A French missionary bishop who secretly led the Catholic Church in Korea before being martyred at Seoul in 1839.

Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert was a French missionary who served as Titular Bishop of Capsa and Vicar Apostolic of Korea from 1836 until his martyrdom in 1839. Entering Korea in secret at a time when Christianity was outlawed, he worked to organize and sustain the underground Korean Catholic Church until he was captured and executed at Saenamteo, near Seoul, at about forty-two years old. He was beatified in 1925 and canonized in 1984 by Pope John Paul II among the Korean Martyrs.

Quick Facts

• Born: France, 1796
• Died: September 21, 1839, Saenamteo, Seoul, South Korea (age about 42)
• Feast Day: September 20 (with the Korean Martyrs)
• Beatified: 1925; Canonized: 1984
• Venerated as: Bishop and martyr; Vicar Apostolic of Korea

Who Was Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert?

Imbert was a French missionary priest who was named Titular Bishop of Capsa and appointed to lead the fledgling and entirely underground Catholic mission in Korea, entering the country covertly in 1837 at a time when practicing Christianity carried a death sentence under Korean law. He worked to train Korean catechists and sustain the sacramental life of a Church that had to operate in complete secrecy.

Historical Setting

The Joseon dynasty’s Korea in the early nineteenth century enforced a strict prohibition on Christianity, viewing it as a foreign and subversive influence, and periodically launched severe persecutions against Korean converts and the small number of foreign missionaries who managed to enter the country. Imbert’s episcopate took place entirely under these conditions of enforced secrecy and constant danger.

Why the Church Remembers Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert

The Church remembers Imbert for the courage of leading a Church that could not legally exist, organizing its sacramental and catechetical life from hiding until his eventual capture. Rather than allow more of his Korean flock to be endangered searching for him, tradition holds that he surrendered himself to authorities, and he was executed at Saenamteo along with fellow missionary priests.

Canonization and Feast Day

Imbert was beatified in 1925 and canonized on May 6, 1984, when Pope John Paul II canonized 103 Korean Martyrs during his visit to Korea, with a shared feast kept on September 20.

What Catholics Can Learn Today

Imbert’s willingness to accept capture rather than endanger the community he had come to serve is a striking model of a shepherd’s self-sacrifice for his flock. It challenges leaders in the Church today to consider what they would be willing to give up to protect those in their care.

A Prayer to Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert

Saint Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert, missionary bishop and martyr of Korea, you gave yourself up rather than risk your hidden flock. Give bishops and pastors today the same willingness to place their people’s safety and faith above their own, and strengthen the Korean Church that grew from the seed of your sacrifice. Amen.

Sources

• Vatican.va canonization homily for the Korean Martyrs (1984)
• Roman Martyrology
• Butler’s Lives of the Saints