Biography
Maria Yi In-dog
About Maria Yi In-dog
Maria Yi In-dog grew up in a poor noble household in Seoul. Her grandmother introduced her to Catholic teaching, and Maria entered the Church with her mother, Barbara Cho, and elder sister Magdalena Yi Yong-dog. Her father opposed their religious practice.
The Korean institutional account describes the three women receiving baptism while her father was away. His opposition intensified afterward. A dispute over the marriage he proposed for Magdalena led the women to leave their home and seek refuge with other Catholics.
Bishop Imbert initially told them to return home. After learning that returning would put them in danger, he gave them some help and asked catechists to look after them. They obtained a small house, where they continued practicing their religion despite hunger and cold.
Two other Catholic women joined the household. During the persecution of 1839, the women encouraged one another but were arrested before they could carry out a plan to surrender with their clergy. Maria’s mother and the two companions died from illness in prison. Maria and Magdalena were transferred to the criminal court.
Maria refused demands to abandon Catholicism despite repeated punishment. The bishops’ conference account describes a government report emphasizing her attachment to the religion and its missionaries. That description reflects the authorities’ assessment of her commitment. She was beheaded at Tang-kogae near Seoul on January 31, 1840.
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