VATICAN — Saint Andrew Kim Tae-gon, South Korea’s patron saint and first priest, was recently honored with a towering statue in the Vatican.
The whitewashed statue, inscribed with “S. Andreas Kim Taegon” or the saint’s name in Latin, can be seen perched on an outdoor wall by the exit from the Vatican Museums, near the souvenir shop.
Last year, a biopic depicting St. Andrew’s life, “A Birth,” premiered in the Vatican’s New Synod Hall, with the Vatican’s prelates in attendance. In 2021, a 30-episode radio drama on the saint’s life went on air from February 22 to April 3 by Daejeon’s Catholic Peace Broadcasting Center, led by Father Paul Baek Hyun.
Born on August 21, 1821 in Tangjin-gun County, South Korea, St. Andrew is the son of another Korean saint, St. Ignacio Kim Che-jun, and great grandchild of Blessed Pio Kim Jin-hu. Like St. Andrew, Che-jun and Jin-hu are martyrs.
When St. Andrew was only 15, his father and siblings were killed for their faith. He then went to Macao to study under Catholic priests.
But when territorial disputes with China began, and when Catholics were then still persecuted in Korea, St. Andrew sailed to the Philippines and lived in Lolomboy, which was then known as Hacienda de Lolomboy, owned by the Dominican friars. Here, he served as an interpreter since he was fluent in English, Spanish, Mandarin and French. He lived in Lolomboy in 1837, 1839 and 1841. In his letters to his relatives, he described Lolomboy as “a quiet place suitable for holy trainings.”
St. Andrew then became the first ever Korean priest when he was ordained on August 17, 1845 in Shanghai, China. It was October that year when he returned to Korea to serve Catholics hiding from persecution. In less than a year, he was arrested and accused for the crime of allegedly spreading foreign religion and conniving with foreigners to take down the Korean empire.
For this, San Andres Kim, as his name goes in Filipino, was sentenced to death at the age of 25. He was beheaded on September 16, 1846, and his head was put on a bamboo spike for three days as a warning against Catholics in Korea.
In 1925, Pope Pius XI hailed San Andres as “Blessed,” and on May 6, 1984, San Andres was proclaimed “saint” alongside 91 other Korean laity, including his father, and 10 French priests.
St. Andrew’s feast day is celebrated every September 20. A Korean-style convent and shrine was built on where he lived in the Philippines, and it is still open for visitors.
The Convent Shrine of St. Andrew Kim Tae-Gon is at 623 Mendoza St., Lolomboy, Bocaue. For inquiries, call (+639) 334133957 or (+639) 275147365.
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