Kwon Hui

Kwon Hui (權喜, 1794 – 3 September 1839) was one of the 103 Saints of Korean Catholicism who were martyred during the persecution of Catholics in Joseon. Her baptismal name was Barbara.

She was a member of a family of martyrs. She was the wife of Yi Kwang-hon Augustine, the mother of Yi Agatha, and the sister-in-law of Yi Kwang-ryeol John.

Life

Kwon Hui was born into a non-Christian family, but around 1817 she and her husband became Catholic believers. Despite the persecution, she risked her safety to provide lodging and meals to Bishop Imbert and other missionaries. She also allowed them to use her house as a meeting place for Mass, the sacraments, and catechism classes.

In the Gihae Persecution of 1839, on 7 April Kwon Hui was arrested together with all of her family and was severely tortured several times at the Podocheong and the Hyeongjo. The most painful thing for her was watching her 16-year-old daughter and her younger son, who were arrested with her, suffer brutal torture, hunger, thirst, and cold. Using the pretext that the law prohibited interrogating children at the Hyeongjo, the constables reunited her with her children during torture and forced her to renounce her faith. Some time later, Kwon Hui's mother-in-law and son were released, but her daughter remained and endured the harsh imprisonment and torture together with her mother.

Kwon Hui endured all temptations, punishments, and torture. After five months in prison, on 3 September 1839 she was taken outside Seosomun and beheaded together with five fellow believers. She was 46 years old when she received the crown of martyrdom.