HongYu-han is regarded as the first devout seeker of the Catholic faith in Korea.In 1742, at the age of sixteen, he entered the circle of the renowned Confucianscholar 성호 이익(Seongho Yi Ik) at his father’s recommendationand developed a deep interest in Catholic teaching. Beginning in 1757, heresolved to bring the seed of the Gospel into this land and to form a communityof faith, starting with a life of religious discipline himself. Whencircumstances made it impossible to practice his faith openly, he moved alonein 1775 to Dansan-myeon in the Sunheung region of Gyeongsang-do, at the foot ofSobaeksan, where he lived out the profound meaning of the Gospel. Although henever received baptism, he began living the faith earlier than the members ofthe study groups and shared deep spiritual fellowship with them. Until hisdeath in 1785, he lived out the teachings of the Catholic faith faithfully forten year