were taken to Chungju and martyred in early 1867, and Peter Yi was martyred in Suwon in 1866. In 1868, the eldest son of Ambrose Kim, Kim Seong-hoe (Paul), and the youngest son, John the Apostle, who had fled to Bokgujeong, Cheonan (Yeonchun-ri, Buk-myeon, Cheonan-si), were arrested and martyred in Seoul. The Catholic Church in Korea is promoting the beatification of Chairman Min Yun-myeong (Francis) among the martyrs from Bangchukgol and Gyemadae.

〔Proclamation and Development of the Shrine〕 Gabriel Jang Bong-hun, Bishop of Cheongju, proclaimed this place a shrine by episcopal decree on November 29, 2020. The Catholic Newspaper reported that it cited as reasons for the proclamation that this is the place where Father Choe selected Kim Apostle John as a seminarian and that the beatification of Chairman Min Yun-myeong is being promoted among the 6 martyrs from here. According to an article published in January 2022, Father Bartholomew Jeong Gwang-yeol, in charge of the shrine, carried out a “one-pyeong land purchase campaign” to secure the land at Gyemadae and Bangchukgol.

Related Places and People

• Supgeori Martyrs’ Shrine in Chungju: the Diocese of Cheongju proclaimed it a shrine on the same day (Catholic Newspaper).
• Baeti Seminary (Baeti, Jincheon): it is the Joseon Vicariate seminary where John the Apostle went to study as a seminarian (Diocese of Cheongju).

References and Sources

1. Diocese of Cheongju, “Eumseong Bongam (Bangchukgol, Gyemadae Catholic Village) Shrine”. Formation of the Catholic village, Father Choe Yang-eop and John the Apostle, martyrs of the Byeongin Persecution, promotion of beatification.
   https://www.cdcj.or.kr/parish/holyland/9
2. Catholic Newspaper, “Cheongju Diocese Proclaims Bongam in Eumseong, Chungbuk and Supgeori in Chungju as Shrines”(2020.12.1. ). Proclamation date and administering parish.
   https://www.catholictimes.org/article/202012010030998
3. Catholic Newspaper, “Bongam Shrine of Cheongju Diocese Launches ‘One-Pyeong Land Purchase Campaign’”(2022.1.18. ). Reasons for the shrine proclamation and efforts to develop the shrine.
   https://www.catholictimes.org/article/202201180094952