Namyang, South Korea
About the Location
Korea, shaped by hardship and resilience, is home to Rosary Hill, a shrine honoring 19 martyrs of the Byungin Persecutions, part of the 10,000 Catholic martyrs who made Korea the fourth largest source of saints in the Catholic world.
Namyang was designated a Holy Site on October 7, 1991, and became the first church in Korea dedicated solely to the Blessed Virgin Mary and prayer for peace. Pope John Paul II praised the Korean Church for its lay-founded roots and unwavering faith, saying its martyrs became the catalyst for the Church and contributed to the flourishing of the Church in Koreatoday.
About the Altar
The “In Unity and Peace” altar draws inspiration from the Book of Revelation, symbolizing the Heavenly Jerusalem with twelve gates and a square layout representing the city’s walls. At its top is the Throne of Grace with God the Father holding the Body of Christ and flanked by arch angels.
At the center of the closed altar are 20 columns symbolizing the Holy Sepulcher, with figures of St. John Paul II and Our Lady of Fatima, marking the 100th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions. Surrounding them are angelic choirs and crosses from various Christian traditions, highlighting unity in diversity.
When open, the altar reveals a life-size image of the Shroud of Turin showing both the front and back of Christ, seen as a symbol of the divided Korean nation, awaiting unity.
At its heart is the Eucharistic Christ in a monstrance shaped like Mary, reminding us that she was the first “tabernacle.” Her figure is embraced by a rose bush, symbolizing the rosary and the Seven Sorrows of Mary.
