Yangjeong Church

Overview

Yangjeong Church is a church in Yangjeong-dong, Busanjin-gu, Busan Metropolitan City, belonging to the Diocese of Busan. It began as the Yangjeong Catholic mission chapel in 1928 and was elevated to a parish in 1957, with Christ the King as its patron.

History

[Mission-chapel period] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that in 1928, 6 households and more than 20 faithful living in the Yangjeong area founded the Yangjeong Catholic mission chapel at the house of Park Seong-yong (Aloysius) at Yangjeong 2-dong, No. 230. The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia explains that this mission chapel began under Busanjin Parish and then, when Dongnae Parish was newly established in 1951, it became a mission chapel under Dongnae Parish. According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as Busan became the provisional capital during the Korean War and quartermaster base commands and refugee camps were set up, population and housing began to increase, and the faithful of the mission chapel asked the diocese to let them remain under Busanjin Parish because Dongnae Church was far away, while they celebrated Sunday Mass at the church inside the nearby quartermaster base command.

[Church site and elevation to parish] During the Korean War, Father Oh Gi-seon (Joseph), who had fled from Daejeon (according to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia) or Cheongju (according to the Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia), had purchased land as a site for an orphanage to shelter war orphans, and when he returned home after the recapture of Seoul, he donated it as the church site. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records this site as 800 pyeong, while the Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia records it as 2,310 square meters. The faithful of the mission chapel built a tent barracks on the donated site and, in August 1957, with the help of a nearby military unit, prepared a Quonset church; in November of the same year, Yangjeong Catholic mission chapel was elevated to a parish and Father Kim Nam-su (Angelo) took office as the first pastor (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia gives the date of elevation as on November 11, 1957.

[Completion of the church and settlement] As refugees and disaster victims who settled nearby increased the number of faithful, Father Kim Nam-su began construction in February 1960 and completed a single-story church (80 pyeong) in December of the same year and celebrated its blessing, and at the same time separated Seomyeon Parish while also serving as its pastor (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia gives the completion and blessing date of the church as on December 4, 1960, and explains that it was accomplished with the cooperation of a nearby military unit and the efforts of the parishioners. The 2 pastor, Father Jeong Su-gil (Joseph), completed the rectory in September 1961 and, in April of the following year, established a branch convent of the Sisters of the Korean Martyrs; the 3 pastor, Father Kim Yeong-je (John), founded the Marian Kindergarten in August 1962; and the 4 pastor, Father Lee Sang-ho (Raymond), completed the Lourdes Grotto in October of the following year (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia records that the Marian Kindergarten opened in 1962 and closed in 1982, and that the Lourdes Grotto was unveiled in 1963. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia dates the closure of the Marian Kindergarten to August 1981, during the time of the 9 pastor, Father Park Seung-won, so the stated year of closure differs.

[Branch parishes and church statistics] As the area developed and the faithful increased, the 6 pastor, Father Park Heung-seop (Sebastian), separated Jeonpo Parish in November 1972, Yeonsan Parish in October of the following year, and Geoje-dong Parish in November (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The 7 pastor, Father Lee Cheol-hui (Paul), expanded the Marian Kindergarten from 2 classes to 4 classes, but died on December 2, 1976. The 9 pastor, Father Park Seung-won (Nicodemus), expanded the catechism room in 1978 and newly built the convent (40 pyeong); when the Sisters of the Korean Martyrs withdrew in May of the following year, he established a branch convent of the Caritas Sisters, and in 1980 he formed the “Jangdaegolhoe” for middle-aged people not belonging to a devotional association and for the newly baptized. The 11 pastor, Father Yu Bong-ho (Bartholomew), remodeled the catechism room and expanded the hall in 1984, and in January of the same year founded the Our Lady of Fatima Praesidium, and within 3 years 10 praesidia had been formed. The number of faithful was 1,800 in 1964, 2,673 in 1971, 2,216 in 1979, 3,107 in 1982, 4,766 in 1993, and 4,495 in 1999 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

[Construction of the new church building] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the time of the 15 pastor, Father Kim Sang-hyo (Philip), the church entrance, catechism room, and office were to be demolished because of road widening, so a new church was planned, and the 16 pastor, Father Yun Jun-won (Michael), organized a church-building committee in March 1997, raised funds through bazaars and concerts, and began construction in November of that year. Successive bankruptcies of the contracted companies meant the builder changed three times, and on May 14, 2000, a church with 1 basement floor and 4 above-ground floors (1,100 pyeong) was completed and its blessing was celebrated. The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia records that, because of road widening near the church, the new church was blessed on May 11, 2000, after 1 years of work, so the date differs.

[Present situation] The Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia records that, in 2013, in line with the diocesan pastoral guideline of re-evangelization of the parish, special Bible lectures and study, pilgrimages, and Eucharistic adoration were carried out, a senior college called Evergreen College was operated, and the socially vulnerable were cared for centered on the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. As of 2012, the number of faithful was 4,698, the land area was 2,200 square meters, the building area was 3,649 square meters, and the main buildings were the church, the rectory, and the convent. The “50-Year History of Yangjeong Church” was compiled.

Related places and people

• Jurisdiction (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia): Yangjeong 1 to 4-dong, all of Beomjeon-dong, and part of Jeonpo 2-dong.
• Father Oh Gi-seon (Joseph): donated the church site (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia).
• Dongnae Parish and Busanjin Parish: the parishes to which the Yangjeong Catholic mission chapel successively belonged (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia).
• Seomyeon Parish, Jeonpo Parish, Yeonsan Parish, and Geoje-dong Parish: parishes separated from Yangjeong Church (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Successive pastors (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, based on the account in 1999): first Father Kim Nam-su (Angelo), 2 Father Jeong Su-gil (Joseph), 3 Father Kim Yeong-je (John), 4 Father Lee Sang-ho (Raymond), 5 Father Lee Ok-gun (Thaddeus), 6 Father Park Heung-seop (Sebastian), 7 Father Lee Cheol-hui (Paul), 8 Father Jeong Jae-seok (Joseph), 9 Father Park Seung-won (Nicodemus), 10 Father Choe Gyeong-yong (Peter), 11 Father Yu Bong-ho (Bartholomew), 12 Father Yang Deok-bae (John), 13 Father Kwon Ji-ho (Francis), 14 Father Yu Yeong-il (Augustine), 15 Father Kim Sang-hyo (Philip), 16 Father Yun Jun-won (Michael).

References and sources

1. Academy of Korean Studies, Busan Historical and Cultural Encyclopedia, “Yangjeong Church.” Mission-chapel period, elevation to parish (1957.11.11), church completion (1960.12.4), blessing of the new church (2000), status in 2012.
   https://www.grandculture.net/busan/toc/GC04215971
2. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Yangjeong Parish” (vol. 9). Mission-chapel period, donation of the site, elevation to parish, successive priests, church statistics, process of separation, construction of the new church.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4298