Catholic Church in Korea

Trade and the exchange of ideas, primarily beginning in the 18th century,[1] between the Korean peninsula and Europe resulted in the proliferation of books on Catholic teachings, and the spread of Western knowledge.

The Catholic Church faced severe persecution under the Joseon Dynasty due to the threat that this newly introduced faith posed against the Confucian-based social and political order.

[7] By proportion of a national population and by raw number of adherents, South Korea ranks among the most strongly Catholic countries in Asia after the Philippines and East Timor.

In the late 18th century, a small group of Korean intellectuals and scholars (known as silhak) were exposed to Catholicism through Western books and Chinese translations.

These scholars converted prior to the arrival of Catholic missionaries to the country, and relied upon the fragments of Christian literature they already possessed to guide them during this time.

The pivotal event in the early development of the Church in Korea occurred when Yi Seung-hun, a Korean diplomat, traveled to Beijing in 1784.

The primary reason for this persecution was the perceived threat of Catholic teachings to the existing Confucian-based social and political order.

Among the notable figures who suffered martyrdom during the persecution were French bishop Siméon-François Berneux and Korean lay leader Paul Yun Ji-Chung.