From the early 17th century, Catholic writingsauthored in Chinese by missionaries in China were introduced into Joseon Korea.These books, written in Chinese characters, were welcomed and studiedparticularly by scholars of the Namin (Southerner) faction. Their interest not only inspired the growth ofthe Silhak (PracticalLearning) movement but also gave rise to a new intellectual current known as Seohak (“Western Learning”).

Among the earliest of these texts was The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven (《천주실의》 Tianzhu Shiyi), written by theJesuit missionary Matteo Ricci and first introduced to Korea by Yi Su-gwang.

Gradually, scholars who sought more thanintellectual knowledge began to find in Seohak thetruth about human life and began to practice its teachings in dailylife. Around 1770, Hong Yu-han became the first Korean known to practice themoral precepts of the Catholic faith. Soon after, study gatherings at Jueosa (주어사, Jueosa Temple) became the cradle of Catholic faith for scholarssuch as Kwon Cheol-shin, Jeong Yak-jeon, and Yi Byeok.

As these men found no ultimate answers to life’sessential questions within the Confucian classics, they turned to Westernlearning and began to discover spiritual truth there. Through prayer, fasting,and study, they gradually began to practice elements of the Catholiccommandments in their own lives.

In 1784, Yi Seung-hun was baptized in Beijing and,upon returning to Korea, joined Yi Byeok and Jeong Yak-jeon to form a smallcommunity of believers — marking the birth of the Korean Catholic Church. YiSeung-hun studied doctrine with Yi Byeok and began sharing the faith with hisrelatives and acquaintances. From that year, they began to administer baptismthemselves; thus, 1784 is commemorated as the founding year of the KoreanCatholic Church.

Yi Byeok also visited the brothers Jeong Yak-jeonand Jeong Yak-yong to emphasize the need to spread the Gospel. Evangelizationextended even to the jungin (middle-class professionals), and converts such as Kim Beom-u, ChoiIn-gil, Choi Chang-hyeon, and Ji Hwang joined the growing community.

Recognizing the importance of converting prominentscholars, Yi Byeok visited the Kwon family in Yanggeun and successfully ledbrothers Kwon Cheol-shin and Kwon Il-shin to conversion. Kwon Il-shin, inparticular, became a zealous apostle of evangelization, forming with YiSeung-hun and Yi Byeok the “three pillars” (samdaejiju, 三大支柱) of the earlyKorean Church.

In late 1794, the first foreign missionary, FatherZhou Wen-mo (주문모, Zhou Wenmo), a Chinese priest, wassecretly sent to the Church in Joseon. Through his pastoral work and thefervent missionary efforts of the faithful, the Church flourished: the numberof Catholics increased from 4,000 at his arrival to 10,000 by the year 1800.

However, in 1801, the Shin-yuPersecution (신유박해) broughtthe Church to near ruin. Father Zhou Wen-mo was martyred, and most of theChurch’s leaders were executed.

Despite the devastation, the faithful sought torebuild by appealing to the Bishop of Beijing for priests to be sent to Korea.Messengers were dispatched, and letters were even sent to the Pope in 1811 andagain in 1825 requesting missionaries. Finally, in 1831, in response to thesepetitions, the Apostolic Vicariate of Joseon (조선교구, Joseon Gyogu) was established by theHoly See.

The first Apostolic Vicar was Bishop BarthélemyBruguière of the Paris Foreign Missions Society (파리외방전교회, Paris Foreign Missions Society). In 1837, the second ApostolicVicar, Bishop Laurent Imbert (范世亨, Imbert), enteredKorea, thus realizing the full independence of the Korean Church from theDiocese of Beijing.

From its earliest years, the Catholic Church inKorea faced intense government suppression and endured more than ten majorpersecutions over the course of a century.

The first occurred in the spring of 1785 when YiSeung-hun and other leaders were arrested during a religious gathering, knownas the Eulsa Persecution (을사추조적발). Among those captured, only KimBeom-u — a jungin-classbeliever — was exiled, and he became the first martyr to die for the Catholicfaith on Korean soil.

In 1791, Yun Ji-chung and Kwon Sang-yeon wereexecuted in Jeonju for refusing to perform ancestral rites, an event known asthe Shin-hae Persecution (신해박해).

The Eulmyo Persecution (을묘박해) of 1795 began with a government orderto arrest Father Zhou Wen-mo. When the priest went into hiding, the faithfulYun Yu-il, Choi In-gil, and Ji Hwang sacrificed their own lives to protect him.

