Anrim-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Anrim-dong Church is a church in Anrim-dong, Chungju-si, Chungcheongbuk-do, belonging to the Cheongju Diocese. On July 5, 1989, it was separated and established from Gyohyeon-dong Parish and Jihyeon-dong Parish, and its patron is St. Mark. The Catholic mission chapel under its jurisdiction is the Jongmin-dong Catholic mission chapel.

History

〔Establishment process〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the mid-1980s, as the number of faithful increased greatly around the Anrim-dong area, the diocese made a plan to establish a parish and purchased 747 pyeong for the present church site. On June 2, 1989, it began construction of a new church, and on June 19 it purchased one private house to provide a temporary rectory. On July 5 of the same year, with the transfer of 1,572 parish registers from Gyohyeon-dong Parish and Jihyeon-dong Parish, Anrim-dong Parish was established, and the first pastor, Father Pius Shin Sun-geun, celebrated the first Mass when the basement church was completed on September 3. The Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia records that the parish was established on September 3, 1989, so the founding date differs by source.

〔Facility expansion〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, on October 16, 1989, it purchased a nearby house (37 pyeong) for use as a convent, and on January 25 of the following year it purchased an additional 574 pyeong of land to build an education center. Because parking space was insufficient, it first used this land as a parking lot and in March built a prefabricated education center with a scale of 48 pyeong. On November 15, 1991, it completed the rectory (75 pyeong), and 4 years after breaking ground for a new church on April 25, 1993, it celebrated the dedication of a church with 2 stories above ground and 1 story below ground (485 pyeong). On June 29, 1999, it additionally purchased 203 pyeong of nearby land to build a kindergarten. The Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia records that on February 15, 1990, it invited the Missionary Benedictine Sisters and on October 15, 1995, dedicated a newly built mission chapel.

〔Church growth and successive pastors〕 The church statistics recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are 1,438 members in 1989, 1,888 members in 1993, 2,070 members in 1996, and 2,402 members in 1999. The successive pastors are the first, Pius Shin Sun-geun (1989–1994.6), the 2 pastor, Leo Kyung Deok-su (1994.6–1999.7), and the 3 pastor, Antonio Kang Seong-ho (1999.7– ). The Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia records that in 2005, Father James Shin Seong-geun took office as the 5 pastor.

Architecture and Space

The parish is a concrete multi-story structure with a three-aisled rectangular layout, and its exterior wall material is red brick (Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia). With a total floor area of over 200 pyeong, the reinforced-concrete education center and convent with 2 stories above ground is a combined building in which the 1 floor is the education center and the 2 floor is the convent; the education center has 7 Sunday-school meeting rooms and a library (30 pyeong, with a collection of over 3,000 volumes).

The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that the church has 2 stories above ground and 1 story below ground (485 pyeong).

Related Places and Figures

• Gyohyeon-dong Church and Jihyeon-dong Church: the mother parishes from which Anrim-dong Parish was separated (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Jongmin-dong Catholic mission chapel: the Catholic mission chapel under the jurisdiction of Anrim-dong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Anrim-dong Parish” (Vol. 8). Separation and establishment in 1989, church site and new construction and dedication, church growth and successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4177
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Chungju Cultural Encyclopedia “Anrim-dong Church”. Parish establishment history, building structure, jurisdictional district and mission chapel.
   https://chungju.grandculture.net/chungju/toc/GC01902138
3. Cheongju Diocese, parish information “Anrim-dong Church”. Establishment date July 5, 1989, patron saint St. Mark.
   https://www.cdcj.or.kr/parish/parish/view/23022