Seoul (AsiaNews) - With the title "Inside the Catholic Church in Korea", the Research Institute for Korean Church History, recently published the first book outlining the history of Korean Catholicism from the initial persecution in the eighteenth century to today.
In the preface, Don Joseph Kim, Seong Tae, director of the institute, writes: "We felt the need for a book that succinctly summed up the history of our Church to make it accessible to all. I think it is an aid for those who wish to know the Korean Catholic Church. "
The Church of Korea was founded in 1784 by the Korean laity on their own, without the direct support of missionaries. Because of their faith over 20 thousand people suffered martyrdom in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The book presents the path of the evangelization of Korea in 6 periods, especially emphasizing the role of the laity. They encountered Christianity for the first time through the catechism written in Chinese by Matteo Ricci, brought home by a Korean sent to the Chinese court. The last part of the book instead focuses on the modern history, and the important role of the Church and Christianity in the democratization of the country.
Monsignor Andrea Yom, Su Jeong, Auxiliary Bishop of Seoul and president of the research institute of the history of Korean Church, says: "This book contains the glorious history of our Church through the work of the laity in Korea, but it also tells of their effort in spreading the Christian message in the present". The bishop invites readers to ponder: 'How I would have acted, as a Christian, if I lived in those times of persecution?".
The Korean edition of the book is already being published. The English translation will instead be presented in the next few months and was realised by Father Patrick McMullan of the Missonary Society of St. Columban in Korea.