The first large-scale, systematic persecution beganin 1801, shortly after King Sunjo’s accession — the Shin-yuPersecution (신유박해). Alarmedby the Church’s rapid growth, the ruling class launched a brutal persecutionthat uprooted the young Church. Father Zhou Wen-mo was martyred,and nearly all prominent lay leaders were executed.

Even those who had already apostatized, such as YiSeung-hun and Kim Geon-sun, were not spared and were executed as politicaloffenders.

During this time occurred the Hwang Sa-yeong Silk Letter Incident (황사영백서사건, Hwang Sa-yeong Baekseo Sageon).

When persecution broke out, Hwang Sa-yeong Alexius (황사영알렉시오) went intohiding. From his refuge, he wrote a letter—known as the Baekseo (帛書,“Silk Letter”)—to the Bishop of Beijing, reporting the tragic situation of theChurch in Korea and pleading for help. However, the letter was interceptedbefore it reached China, and Hwang was arrested.

Because the letter contained strong expressionsdenying the political system of the Joseon dynasty, the royal court regarded itas treasonous. Consequently, government hostility toward Catholicism deepened,and Hwang Sa-yeong was executed for his faith.

During the reign of KingHeonjong (헌종),the second great wave of persecution struck in 1839, known as the Gihae Persecution (기해박해). In this persecution, three missionaries—Bishop Laurent Imbert, Father Pierre Maubant, and Father Jacques Chastan—were allmartyred, along with many lay leaders such as St.Paul Chong Ha-sang (정하상바오로), St. Francis Xavier Yoo Jin-gil (유진길프란치스코하비에르), and Cho Shin-chul.

The Byung-o Persecution (병오박해) of 1846 began with the arrest of St. Andrew Kim Dae-geon (김대건안드레아), the first Korean-born priest. Havingbeen ordained in 1845, he was captured while attempting to open a safe routefor missionaries to enter the country through the western coast and wasmartyred that same year.

Despite continued persecution in 1860 (Gyeongshin Persecution, 경신박해), the Church achieved remarkable growth. However, Heungseon Daewongun (흥선대원군) launched the most severe nationwide persecutionbeginning in 1866—the infamous Byung-inPersecution (병인박해)—whichlasted nearly a decade.

During this persecution, nine foreign missionarieswere martyred, and over 8,000 Korean Catholics, including Nam Jong-sam and Hong Bong-ju, gave their lives inwitness to the faith.

After Korea opened its ports to the world in 1876,foreign missionaries were again able to enter the country, though some weresoon arrested. Bishop Ridel and Father Deguette were captured but not executed; they were instead deported to China.From that time forward, open persecution of missionaries ceased, and a new eradawned for the Korean Church.

The government had branded Catholicism as a“pernicious religion” (sagyo, 邪敎), condemning it as mubu-mugun (無父無君)—“adoctrine without loyalty to parents or king.” Catholics were charged under gangsang-jwe (綱常罪), crimes against Confucian moral order.

Other causes of persecution included Confucianexclusivism, the inseparability of religion and state, factional strife andaristocratic domination, and the isolationist policies of the late Joseondynasty.

As a result of these persecutions, the aristocracyand learned classes who had once led the Church receded, and the faith came tobe sustained mainly by humble and poor commoners. The faithful withdrew toremote mountain areas, forming hidden CatholicVillages (교우촌, Gyowuchon) where they preserved the faith in secret.

From the perspective of faith, persecution becamethe Church’s true victory—it demonstrated that the Church grows even throughsuffering. Ultimately, the religious freedom later granted to Korean Catholicswas born from the blood of countless martyrs who bore witness to the truth.

In 1882, diplomatic relations with the UnitedStates began, and in 1886 a treaty with France—though imperfect—granted thefirst measure of religious freedom in Korea. Missionaries were finally permitted to reside andestablish missions, and parish structures soon developed.

The first parish was established in Jonghyeon (종현, today’sMyeongdong) in Seoul, which included a grandcathedral, the bishop’s residence, a convent, and a printing press. FollowingJonghyeon, parishes were founded in newly opened port cities such as Wonsan,Jemulpo (modern Incheon), Busan, Masanpo, and Mokpo.

In Yongsan, the construction of a Western-styleseminary building marked the beginning of systematic formation for Koreanclergy. During this period, the Gospel spread southward to Jeju Island (제주도) and northward across the border into Gando(간도) inManchuria.

