Huchondong Catholic Church

Overview

Hyucheon-dong Church is a church in Hyucheon-dong, Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, belonging to the Diocese of Andong. Originating from the Yeongju Catholic mission chapel, it was established as Yeongju Church (Yeongju Parish) on August 14, 1958, and was the first church in the Yeongju area to be elevated to a parish. When Hamang-dong Church was built in 1988, it changed its name to Hyucheon-dong Church.

History

[Yeongju Mission Chapel] According to the Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, the history of Catholicism in the Yeongju area began with Hong Yu-han (1736–1785), but there was no place for religious activities in Yeongju. In 1946, Gwon Yong-deok (Won Seon-sio), who had lived in Geochang County, South Gyeongsang Province, moved to Yeongju County and offered his own house in Hamang-ri, Yeongju-eup as a mission chapel, thereby establishing the Yeongju mission chapel. At that time the Yeongju mission chapel belonged to the Mokseong-dong Parish in Andong County and had 10 faithful. In 1955 it came under the Yecheon Parish, and as the number of faithful grew, calls for elevation to a parish continued; from 1956 onward land for a church was purchased with the goal of elevation to a parish, and a church and a rectory were built.

[Elevation to a Parish] According to the Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, affiliation changed to the Bonghwa Parish in 1958, but soon the Yeongju mission chapel was elevated to Yeongju Parish, and Yeongju Church was established on August 14, 1958. At that time the Punggi mission chapel (now Punggi Church), which had belonged to the Yecheon Parish, was transferred to Yeongju Parish, and Yeongju Parish took charge of pastoral care for the whole of Yeongju City, including the Punggi mission chapel and the Buseok mission chapel. The Punggi mission chapel was elevated to a parish in 1980 and separated.

[Separation of the Hamang-dong Parish and Renaming] According to the entry “Hamang-dong Parish” in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the mid-1980s Yeongju Parish had too large a jurisdiction and was located on one side of Yeongju City, and when Church growth surged on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Catholic Church in Korea in 1984, division of the parish became necessary. On August 28, 1988, the Diocese of Andong separated and established the Hamang-dong Parish from the Yeongju (now Hyucheon-dong) Parish. The Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia records that when Hamang-dong Church was built in 1988, Yeongju Church changed its name to Hyucheon-dong Church, and that the building was rebuilt in 2008.

[Activities] According to the Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, on March 3, 1996, a Comitium (regional council) headquartered at Hyucheon-dong Church was established, starting at its foundation with 4 Curiae, 53 adult Praesidia, 5 junior Praesidia, and 505 active members. In 1994 it opened a school for the elderly and devoted itself to welfare for the elderly, but it was abolished in 1996. The same source evaluates that Hyucheon-dong Church, as the first church in the Yeongju area to be elevated to a parish, played an important role in the history of Catholicism in Yeongju.

Related Places and People

• Hamang-dong Church: a parish separated and established from the Yeongju (now Hyucheon-dong) Parish on August 28, 1988 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia).
• Punggi Church: the Punggi mission chapel, which had belonged to the Yecheon Parish, was transferred to Yeongju Parish in 1958 and then elevated to a parish and separated in 1980 (Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia).
• Gwon Yong-deok (Won Seon-sio): the person who made the establishment of the Yeongju mission chapel possible by offering his own house in Hamang-ri, Yeongju-eup as a mission chapel in 1946 (Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia).
• Hong Yu-han (1736–1785): the person described as the beginning of Catholicism in Yeongju in the “Catholicism” entry of the Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, who lived as a baptized believer in Gugu-ri, Dansan-myeon.

References and Sources

1. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, “Hyucheon-dong Church.” Establishment of the Yeongju mission chapel, establishment of Yeongju Church on August 14, 1958, renaming in 1988, rebuilding in 2008.
   https://www.grandculture.net/yeongju/toc/GC07401000
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Yeongju Culture Encyclopedia, “Catholicism.” Hong Yu-han and the beginning of Catholicism in Yeongju, Yeongju mission chapel in 1946, establishment of Hamang-dong Church in 1988, establishment of Gaheung-dong Church in 2018.
   https://www.grandculture.net/yeongju/toc/GC07400018
3. Research Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Hamang-dong Parish” (Volume 12). Circumstances of the separation and establishment of the Hamang-dong Parish from the Yeongju (now Hyucheon-dong) Parish on August 28, 1988.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/6698