Francis Ch'oe Kyong-hwan, Feast day September 12

Francis Ch'oe Kyong-hwan was an underground Korean Catholic catechist and the father of Father Thomas Ch'oe Yang-eop, Korea's second native priest. Abandoning his noble family estate to practice the forbidden Christian faith without compromise, he established a clandestine settlement in the Surisan mountains to shelter fellow believers. Arrested during the ferocious Gihae Persecution of 1839, Francis sustained hundreds of blows under interrogation before dying of his wounds in prison.

Exile for the Forbidden Gospel

Francis was born in 1805 into the distinguished Gyeongju Ch'oe clan. His ancestors had embraced Catholicism when the faith first filtered into the Joseon kingdom through intellectual exchange with Beijing, but prior purges had stripped the family of influence. In a society where Confucian ancestral rites were mandated by law as the ultimate test of filial piety and civic loyalty, Francis refused to perform rituals that contradicted the first commandment. Choosing evangelical poverty over social prestige, he relinquished his ancestral lands in Chungcheong and moved his household from place to place to avoid state surveillance.

The Mountain Refuge of Surisan

Seeking a permanent sanctuary where Christians could practice their faith openly among themselves, Francis settled his family in the dense, forested slopes of Mount Suri near modern Anyang. Believers fleeing persecution joined him, clearing terraces to cultivate tobacco and squash, forming an isolated village bonded by shared prayer and mutual support. When Saint Laurent Imbert, Vicar Apostolic of Korea, covertly visited the community, he recognized Francis's leadership and theological depth, formally investing him as a catechist. In this role, Francis catechized seekers, organized emergency food aid, and prepared the community for inevitable persecution.

Hospitality Before the Arrest

When the government initiated the sweeping Gihae Persecution of 1839, police discovered the refuge at Surisan. On the night of July 31, police agents surrounded the village. Instead of arming his followers or attempting flight, Francis greeted the arresting officers with calm hospitality, slaughtering a pig and feeding them a meal before they commenced their work. He gathered approximately forty villagers, urged them to accept suffering without cowardice or hatred, and walked alongside them in chains along the road to the royal prison in Seoul.

The Ordeal in the Seoul Gaol

In the royal prison, magistrates sought to break the leader of the Surisan Christians through methodical violence. Francis was subjected to severe beatings with wooden clubs, the crushing of his legs, and repeated lacerations meant to force him to trample on the crucifix and name other believers. Though many weaker villagers faltered under the torture, Francis maintained his confession, spending his nights bandaging broken limbs and exhorting his cellmates to keep their eyes fixed on Christ. After dozens of court appearances and hundreds of blows that left his flesh open to fatal infection, Francis died of his injuries in prison on September 12, 1839.

A Legacy Sealed in Blood

Shortly after Francis's death, his wife, Maria Yi Seong-rye, was beheaded after watching their infant son starve in prison. Their sacrifice cleared the path for their eldest son, Thomas Ch'oe Yang-eop, who had been sent to Macau for theological study and was later ordained as the second native Catholic priest of Korea. Francis was beatified by Pope Pius XI in 1925 and canonized by Pope John Paul II on May 6, 1984, in Seoul, standing as an enduring icon of lay Christian initiative and domestic fortitude.

Patronage

Scripture

In their words

Watch the short film in Bible Flares. Every saint of the day comes with a short film, the narration, and the verse that anchors the story.

Open in Bible Flares →