Seongnamjong Sam John and Family Martyrs' Shrine

Overview

The tomb of Saint John Nam Jong-sam and his family is a pilgrimage site belonging to the Diocese of Uijeongbu, located in the family cemetery of the Uiryeong Nam clan in Uldae-ri, Jangheung-myeon, Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do. It holds the graves of Saint John Nam Jong-sam, martyred in the Byeongin persecution in 1866, his father Augustine Nam Sang-gyo, his wife Philomena Yi Joyi, and his youngest son Nam Gyu-hui. The cemetery lies within the Gileum-dong church cemetery, and in 2018 the Diocese of Uijeongbu designated Songchu Church, to which the cemetery belongs, as the pilgrimage site for this tomb.

History

According to the Diocese of Uijeongbu, this cemetery was established as a family cemetery by the saint’s grandson Nam Sang-cheol in 1968. There is a grave of the youngest son Nam Gyu-hui, who had been exiled to Changnyeong, but there is no grave of the eldest son Nam Myeong-hui, who was martyred at Chorokbawi in Jeonju.

Nam Jong-sam’s body was first buried at Waegogae in Yongsan, and in 1909 his remains were exhumed and enshrined at Myeongdong Church, then on the occasion of the beatification, in October 1967, they were moved to the reliquary of Jeoldusan Martyrs’ Shrine. At that time, a portion of the remains was brought to the family tomb in Uldae-ri and buried there.

In December 2004, an information stele was installed in the cemetery to sanctify the tomb, and in 2010 the Diocese of Uijeongbu developed the pilgrimage route “Way of the Martyrs” to promote the saint’s spirit of martyrdom. In August 2018, the Diocese of Uijeongbu designated Songchu Church, to which the cemetery belongs, as the pilgrimage site for the Tomb of Saint John Nam Jong-sam and the Family Martyrs and for the Tomb of Martyr Alexius Hwang Sa-yeong, and in September of the same year erected and blessed, that is unveiled, a new tombstone for the saint.

Significance for faith and context for visiting

Nam Jong-sam rose to seungji, holding the highest government office among the 103 Korean saints. When faith and public office could no longer stand together, he resigned his office and went down to Myojae, where his father lived in seclusion. Selected as jwaseungji around the end of 1863, when Russia intruded demanding trade, he proposed through the French bishop the “bangachaek (防我策) plan of iijei (以夷制夷)” to block Russia by using Western powers, but it was not realized. Afterwards he was arrested and in 1866, on March 7 of the Byeongin year, was beheaded at the crossroads outside Seosomun and martyred.

The Good News presentation of shrines introduces this tomb as the “resting place of the family of Saint Nam Jong-sam, martyred through generations,” reporting that his father Nam Sang-gyo was martyred in Gongju and his wife Yi Joyi died in exile.

Related places and persons

• Songchu Church: the parish designated in August 2018 as the pilgrimage site for this tomb and for the Tomb of Martyr Alexius Hwang Sa-yeong
• Tomb of Martyr Alexius Hwang Sa-yeong: a nearby pilgrimage site visited together on the Diocese of Uijeongbu’s “Way of the Martyrs”
• Jeoldusan Martyrs’ Shrine: the place where the remains of Saint Nam Jong-sam were enshrined in October 1967
• Augustine Nam Sang-gyo, Philomena Yi Joyi, and Nam Gyu-hui: the saint’s family buried in this cemetery

References and sources

1. Diocese of Uijeongbu, Shrines - Tomb of Saint John Nam Jong-sam and Family. Creation of the cemetery by grandson Nam Sang-cheol in 1968, the graves of Nam Sang-gyo, Yi Joyi and Nam Gyu-hui and the absence of Nam Myeong-hui’s grave, the highest office among 103, the proposal of the bangachaek plan, martyrdom outside Seosomun, the transfers of the remains via Waegogae, Myeongdong Church and Jeoldusan and the partial burial at Uldae-ri, and the blessing of the new tombstone in September 2018 confirmed.
   http://ucatholic.or.kr/bbs/board.php?bo_table=holyland&wr_id=98
2. Good News (Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea), Catholic Shrines - Tomb of Saint John Nam Jong-sam and Family. Martyrdom of Nam Sang-gyo in Gongju and death of Yi Joyi in exile, seclusion at Myojae, selection as jwaseungji in 1863, beheading outside Seosomun on March 7 of the Byeongin year, the stele in December 2004, the “Way of the Martyrs” in 2010, and the designation of Songchu Church as pilgrimage site in August 2018 and the unveiling of the tombstone in September confirmed.
   https://m.catholic.or.kr/web/holyplace/?seq=2282