Rapid growth, however, led to frequent conflictswith local authorities. In some regions, native resistance to Catholicismerupted, including the Jeju Church Uprising (제주교난) and other local disturbances. Toprevent such conflicts, the government and the Church signed the Treaty of Religious Protection (교민조약, Gyomin Joyak), which officiallyrecognized freedom of religion for Koreans.

Five years later, a missionary treaty was concludedbetween the French Legation and the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, legallyguaranteeing the right of residence for missionaries within their parishes.

During the modern reform era (Gaehwagi), the Catholic Church alsocontributed actively to national enlightenment through education and the press.The Gyeonghyang Newspaper (경향신문, Gyeonghyang Sinmun) was founded in1906 and continued publication for four years until it was suppressed byJapanese colonial authorities. In a time when national sovereignty was indecline, the newspaper emphasized the need for innerenlightenment (naejuk gaehwa, 內的開化)—spiritual and moral renewal from within.

The Church’s educational mission initially focusedon primary and civic education, but during the Japanese occupation, as thecolonial authorities monopolized the education system, many Catholic schoolswere forced to close.

During the March First Independence Movement of1919, even though Church authorities prohibited participation, seminarians fromthe seminaries in Seoul andDaegu joined thedemonstrations.

Japanese oppression of religion grew increasinglysevere. Gyeonghyang Newspaper (경향신문), unable to withstand colonialcensorship and suppression, was shut down. SoongsinSchool—a Catholic teachers’ training school—wasalso forced to close. Religious activities were restricted, and even catechesisin parish schools was forbidden.

In the 1920s, Japan began to mandate Shinto shrine worship. TheCatholic Church initially declared shrine worship to be heretical. As a result,many Catholics who refused to participate in this mandatory Shinto “nationalrite” were expelled from their workplaces or imprisoned.

By the 1940s, foreign bishops were replaced byJapanese clergy, American missionaries were expelled, and many foreignmissionaries were detained.

Despite this repression, the ecclesiasticalstructure of the Korean Church continued to grow, eventually reaching nine dioceses. Along with thisexpansion, new missionary orders such as the MaryknollFathers and the ColumbanFathers began their work in Korea.

In 1942, leadership of the Archdiocese of Seoul (서울대교구) was handed to Bishop No Ki-nam, making him the first Korean-born diocesan bishop in the history ofthe Korean Church.

The tragedy of national division resulted in the complete destruction of the Church in North Korea. Through land reform, currency reform, and systematicanti-religious campaigns, communist authorities advanced policies aimed ateliminating religion from society.

Many Catholics fled south seeking freedom of faith,while those who remained in the North held firmly to their belief until theend.

In May 1949, a final operation to eradicate theChurch was launched. Communist forces attacked the BenedictineAbbey of Tokwon (덕원) and arrested Bishop Boniface Sauer and all foreign priests, monks, and religious sisters residing inSouth and North Hamgyong Province.

Bishop Hong Yong-ho (홍용호), Apostolic Vicar of Pyongyang,protested the arrests. He himself was arrested and disappeared. Soon after,nearly all Korean priests in Pyongyang and the surrounding provinces wereimprisoned.

By the time of the Korean War, not a single priestremained active in North Korea.

In South Korea, however, the Church continued togrow even amid the devastation of the Korean War (1950–1953). After thearmistice, the Church experienced extraordinary development, with tens ofthousands of catechumens entering the Church each year. The Catholicpopulation, which stood at about 160,000 at the time of the armistice, surgedto 530,000 by 1962.

The year 1962 opened a new chapter in the history of the Korean Church. In thatyear, the Holy See formally established the ecclesiasticalhierarchy of Korea, elevating the Church frommissionary status to a full diocesan structure.

The Second VaticanCouncil (1962–1965), convened that same year, had aprofound and lasting influence on the renewal and growth of the Korean CatholicChurch.

Institutional development continued, and in 1969 Archbishop Kim Su-hwan (김수환) of Seoul was created Cardinal — the first Korean cardinal inhistory.

By the end of 1983, the Korean Catholic Churchnumbered 1,711,367 faithful.

There were 14 dioceses withinSouth Korea, including three archdioceses (Seoul, Daegu, Gwangju), and three dioceses in North Korea (Pyongyang,Hamheung, Tokwon), which continue to exist only in name because of politicalcircumstances.

The Church had 656parishes, 1,708 missionstations, 1,059 Koreanpriests, 224 foreignpriests, and large numbers of religious men andwomen:

302 brothers (including 41 foreign religious)

3,667 sisters (including 153 foreign religious)