‘The Letters of Saint Andrew Kim Dae-geon’ published in English

The Research Foundation of Korean Church History has published an English-language version of “The Letters of Saint Andrew Kim Dae-geon” to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of the first Korean Catholic priest and saint.

“We look forward to sharing the deep faith of St. Andrew Kim Dae-geon and his pioneering spirit with the world by publishing the English version of the book of letters. Our ancestors are the only ones in the world that accepted Catholicism by their own volition,” head of the Research Foundation of Korean Church History Jo Han-geun said.

“I hope that it will light up the hearts of many people who are seriously suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The book was also published to mark St. Andrew Kim Dae-geon being recognized by UNESCO as a universal patron saint for his dedication to equality and fraternal love this year, according to the research foundation.

The 288-page book details St. Andrew’s return to Joseon after studying in Macau in 1842, as well as 19 letters and reports that the martyr wrote before he died in August 1846.

Most of the letters are written in Latin and there are also documents that are translated into French. Also, the book includes letters that are written in Korean.

The research foundation emphasized that the letters are the most important material in understanding the life, activities, devotion and achievements of St. Andrew.

The English book was created based on the first book of the three-part series that was published to mark the 150th anniversary of St. Andrew‘s death in 1996. The research foundation added that when translating, it made sure that foreigners who do not have much understanding of East Asian history can also read it without difficulty.

The book’s appendix also includes a brief history of the Korean Church.

The book is priced at $28.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)