ThomasKim Beom-u held regular faith gatherings known as the “Myeongryebang Meetings”in his own home when churches did not yet exist, welcoming people regardless ofsocial class. Arrested in the spring of 1785, he suffered severe torture andwas pressured to renounce his faith, but refused and was exiled to Miryang.There, he fervently evangelized people of all social backgrounds until injuriessustained during torture worsened and he died in 1786 at the age of thirty-six.The site of his home would later become the location of **MyeongdongCathedral**, a symbol of the Korean Catholic Church.