Robert Jermain Thomas

Robert Thomas: from Rhayader to Korea

Robert Jermain Thomas was born in Rhayader, Wales in 1839 to a devout Christian family. His father was a Calvinistic Methodist minister, and Thomas grew up with a strong religious foundation. He showed an early interest in languages and cultures. Robert felt what he understood to be God's call to take the Word of God to China.

So, in 1863, at the age of 24, Thomas joined the London Missionary Society and set off for China. He initially worked in Shanghai, learning the Chinese language and culture. His attention however soon turned to Korea, a country largely closed to foreigners, particularly missionaries; and a country, at that time, bereft of the gospel.

Korea was known as the 'Hermit Kingdom' due to its isolationist policies. Despite the dangers, Robert was persuaded that he should respond to an irresistible calling to take Bibles to Korea.

In 1865, Thomas made his first trip to Korea, visiting the border region near the Yalu River. During this trip, he distributed Korean-language Bibles to local people and began to learn about the country's culture and religious beliefs. His enthusiasm and determination grew as he saw the potential for spreading the gospel in Korea.

In 1866, Thomas joined the crew of the 'General Sherman', an American-owned trading ship that sailed to Pyongyang in an attempt to establish trade relations. Thomas boarded the ship not as a trader but as a missionary, carrying Korean-language Bibles with him, wrapped in waterproof packages.

The mission seemed to end in total disaster. The Korean authorities, suspicious of the ship's intentions, attacked the General Sherman. After several days of conflict, the ship was set on fire; most of the crew were killed.

When Robert could stay no longer on the boat, he jumped into the river and swam out with a few Bibles in his clothes or, as some reports say, he threw bundles of Bibles overboard. Although Thomas managed to escape the burning ship, he was captured by Korean soldiers. As he faced execution, he offered Bibles to his captors and reportedly uttered prayers for Korea. In his final moments, Robert prayed for the soldier, Park Chun-Kwon, who had pointed a sword at him, and gave him a Bible. Thomas was stabbed to death and his body burned on the riverbank of the Taedong River in Pyongyang.

According to accounts, Park Chun-Kwon picked up one of the scattered Bibles and took it home with him. After reading it, he is said to have been converted to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. He became an elder in the Anju Episcopal Church.

Also in the crowd was a twelve-year-old boy, named Choi Chi-Liang, who picked up three of the Bibles that Thomas had scattered, kept them, and gave one to Park Young-Sik, who tore the Bible apart and used it as wallpaper. Later, when villages read the wallpaper, those few pages of God's Word became the means for the conversion of many, who then founded the Nuldarigol Chapel, the first church in Pyongyang.

The message spread and huge numbers of Koreans became ardent believers. Over time, the seeds Robert Thomas planted grew, and by the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Christianity flourished in Korea.