The names of the seven Columban priests who were killed in Korea in 1950 were inscribed in the Book of Martyrs presented to Pope John Paul 11 at a ceremony in the Coliseum in Rome in 2000 commemorating Martyrs of the 20th Century.
On Wednesday August 28th, 2013 the Cause of the Eighty-One Modern Day Martyrs of Korea was opened. This includes the Seven Columban Priests.
These 81 Korean Martyrs are on the road to Beatification.
Every Sunday throughout the Diocese of Seoul at the beginning of Mass the people offer a prayer for the beatification of the 81 Korean Martyrs. What a pity that we can’t do the same here in Ireland but I love that Father Denis Crosby includes Tommie in EVERY SINGLE MASS in Liscannor together with St Brigid and St MacCreehy.
PROGRESS OF THE BEATIFICATION-CANONIZATION PROMOTION
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2009 April |
The secretariat of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea (CBCK) requested the cooperation of each diocese to submit materials re ‘the Beatification Investigation of Modern Witnesses to the Faith |
| 2010 March | The Spring General Assembly of the CBCK announced and gave permission for a joint promotion of the beatification of the Modern Day Witnesses to the Faith |
| 2011 February | The Committee for Selecting the Servants of God was established and held its first meeting |
| 2012 March | The Spring General Assembly of the CBCK appointed Bishop Francis Xavier Ahn Myongok as the 2nd chairman of the Special Episcopal Commission to Promote Beatification and Canonization |
| 2012 October | At their 8th meeting the Committee for selecting the Servants of God choose 81 candidates |
| 2013 March |
1) The Spring General Assembly of the CBCK: Approved the proposal for the title of the Korean Modern Day Witnesses to the Faith to be Servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong-ho and 80 Companions 2) The Special Episcopal Commission set up and appointed “The Members of a Historical and Archival Committee”. Upon taking oath the first meeting was held. |
| 2013 April | Decree from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (Prot. N. 6625/10) in response to the submission re the Servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong-ho and 80 Companions” giving Seoul Archdiocese the authority to conduct the Inquiry |
| 2013 September | The Archbishop of Seoul delegates the authority to conduct the inquiry to the chairman of the Special Episcopal Commission to Promote Beatification and Canonization |
| 2014 March | The 8th Meeting of the Committee of Historical and Archival Experts |
| 2014 July | A request is sent to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints for a declaration of ‘Nihil Obstat’ |
| 2014 November | A Postulator is nominated to oversee the promotion of Beatification. |
| 2015 July | The Autumn General Assembly of the CBCK, Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik is appointed as the 3rd chairman of the Special Episcopal Commission to Promote Beatification and Canonization |
| 2015 August |
The chairman of the Special Episcopal Commission to promote Beatification & Canonization, Bishop Ahn made a special declaration “On the occasion of the Inquiry into the Cause of the Beatification or the Declaration of Martyrdom of the Servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong-ho and 80 Companions |
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2015 September |
Theological Censors are appointed to review the documentation. They take an oath and are commissioned to examine the documentation |
| 2016 October | The Autumn General Assembly of the CBCK, Bishop Lazzaro You Heung-sik is appointed as the 3rd chairman of the Special Episcopal Commission to Promote Beatification and Canonization |
| 2016 December | The Episcopal Chairman declares that there was no fraud or deceit involved in the delay in initiating the cause for Beatification |
| 2017 January |
Decree of ‘Instruction of the Cause, and of the Constitution of the Tribunal Letter of the Bishop to the promoter of Justice requesting a list of questions and summoning him to attend the tribunal. |
| 2017 February | The beatification Tribunal began for the Servants of God Servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong-ho and 80 Companions |
| 2019 Feb - July | Field Investigation of the 81 Servants of God (Tribunal Sessions 11-19) |
In an email dated 8th June 2020 Fr Donal wrote:
“You asked re the beatification process - With the Covid 19 travel restrictions there has been a slow down on the field trip side of the process but the work still continues compiling materials. They are presently looking at any articles or materials published by the 81 candidates checking to see if they were "orthodox' in their views. (I am sure Tommie will have no problem in that area!!)” so that’s where we’re at just now.
On January 29th 2021 Father Donal O’Keeffe sent the following update on the Beatification Process.
The Korean Columban Martyrs – An Update on the Beatification Process
In 1998 Preparing to mark the New Millennium, the ‘Commission for New Martyrs’ of the Vatican Central 2000 Jubilee Committee invited all Local Churches to gather materials relating to modern Day Martyrs. In Korea in April 2009, the secretariat of the Korean Bishops Conference requested each diocese to submit materials re ‘The Beatification Investigation of Modern Day Witnesses to the Faith’.
