Kwangheemun Shrine

Overview

The Gwanghuimun Shrine is a shrine of the Catholic Archdiocese of Seoul established in the area of Gwanghuimun, one of the four small gates of the Seoul city wall. It is known as the place where the bodies of the faithful martyred inside the walled capital during the persecutions were cast outside the wall and buried through this gate, and it is introduced as the sixth pilgrimage site on the 1 Course “Way of the Word” of the Seoul Catholic Pilgrimage Route.

History

According to the Martyrs’ Veneration Committee of the Archdiocese of Seoul, Gwanghuimun is the southeastern gate among the four small gates of the Seoul city wall (Honghwamun, Gwanghuimun, Sodeokmun, Changuimun). It is said that after the southern small gate between Jangchungdan and the Han River disappeared, the water outlet gate to the north came to be called Gwanghuimun. Together with Seosomun, the Sugumun was the gate through which corpses from inside the walled capital were carried outside the wall, and it was also called Sigu-mun (屍口門).

Good News Catholic Information explains that, as persecutions continued, believers from Seoul, Suwon, Yongin and nearby areas were dragged inside the walled capital, tortured and pressured to apostatize, and, refusing, were martyred, and that the bodies of the martyrs beheaded inside the walled capital were abandoned through this gate. The Seoul Catholic Pilgrimage Route website introduces the area outside Gwanghuimun as the place where numerous saints, blesseds and unnamed martyrs were buried and abandoned.

According to Good News Catholic Information, in August 2014 the Archdiocese of Seoul installed the Martyrs’ Veneration Hall in front of Gwanghuimun to preserve the historical and Church-historical value of Gwanghuimun, and appointed Father Paul Han Jeong-gwan as the first priest in charge of the shrine.

Architecture and Space

According to the Martyrs’ Veneration Committee, Gwanghuimun was built in 1396, its gate pavilion and the parapets above the gate were destroyed in the 6–25 wars, and it was restored in 1976 after historical research. At that time, with the opening of a road, it was moved slightly south of its original position. The Martyrs’ Veneration Hall of the shrine stands in front of Gwanghuimun.

Religious Meaning and Visiting Context

Good News Catholic Information introduces Gwanghuimun as the crossroads of life and death for Catholics. The 1 Course “Way of the Word” of the Seoul Catholic Pilgrimage Route is guided as a total distance of 8.7 km, about 3 hours 40 minutes on foot, passing through Myeongdong Cathedral, the site of Kim Beom-u’s house, the founding site of the Korean Catholic Church, the site of the Left Podocheong, and Jongno Church to reach the Gwanghuimun Shrine.

Related Places and People

• Seosomun: introduced as the gate that, together with Gwanghuimun, was used to carry corpses from inside the walled capital outside the wall.
• Jongno Church (Podocheong pilgrimage church): the parish having jurisdiction over the Left and Right Podocheong martyrdom sites, included in the same 1 Course.

References and Sources

1. Martyrs’ Veneration Committee of the Archdiocese of Seoul, “Seoul Catholic Pilgrimage Route Way of the Word (1 Course)” entry on the Gwanghuimun Shrine. The location and alias (Sigu-mun) of Gwanghuimun, the year of construction (1396), the background of the restoration, and the distance and time required for the 1 Course were verified.
   https://martyrs.or.kr/_web/mpilgrims/aboutcourse.html?cidx=6
2. Good News Catholic Information, “Gwanghuimun Shrine of the Archdiocese of Seoul.” The character of the gate as the gate through which corpses were sent outside the wall, the circumstances of martyrdom during the persecutions, and the installation of the Martyrs’ Veneration Hall and appointment of the first priest in charge of the shrine in August 2014 were verified.
   https://m.catholic.or.kr/web/holyplace/?seq=2286
3. Seoul Catholic Pilgrimage Route (seoulpilgrim.com), “1 Course: Way of the Word.” The order of the Gwanghuimun Shrine as the sixth pilgrimage site and the description of the area outside Gwanghuimun as the place where martyrs were buried and abandoned were verified.
   https://seoulpilgrim.com/course/1/