Bansong Catholic Church

Overview

Bansong Church is a church belonging to the Diocese of Busan in Bansong-dong, Haeundae-gu, Busan Metropolitan City. It was established on December 24, 1972 by elevation from a Catholic mission chapel under Dongnae Parish to a parish. Its patron is the Holy Family.

History

[Establishment of the mission chapel] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the Bansong-dong area was a traditional rural area until the early 1960s, but a densely settled residential area was formed as displaced people from Beomil-dong and its surroundings moved in under an urban plan carried out from 1968 through 1970. Among the residents of this area, about 20 faithful formed a preparatory committee for establishing a mission chapel in 1969, and in the same year, with the establishment of the Bansong mission chapel on December 10, Father Yu Chang-ho (Thomas) of the overseeing Dongnae Parish celebrated the first Mass. In the early days, unable to provide a mission chapel hall, they borrowed a nearby senior citizens hall, a livestock hospital, the Sacred Heart Nursery and other facilities, and formed the Legion of Mary’s Tower of Ivory Praesidium to carry out evangelization on their own.

[Elevation to parish and construction of the church] The encyclopedia states that in 1971 Father Beninati of the Maryknoll Foreign Mission Society judged that establishing a parish in this area, where displaced people continued to move in, would greatly expand church growth, and proposed the establishment of a parish to the diocese, and that by the decision of the diocese it was elevated to a parish on December 24, 1972. Father Beninati, appointed as the first pastor, rented a house of about 10 pyeong for use as both church and rectory and celebrated Sunday Mass in the hall of the Sacred Heart Nursery, then in the following year purchased 704 pyeong of land at the present parish site on May and held the groundbreaking ceremony on June, completing the church on October 7.

[Education and pastoral activity] According to the encyclopedia, most residents at the time had difficulty making a living, so the middle-school enrollment rate among young people in the area was very low. In response, the parish opened Daegon School on June 18, 1974 and taught the middle-school curriculum to young people who had not advanced to middle school. Under the 2 pastor, Father Zunno, in February 1979 a church expansion project was carried out, the Holy Family Association and the Shinu Association were organized, and the Legion of Mary became more active. In 1983 Father Egan (Thomas), who took office as the 3 pastor, devoted attention to youth and labor ministry, opening a mountain school and founding the Young Christian Workers (J.O.C.) within the parish, but the encyclopedia notes that afterward, with frequent transfers of parish priests, there was also a time when it did not escape a stagnant atmosphere for a while. The 8 pastor, Father Kim Hyeon-cheol, considered promoting fellowship among parish community members the most urgent task and installed a Mailbox of Love on July 11, 1993, developing a sharing of love through letters.

[Membership and jurisdiction] The encyclopedia gives the parish location as 290-1, Bansong 2-dong, Haeundae-gu, the jurisdiction as Bansong 1 to 3-dong, Seokdae-dong, and the Cheolma-myeon area of Yangsan-gun, and the membership as 566 faithful in 1973, 1,322 faithful in 1980, 1,966 faithful in 1986, 2,340 faithful in 1990, and 2,943 faithful in 1995. The address directory of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea lists the present parish as belonging to the Geumjeong District, the establishment date as December 24, 1972, the serving religious congregation as the Congregation of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, the number of faithful as 3,771, and the number of mission chapels as 1.

[Successive pastors] The successive priests listed in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the first, Francisco F. Beninati (1972.12–1977.7), the 2, Michael O. Zunno, Ju Eun-no (1977.7–1983.10), the 3, Thomas T. Egan, Do Myeong-heon (1983.10–1986.9), the 4, Beninati (1986.9–1988.2), the 5, Marco Lee Jae-man (1988.2–1990.2), the 6, James Kim Seong-nam (1990.2–1991.2), the 7, Paul Im Seok-su (1991.2–1992.2), the 8, Gregory Kim Hyeon-cheol (1992.2–1996.2), and the 9, Jerome Lee Seong-gyun (1996.2–the present at the time of the encyclopedia’s compilation). The address directory currently lists Father Peter Kang Jong-seok as the present pastor.

Architecture and Space

According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, on May 1973 it purchased 704 pyeong of land at the present parish site, held the groundbreaking ceremony on June, and completed the church on October 7, and under the 2 pastor, Father Zunno, in February 1979 a church expansion project was carried out.

Related Places and People

• Dongnae Parish: It is the parish that had jurisdiction over the Bansong mission chapel. Father Yu Chang-ho of Dongnae Parish celebrated the first Mass with the establishment of the Bansong mission chapel on December 10, 1969, and the Bansong mission chapel was elevated on December 24, 1972 from a mission chapel under this parish’s jurisdiction to a parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Father F. Beninati: As a member of the Maryknoll Foreign Mission Society, in 1971 he proposed the establishment of Bansong Parish to the diocese and served as the first pastor (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Daegon School: It is the school that the parish opened on June 18, 1974 to teach the middle-school curriculum to young people who had not advanced to middle school (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Bansong Parish” (Vol. 5) among the entries belonging to the Diocese of Busan. Establishment of the mission chapel, elevation to parish in 1972, construction of the church, Daegon School, membership, jurisdiction, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/2348
2. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, Korean Catholic Address Directory, “Bansong” (Diocese of Busan). Establishment date, patron, district, religious congregation, number of faithful, number of mission chapels. Establishment date given in the directory 1972.12.24, patron Holy Family, Geumjeong District.
   http://directory.cbck.or.kr/m/catholicInfo.asp?code=201001400&gubun=4