Seven Columbans who lost their lives during the Korean Conflict were nominated by the respective dioceses where they had worked. Francis Canavan, Tony Collier, James Maginn, & Patrick Reilly were nominated by Chuncheon Diocese while Patrick Brennan, Thomas Cusack and John O’Brien were nominated by Gwangju Archdiocese. Chuncheon Diocese was given responsibility for gathering all the materials relating to the Columbans. The diocese contacted Denis Monaghan, the Korean Regional Archivist and so began the process of gathering all the materials from Columban files in Korea, ANZ, Ireland and the USA. This included copies of Baptism and Confirmation Certs., copies of the oaths of membership in the Society, the Ordination Register; articles relating to their lives and deaths from Columban Mission Magazines, Columban Publications etc. Contact was also made, where possible, with the families of the martyrs in order to get a more detailed picture of the lives of the deceased.
The material was handed over to the ‘Special Episcopal Commission to promote Beatification and Canonization’ of the Korean Bishops Conference. In Oct 2012 the Commission finalized the list of 81 candidates – at which stage the candidates were officially called ‘Servants of God’. The bishop chairperson of the Commission was authorized to conduct the inquiry. In all of this the Bishops Conference was strictly following the process for conducting Local Church inquiries re the causes of saints which was published by the Vatican in 2007[1].
In 2013 one candidate was selected as representative of the group and the title of the cause for beatification became <The servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong–ho and 80 Companions’’>. Of the 81 candidates 58 are Korean of whom 21 are lay persons, 4 are sisters, 3 are seminarians, 29 are priests and 1 is a bishop. Of the 23 missionaries, 2 are Maryknollers (a bishop and a sister), 12 are Paris Foreign Missionaries, 2 are Paul de Chartres sisters and 7 are Columbans.
That same year, the Commission appointed a ‘Historical and Archival Committee’ to go over the materials and build up files on each individual. Subsequently in 2015 a Team of Theologians was appointed to examine any writings of the Servants of God from the perspective of orthodoxy.
On 22 January 2017 the Tribunal was inaugurated to begin the process of examining the case of each individual. The Columban director at the time Kim Jong-Geun Domingo and I were present on behalf of the Columbans and I was asked to help with the editing of the English Translations. The tribunal began to hold sessions and examine witnesses as they looked at each candidate on the list. The final step was a field investigation, where possible, of the sites where the candidates were martyred.
As of present (Jan 2021) the process in Korea is practically completed. It concludes when the bishop in charge of the process makes a judgement that “the ‘heroic virtues’ of the servants of God have, or have not, been established”. If established, a copy in English of the relevant materials (Acta) will be sent to the Vatican ‘Congregation for the Causes of Saints’. This ‘Acta’ is very extensive – it includes a detailed account of how the official procedure was followed; a historical summary of each individual case – including copies of all the sources quoted; the record of the tribunal investigation of each candidate and the testimony of the witnesses; the result of the theological scrutiny of the writings of the candidates – including copies of the original writings; the result of the field examination.; and the final ruling by the bishop.
In Rome then the final stage of the beatification process begins! The material is assigned to a ‘Relator’ from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints who guides the cause through the rest of the process. He prepares a summary of the materials called a 'Positio' which in turn is examined by 9 theologians who vote on whether or not the candidate lived a heroic life or suffered martyrdom. If the majority of the theologians are in favor, the findings are then forwarded to the ‘Commission of Cardinal and Bishop members of the Congregation’ who vote on the cause. If the vote is affirmative they make the recommendation to the Pope. He gives his approval and authorizes the Congregation to draft a decree declaring them ‘venerable; or in the case of martyrs declaring them ‘blessed’.
It has been over 20 years since the process began, and over 8 years since the list of 81 servants of God was finalized in Korea! A major reason for the lengthy time framework is that the ‘Episcopal Commission’ was simultaneously working on the promotion of other groups of Korean martyrs who were martyred during the 19th Century Choseon Dynasty persecutions.
The beatification process in Rome for the Columbans will take some more years. For example, in the case of the 124 martyrs beatified by Pope Francis in 2014 during his visit to Seoul, the Vatican process took a full 5 years. Not alone is the process slow, but the ‘Congregation for the causes of Saints’ is simultaneously dealing with submissions from many other Local Churches and from various Congregations. My hope is that the Columban Beatifications will happen well before 2033, the year of the Centenary Celebration of the Columbans in Korea!
