Byeongyeong Catholic Church

Overview

Byeongyeong Church is a church in Namoe-dong, Jung-gu, Ulsan Metropolitan City, belonging to the Ulsan Vicariate of the Diocese of Busan. It was established by separation from Ulsan (now Boksan) Parish, its patron saint is the Korean Martyrs, and it played a major role in the establishment of Hogye Church and Hwabong Church.

History

〔Land purchase and parish establishment〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as large-scale apartment complexes began to appear in the early 1980s following the development of residential land in the Hwabong-Hogye district of Ulsan City, the diocese anticipated growth in the number of the faithful in the area and on September 2, 1983, purchased 596 pyeong of land at the present parish site. About 4 years later, on May 10, 1987, a committee for the establishment of a new parish was formed at Ulsan Parish, and ten days later land was purchased in the area of lot 104 (76 pyeong) and lot 104-1 (201 pyeong) in Namoe-dong. Construction of the new church began on August 9, and as expansion of the site became necessary during construction, an additional 107 pyeong at lot 100-2 in Namoe-dong was purchased at the end of that year. The encyclopedia records that the parish was established on February 5, 1988, with Father Kim Chang-dae taking office as the first pastor. The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia gives the establishment date as November 13, 1988, notes that it was separated from Boksan Church, and that the number of the faithful at the time of establishment was 1,407. The two sources differ on the establishment date.

〔Completion of the church and early activities〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the year following the establishment of the parish, on November 13, 1989, the church with a total floor area of 373 pyeong was completed together with the rectory (55 pyeong) and the convent (45 pyeong). In the time of the 3 pastor, Father Oh Chang-ryeol, on November 15, 1992, under the motto of an evangelizing Church and a community in communion, a Laity Sunday event was held to promote to local residents the prevention of abortion, the abolition of the death penalty, environmental preservation and other causes. On September 12, 1995, a Night of Martyrs event was held, and the relics of 15 saints, including Father Kim Dae-geon (Andrew), were enshrined in the church.

〔Separation of Hogye and Hwabong〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the parish established the Hogye Catholic mission chapel in Sincheon-ri, Ulju-gun, Ulsan City, on October 29, 1989, and when this mission chapel was elevated to a parish on February 10, 1995, 1,013 parish registers were transferred. Even after the division, it joined in raising funds for the construction of Hogye Church. The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia records that the Hogye mission chapel was established within the jurisdiction in 1989, that it was separated as Hogye Church in February 1996, and that Hwabong Church was separated in 2003. The timing of the elevation of the Hogye mission chapel to a parish is given as February 1995 by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia and as February 1996 by the Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia, differing from each other.

〔Church strength, jurisdiction and successive pastors〕 The church strength recorded by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia is 1,668 in 1988, 2,743 in 1992, and 3,314 in 1996, and the jurisdiction at the time is given as all of Namoe-dong, Yaksa-dong, Seo-dong, Dong-dong, Jung-gu and Jinjang-dong, Hwabong-dong, Yeonam-dong, Buk-gu, and part of Bangu-dong, Jung-gu. The successive pastors are the first Kim Chang-dae Emmanuel (1988.2~1991.2), the 2 Lee Si-chan Daniel (1991.2~1992.2), the 3 Oh Chang-ryeol John (1992.2~1996.2), and the 4 Kim Hyeon-cheol Gregory (1996.2~). The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia gives, as of 2017, the jurisdiction as Byeongyeong-ro, Beonyeong-ro, Gugyo-ro, Namoe-ro, Bukbu Sunhwan-ro and Pyeongsan-ro in Jung-gu, and the number of the faithful as 3,240 (men 1,447, women 1,793).

Architecture and Space

According to the Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia, the church buildings consist of the church (1,233㎡), the rectory (180.83㎡) and the convent (150.41㎡).

Related Places and Persons

• Boksan Church (former Ulsan Church): the mother parish from which Byeongyeong Parish was separated (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia).
• Hogye Church: the church elevated to a parish from the Hogye mission chapel under Byeongyeong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia).
• Hwabong Church: the church separated from Byeongyeong Church (Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia).
• Ulsan Byeongyeong Jangdaebeol: According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in Byeongyeong-dong there is Ulsan Jangdaebeol, where Heo In-baek (James), Kim Jong-ryun (Luke) and Lee Yang-deung (Peter) were beheaded and martyred in 1866 during the Byeongin Persecution. The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia records that Byeongyeong Church contributed to the construction of the Ulsan Byeongyeong Martyrs Shrine Church commemorating these martyrs.

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Byeongyeong Parish”. Land purchase, establishment process, church completion, establishment of the Hogye mission chapel and elevation to parish, church strength and successive pastors, martyrdom at Byeongyeong Jangdaebeol.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/2545
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia “Byeongyeong Church”. Founding history, separation of Hogye and Hwabong Churches, church building size, status in 2017.
   https://www.grandculture.net/ulsan/toc/GC80010306