Our Lady of Peace
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Ambrose Kim Seong-hui was born in Gusan, Gyeonggi-do (present-day Mangwol-dong, Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do). He was the only son of a woman of the Pyeongtaek Bang clan and St. Anthony Kim Seong-u who was arrested in the Gihae Persecution of 1839 and died a martyr in 1841. His adult name was ‘Hui-baek’.

Ambrose Kim grew up and married a daughter of Yi Beom-hoe from the Jeonju Yi clan. He had no son so he adopted Thomas Kim Gyo-ik who was the grandson of Peter of Alcantara Kim Yun-sim (N. 97) as his son to carry on the family line. Peter of Alcantara Kim was his father’s younger brother. It was said that like his father Anthony, Ambrose Kim was very kind and generous.

When he was about 20 years old, Ambrose and his parents were baptized by the Chinese priest, Father Pacificus Yu Pang-je. They practiced Catholic teaching diligently. When his father St Anthony Kim Seong-u died a martyr, he took his body and buried it in Gusan Christian village. As Ambrose practiced his faith, he assumed the duties of the catechist and tried to evangelize neighbors. He propagated Catholicism to his brother-in-law Hong Hui-man. As he ran a drug store, he restored family finances and did a lot of charitable work for the needy.

He treated the poor free of charge. When the Mujin Persecution broke out in 1868, Gusan village again became a target of persecutors. At that time, Ambrose Kim Seong-hui was arrested together with his uncle Peter of Alcantara and others, and was put in the Namhansanseong (South Han Mountain Fortress) prison in Gwangju.

Ambrose had to undergo interrogation and torture several times but he did not give up his faith. Finally he and his relatives were sentenced to death. He died a martyr at the place of execution in Namhansanseong on March 8, 1868 (February 15 by the lunar calendar) at the age of 53. After his martyrdom, his adopted son Kim Gyo-ik secretly took his body at night and buried it in Gusan.