Sunday 14th February 2021 Donal’s update on the Beatification Process:
Regarding the beatification process - I would be hopeful that it will happen well before our centenary. One reason for hope is that the Church historian from Chuncheon Diocese - Fr Simon Kim Ju-young - (who was in charge of promoting the Columban candidates) - has just been appointed the new Bishop of Chuncheon. And I am more than certain that he will push the process because there are 7 candidates from his diocese - 3 Korean priests and the 4 Columbans killed in the Northern part of Korea. And their graves are in the cemetery behind the cathedral in Chuncheon! So I think we have solid grounds for Hope!!
On July 1st 2022 Father Donal O’Keeffe sent the following update on the Beatification Process:
The Korean Columban Martyrs – An Update on the Beatification Process
In 1998 Preparing to mark the New Millennium, the ‘Commission for New Martyrs’ of the Vatican Central 2000 Jubilee Committee invited all Local Churches to gather materials relating to modern Day Martyrs. In Korea in April 2009, the secretariat of the Korean Bishops Conference requested each diocese to submit materials re ‘The Beatification Investigation of Modern Day Witnesses to the Faith’.
Seven Columbans who lost their lives during the Korean Conflict were nominated by the respective dioceses where they had worked. Francis Canavan, Tony Collier, James Maginn, & Patrick Reilly were nominated by Chuncheon Diocese while Patrick Brennan, Thomas Cusack and John O’Brien were nominated by Gwangju Archdiocese. Chuncheon Diocese was given responsibility for gathering all the materials relating to the Columbans. The diocese contacted Denis Monaghan, the Korean Regional Archivist and so began the process of gathering all the materials from Columban files in Korea, ANZ, Ireland and the USA. This included copies of Baptism and Confirmation Certs., copies of the oaths of membership in the Society, the Ordination Register; articles relating to their lives and deaths from Columban Mission Magazines, Columban Publications etc. Contact was also made, where possible, with the families of the martyrs in order to get a more detailed picture of the lives of the deceased.
The material was handed over to the ‘Special Episcopal Commission to promote Beatification and Canonization’ of the Korean Bishops Conference. In Oct 2012 the Commission finalized the list of 81 candidates – at which stage the candidates were officially called ‘Servants of God’. The bishop chairperson of the Commission was authorized to conduct the inquiry. In all of this the Bishops Conference was strictly following the process for conducting Local Church inquiries re the causes of saints which was published by the Vatican in 2007[2].
In 2013 one candidate was selected as representative of the group and the title of the cause for beatification became <The servants of God “Bishop Francis Borgia Hong Yong–ho and 80 Companions’’>. Of the 81 candidates 58 are Korean of whom 21 are lay persons, 4 are sisters, 3 are seminarians, 29 are priests and 1 is a bishop. Of the 23 missionaries, 2 are Maryknollers (a bishop and a sister), 12 are Paris Foreign Missionaries, 2 are Paul de Chartres sisters and 7 are Columbans.
That same year, the Commission appointed a ‘Historical and Archival Committee’ to go over the materials and build up files on each individual. Subsequently in 2015 a Team of Theologians was appointed to examine any writings of the Servants of God from the perspective of orthodoxy.
On 22 January 2017 the Tribunal was inaugurated to begin the process of examining the case of each individual. The Columban director at the time Kim Jong-Geun Domingo and I were present on behalf of the Columbans and I was asked to help with the editing of the English Translations. The tribunal began to hold sessions and examine witnesses as they looked at each candidate on the list. The final step was a field investigation, where possible, of the sites where the candidates were martyred.
The process in Korea is now completed (June 2022). Archbishop Jo Hwangil, who was in charge of the process, made a judgement that “the ‘heroic virtues’ of the servants of God have been established”. A copy in English of the relevant materials (Acta) has now being sent to the Vatican ‘Congregation for the Causes of Saints’. This ‘Acta’ is very extensive – it includes a detailed account of how the official procedure was followed; a historical summary of each individual case – including copies of all the sources quoted; the record of the tribunal investigation of each candidate and the testimony of the witnesses; the result of the theological scrutiny of the writings of the candidates – including copies of the original writings; the result of the field examination.; and the final ruling by the bishop.
