Deoksin Catholic Church

Overview

Deoksin Church is a church belonging to the Diocese of Busan in Deoksin-ri, Onsan-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan Metropolitan City. It began in 1985 as the Deoksin Catholic mission chapel under Wolpyeong Parish, was established as a parish on February 1, 1990, and its jurisdiction is recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia as the entire area of Onyang-myeon and Onsan-myeon.

History

[Establishment of the Deoksin Mission Chapel] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, on March 4, 1985 the Deoksin mission chapel was separated and newly established from Wolpyeong Parish. This was because the distance to Wolpyeong Parish was great and it was difficult to attend Mass. As the number of faithful increased, on May 8, 1988 a preparatory and standing committee for building a church was formed, on June 9 630 pyeong of church land was purchased, and on June 12 the 1 standing committee of the Deoksin mission chapel pastoral council and the church construction committee were formed.

[Church Construction and Parish Establishment] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the following year on February 18 a church building permit was obtained and, with a total floor area of 144 pyeong in a 2-story building, the church (72 pyeong) and the rectory and office (72 pyeong) were built, and on December 12 the dedication ceremony of the new church was held. The same encyclopedia states that Deoksin Parish was established on February 1, 1990 and that its patron is the Queen of Angels. The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia lists, as churches branched from Wolpyeong Church, Yaeum Church (1985), Okdong Church (1993) together with Deoksin Church (1990).

[Mission Chapels and Annex Facilities] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, on September 15, 1989 the Namchang mission chapel, with 52 pyeong of land and 38 pyeong of total floor area, was rebuilt and blessed. On June 7, 1991 a branch house of the Foreign Mission Sisters of Korea was installed in a temporary building, and the following year on November 15 a catechism room was newly built and blessed as a temporary building. In 1995 the convent, which had been a temporary building, was rebuilt, and as the number of faithful in the Namchang mission chapel area increased, land had been purchased and preparations for a new mission chapel building were underway. The Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia states that Namchang Church (1998) branched from Deoksin Church.

[Church Statistics and Activities] The church statistics recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are 310 persons in 1990, 741 persons in 1992, and 1,087 persons in 1994. The parish was then divided into 5 districts and 23 groups, with districts 1 to 3 being the Deoksin Parish area and districts 4 and 5 being the Namchang mission chapel area. Every year in early June an outdoor parish Mass was offered and a fellowship event was held in the afternoon, and lay organizations included the pastoral council, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (spelled ‘Bincheonsiohoe’ in the encyclopedia), the Association for the Deceased, the Marian Association, and others. The encyclopedia explains that the Deoksin area of Onsan-myeon serves as a residential hinterland because of the character of the industrial complex, and that it is an area to which residents who had lived in Onsan-myeon migrated because of the formation of the industrial complex.

[Successive Head Priests] The successive head priests recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the first, Daniel No Gyeongsam (1990.2–12), the 2 pastor, Thomas Son Deongman (1990.12–1992.2), the 3 pastor, Blaise Heo Jinho (1992.2–1994.2), and the 4 pastor, John Bosco Lee Surak (1994.2–).

Related Places and Persons

• Wolpyeong Church: it branched from Ulsan Church (Boksan Church) in 1975, and it is the mother parish from which the Deoksin mission chapel was separated (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia).
• Namchang Mission Chapel and Namchang Church: it was a mission chapel under the jurisdiction of Deoksin Parish and in 1998 it branched from Deoksin Church and became a parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Deoksin Parish”. Establishment of the mission chapel, church construction and dedication, establishment of the parish in 1990, church statistics, successive head priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/1337
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Ulsan History and Culture Encyclopedia “Churches”. Branching of Deoksin Church (1990) from Wolpyeong Church, branching of Namchang Church (1998) from Deoksin Church.
   https://www.grandculture.net/ulsan/toc/GC80001642