Seodaeshin Church

Overview

Seodaesin Church is a church in Seodaesin-dong, Seo-gu, Busan, belonging to the Diocese of Busan, established on February 1, 1955. At the time of establishment, its name was Daesindong Parish, and its patron is Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The first pastor was Father Joseph Conner (Kwon) of the Maryknoll Foreign Mission Society, and Dongdaesin-dong Parish and Goejeong Parish were separated from this church.

History

[Establishment] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the Seodaesin-dong area, which was then under the jurisdiction of Choryang Parish, the Goejeong, Hadan, Dadaepo, and Gamcheon Catholic mission chapels were scattered, but as faithful who had moved south during the Korean War gathered, the number of faithful surged. Choryang Parish pastor Father Conner planned the establishment of a new parish, purchased the present church site, and with building-material support from a nearby U.S. military unit began new construction, and on February 1, 1955, “Daesindong Parish” was established and Father Conner was appointed as the first pastor. The same source states in its establishment-information section that it was “separated and established from Jungang Parish,” differing from the main text on the mother parish. The Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia states that Father Kwon-Conor (Joseph), then Choryang Parish pastor, obtained approval for a new parish on February 1, 1955 and took office as the first priest, and explains that it arose from a request for a parish overseeing Goejeong, Hadan, Dadaepo, and Gamcheon.

[Church completion and division] Father Conner completed a 2-story church (200 pyeong) on April 14, 1955 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia; the Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia also states it was completed on April 14, 1955 with U.S. military help). As the faithful continued to increase, by 1956 the parish could not avoid division, and in May of that year it purchased a site at 467 Goejeong-dong, built a church of 100 pyeong in May 1958, and then on June 1, 1961 raised the Goejeong mission chapel to a parish and separated it (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). In April 1962 it organized a credit union (the Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia records its founding on April 9 and explains that it helped the faithful and local residents through member education and clearing high-interest debt), and in October 1964, while dividing Dongdaesin-dong Parish, it transferred 1,153 parish registers and changed the parish name to “Seodaesindong Parish” (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

[Pastoral care after 1956] According to the Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia, on January 3, 1956 it founded the first Our Lady of Perpetual Help praesidium in the Diocese of Busan, and this praesidium is at the center of Legion of Mary activity in the Diocese of Busan. On April 13, 1969 parish pastoral authority was transferred to the diocese and Father Luke Kim Namsu took office as the 9th pastor, and Father Kim opened “Maria Kindergarten” on March 1 of the following year and erected a statue of Our Lady on June 27, 1971 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The 13th pastor, Father Moses Kim Seongdo, expanded the kindergarten on September 5, 1977 and provided a convent (27 pyeong), published “Seodaesin Mission 25 Years” in February 1980, opened an “afternoon kindergarten” for children from struggling families on April 16, and built a new rectory on November 7, 1982. In 1984, it changed the parish name again to the easier “Seodaesin Parish” and in October provided a library (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

[The 1990s] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in October 1990 it opened the free meal center “Sarangbang,” on October 10, 1995 it opened a consumer cooperative store as part of the “Save Our Rural Communities Movement,” and on April 6, 1996 it purchased a nearby site of 125 pyeong. The Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia states that Sarangbang is a free meal center used by about 180 people per day and that the parish carries out pastoral care for the socially vulnerable centered on it.

[Church strength and present state] The church statistics in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are 5,319 in 1958, 3,700 in 1964, 2,572 in 1971, 2,165 in 1977, 3,040 in 1983, 4,550 in 1990, and 5,052 in 1996, and its jurisdiction was Seodaesin-dong districts 2 to 4 in Seo-gu, Dongdaesin-dong district 3, the entire Daetigogae area, and part of Hakjang-dong in Sasang-gu. According to the Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia, as of 2012 the number of faithful was about 4,900, with groups such as the Lay Apostolate Council, Yeondohoe (prayer association for the deceased), the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Sarangbang, the Rosa Society, and others, a land area of 3,320 sq m, and a building area of 1,935 sq m. The same source evaluates that Seodaesin Church, by branching off Dongdaesin Church and Goejeong Church, played the role of the central parish in the Seo-gu area of Busan, and reports that it devotes itself to Bible study and pastoral care for the elderly.

Related Places and People

• Choryang Parish (main text of the Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia and the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia), Jungang Parish (establishment information in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia): parishes related to the establishment of Seodaesin Parish.
• Dongdaesin-dong Parish (divided in October 1964), Goejeong Parish (raised and separated on June 1, 1961): parishes that came from Seodaesin Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Father Joseph Conner (J. Connors, Kwon): founder and first pastor of Daesindong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia).
• Successive pastors (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as described in 1996): 1st Joseph Conner (1955.2–1957.1), 2th Roy Pettifren (Byeon) (1957.1–1959.3), 3rd Gervasio Coxen (Gwak) (1959.3–1960.9), 4th Francesco Beninati (Imdeok) (1960.9–1962.1), 5th Conner (1962.1–1964.10), 6nd Guglielmo O’Leary (Ban) (1964.10–1967.3), 7th Riccardo Polisen (Im) (1967.3–1968.1), 8th John Cocoran (Go) (1968.2–1969.4), 9st Luke Kim Namsu (1969.4–1972.1), 10th Peter An Dalwon (1972.1–11), 11th John Yang Deokbae (1972.11–1975.1), 12th Gabriel Lee Gyeongu (1975.1–1976.11), 13rd Moses Kim Seongdo (1976.11–1984.1), 14th John the Baptist Lee Honggi (1984.1–1986.2), 15th Joseph Lee Chanu (1986.2–1989.1), 16nd Stephen Seok Changwi (1989.1–1992.2), 17th Peter Song Giin (1992.2–1996.2), 18th Francis Xavier Wang Yeongsu (1996.2–).

References and Sources

1. Academy of Korean Studies, Busan History and Culture Encyclopedia “Seodaesin Church”. Purpose and changes (1955.2.1. establishment, 1955.4.14. completion), praesidium, credit union, Maria Kindergarten, Sarangbang, status in 2012.
   https://www.grandculture.net/busan/toc/GC04215968
2. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Seodaesin Parish” (Vol. 7). Establishment process, church completion, Goejeong and Dongdaesin-dong Parish division, parish pastoral care, church statistics, list of successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/3150