Catholic martyr executed after the 1791 Jinsan incident; baptismal name Paul; beatified in 2014
| Life | 1759 ~ 1791 |
| Era | 조선 후기 |
| Clan | 해남 윤씨 |
Yun Ji-chung (1759-1791) was a late Joseon Catholic believer of the Haenam Yun clan, courtesy name Uyong and baptismal name Paul. He was born at Jangochi in Jinsan (now Dosan-ri, Beolgok-myeon, Geumsan, South Chungcheong); his great-grandfather was the painter Yun Du-seo and his sixth-generation ancestor Yun Seon-do. Through an aunt, Yun So-on, who married Jeong Yak-yong's father, he is said to have mixed with the Jeong brothers and Yi Seung-hun; sources differ on whether he was introduced to the faith by Jeong Yak-jeon or Jeong Yak-yong.
When his mother, Lady Gwon of Andong, died in May 1791, Yun did not make an ancestral tablet or hold rites, following Catholic teaching. The news reached Seoul and became a pretext for political attack, and arrest warrants were issued for him and his cousin Gwon Sang-yeon. He turned himself in in October after his uncle was seized, and he did not renounce his faith under interrogation. The court treated the refusal of ancestral rites as a denial of filial piety and loyalty.
The two were beheaded outside the South Gate of Jeonju on 8 December 1791, and the case is counted as the start of the Sinhae persecution, Korea's first persecution of Catholics. When Pope Francis beatified 124 Korean martyrs on 16 August 2014, Yun was recorded as the first. In March 2021 remains of Yun, Gwon and Yun Ji-heon were found at Chonnami shrine in Wanju, and the Jeonju Diocese announced it in September 2021. Jeondong Cathedral, built at the execution site, has a statue depicting his martyrdom.
In 1790 his cousin Gwon Sang-yeon burned an ancestral tablet, and Yun did not hold rites at his mother's funeral in 1791. Dates vary slightly by source, so please compare Wikipedia and the Encyclopedia of Korean Culture.
He was beatified in 2014, and Jeondong Cathedral (Historic Site No. 288) at the execution site has a statue in his memory. See also the Haenam Yun page.
In 2021 the Jeonju Diocese announced that the remains of Yun Ji-chung, Gwon Sang-yeon and Yun Ji-heon were found at Chonnami shrine, Wanju.