In Rome then the final stage of the beatification process begins! The material is assigned to a ‘Relator’ from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints who guides the cause through the rest of the process. He prepares a summary of the materials called a 'Positio' which in turn is examined by 9 theologians who vote on whether or not the candidate lived a heroic life or suffered martyrdom. If the majority of the theologians are in favor, the findings are then forwarded to the ‘Commission of Cardinal and Bishop members of the Congregation’ who vote on the cause. If the vote is affirmative they make the recommendation to the Pope. He gives his approval and authorizes the Congregation to draft a decree declaring them ‘venerable; or in the case of martyrs declaring them ‘blessed’.
It has been over 20 years since the process began, and over 8 years since the list of 81 servants of God was finalized in Korea! A major reason for the lengthy time framework is that the ‘Episcopal Commission’ was simultaneously working on the promotion of other groups of Korean martyrs who were martyred during the 19th Century Choseon Dynasty persecutions.
The beatification process in Rome for the Columbans will take some more years. For example, in the case of the 124 martyrs beatified by Pope Francis in 2014 during his visit to Seoul, the Vatican process took a full 5 years. Not alone is the process slow, but the ‘Congregation for the causes of Saints’ is simultaneously dealing with submissions from many other Local Churches and from various Congregations. My hope is that the Columban Beatifications will happen well before 2033, the year of the Centenary Celebration of the Columbans in Korea!
[1] ‘Sanctorum Mater’< Instruction for conducting Diocesan or Eparchial Inquiries in the cause of Saints> Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Rome 2007.
[2] ‘Sanctorum Mater’< Instruction for conducting Diocesan or Eparchial Inquiries in the cause of Saints> Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Rome 2007.
The Catholic Bishops Conference of Korea presents the result of its investigation into the cause of beatification of the martyrs of the Korean War on June 7, 2022. (Photo courtesy of CBCK)
The Catholic Bishops Conference of Korea this week formally closed the diocesan investigation into the cause of beatification of the late Bishop Francis Hong Yong-ho of Pyongyang and of 80 other “martyrs” who died during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953.
A cause of beatification is part of the formal process by which a person may be named a saint or martyr in the Catholic Church.
Bishop Hong was imprisoned by North Korean forces in 1949 with 49 priests, seven religious, and 25 lay people who were also reportedly tortured and killed. The prelate was never seen since then.
Earlier this year, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission report said more than 1,100 Christians died for their faith in the hands of North Korean forces during the war.
The commission reported that at least 1,145 Christians, including 119 Catholics and 1,026 Protestants, died during their retreat from the South following military operations in 1950
As early as 2008, the bishops of Korea had had expressed their intention to ask for the recognition of the martyrdom of the “witnesses of the faith.”
In 2014, the Vatican accepted Bishop Hong as a “Servant of God,” the first stage of his possible canonization, making him the first candidate for sainthood from North Korea
he Archdiocese of Seoul has since collected all evidence available and translated these into English. The evidence and papers were all sealed in special boxes and were presented during a ceremony on June 7 before shipment to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in the Vatican.
“Bishop Hong and his companions are different figures from the martyrs of the era of persecution 200 years ago,” said Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-taick of Seoul.
“They are people who shared the history of the twentieth century with us, they are really part of our lives. They gave their lives to bear witness to what matters,” he said.
“In the harsh reality that we are still living in a divided country where the division between North and South and ideological conflicts continue, I sincerely hope that the promotion of the beatification of these martyrs will serve as a foundation for promoting reconciliation and unity,” said Bishop Mathias Ri Iong-hoon of Suwon, president of the Korean Bishops’ Conference.
Of the candidates for sainthood, 49 were from the Archdiocese of Seoul, while others came from the dioceses of Gwangju, Jeju, Suwon, Incheon and Chuncheon. The list also includes the former apostolic delegate to Korea, Monsignor Patrick James Byrne, a Maryknoll missionary.
Korea was a unified nation and ruled for centuries by the staunchly Buddhist Joseon dynasty (1392-1897). It became a protectorate of Japan through the Korea-Japan Eulsa Treaty in 1905 following Japan’s victory in the Russo-Japanese War that same year.
Japan’s imperial rule (1905-45) ended after World War II, leading to bifurcation of Korea into two by the United States and the Soviet Union. Several efforts to unify Korea failed over disagreements between the US and Soviet regimes and resulted in the Korean War (1950-53).
North Korean communist forces invaded the South during the war and brutal conflict left some 4 million dead and about 10 million families displaced.
The war came to end with an armistice, not a war treaty, on July 27, 1953. It means the nations are technically still at war.
Any further updates about the Beatification Process will be published on this website.
Thanks to Father Donal for continuing to keep us informed.