Archbishop Lazarus You Heung-sik, who was appointed Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy in June, celebrated a special Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of St. Andrew Kim Taegon.

“St. Andrew Kim, and others of our forefathers, practiced what they believed,” the prelate preached, “even if they lived in a society dominated by a hierarchical social system, and did their best to live the Gospel ideals of human dignity and equality among peoples.”

Catholics in South Korea also recalled the anniversary.