Yeongdong Church

Overview

Yeongdong Church is a church in Yeongdong-eup, Yeongdong-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do, belonging to the Cheongju Diocese. It was separated and established from Okcheon Parish, and its patron is St. Andrew the Apostle. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia gives the establishment date as June 1, 1956, while the Cheongju Diocese parish information gives it as July 3, 1956.

History

[From mission chapel to parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Yeongdong Parish began as a Catholic mission chapel under Okcheon Parish, and missionary activity was carried out by a head catechist dispatched from Okcheon Parish. Following the parish priest’s instructions, the head catechist and Yi Jun-geun (Matthew) searched for a church site, erecting a statue of Our Lady at Buyong-ri 334 and attempting to build a church. After Bishop Paddy of the Cheongju Diocese visited the site, 2,483 pyeong of land at Buyong-ri was purchased in March 1955, and when it was raised to a parish on June 1, 1956, Father Herbert took office as the first pastor. The Cheongju Diocese parish information lists the establishment date as July 3, 1956.

[Early facilities and local activities] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, a temporary church (86 pyeong) and a rectory (68 pyeong) were completed in May 1959, and a convent (24 pyeong) was newly built in October. The 6th pastor, Father Juno, purchased 131 pyeong of land at Gyesan-ri 681 in 1967 and built a 2-story library (74 pyeong). In January 1969 the Yeongdong Credit Union was established, and as part of community development the Samo Pig Farming Cooperative for the southern 3 counties (Boeun, Okcheon and Yeongdong) was established.

[Construction of the new church] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as the number of faithful increased, the 12th pastor, Father Kim Hong-ryeol, exchanged land and buildings at Buyong-ri 383 for land at Gyesan-ri 741-2, sold the library at Gyesan-ri 681 in May 1980, began construction of a new church in July and held the dedication ceremony on June 2 of the following year. The new church, with 1 basement floor and 2 above-ground floors, comprised a church (115 pyeong), a rectory (77 pyeong), a convent (30 pyeong), a kindergarten (50 pyeong), a catechism room (50 pyeong) and others.

[Later history] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as devotional practices the parish carried out a home pilgrimage prayer with the statue of Our Lady of Fatima and introduced the Mount Carmel Eucharistic adoration in July 1988. The 17th pastor, Father Kim Yeong-hwan, purchased over 130 pyeong of riverbed land from the county in March 1993, and the 18th pastor, Father Shin In-yong, completed an education hall in September 1995 and built a kindergarten (25 pyeong) on the 2 floor. The 19th pastor, Father Ryu Geun-bae, purchased a kindergarten bus, and the 20th pastor, Father Park Yong-geun, relocated the parish office, renovated the basement catechism room and replaced the stained glass inside the church. The parishes branched off from Yeongdong Parish are Hwanggan Parish (1957.10), Cheongsan Parish (1959.9) and Haksan Parish (1995.6).

[Church statistics and successive pastors] The church statistics recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are 377 in 1956, 1,246 in 1966, 1,538 in 1976, 1,964 in 1986, 2,153 in 1988, 2,683 in 1995 and 2,456 in 2000. The successive priests are the first Joseph Herbert (1956.6~1959.9), the 2th Gerardo Parel, the 3th Patricio Bugin, the 4th Joseph Waters, the 5th Francisco Ryan, the 6th Michael Juno (1967.2~1968.5), the 7th Alberto Lockhorst, the 8th Frederick Krampert, the 9th Roberto Pellini, the 10th Leo Deckman, the 11th Benedict Kim Byeong-cheol, the 12th Simon Kim Hong-ryeol (1979.12~1983.5), the 13th Joseph Lee Beom-su, the 14th Filippo Kim Yu-cheol, the 15th Casimiro Song Yeol-seop, the 16th Felix Kang Hui-seong, the 17th Francisco Kim Yeong-hwan, the 18th Anselmo Shin In-yong, the 19th Geronimo Ryu Geun-bae, the 20th Peter Park Yong-geun (1998.6~2001.6) and the 21th Antonio Jeong Chung-il (2001.6~). The encyclopedia gives the jurisdiction as Yeongdong-eup, Yangkang-myeon and Simcheon-myeon, and the mission chapels under its jurisdiction as 1 in Simcheon.

Related places and people

• Okcheon Church: the mother parish from which Yeongdong Parish was separated (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Hwanggan Church, Cheongsan Church and Haksan Church: parishes branched off from Yeongdong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Yeongdong Parish” (Vol. 9). Starting as a mission chapel, purchase of land and elevation to parish, temporary church and construction of the new church, branched-off parishes, church statistics and successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4488
2. Cheongju Diocese, Parish Information “Yeongdong Church”. Establishment date July 3, 1956, patron St. Andrew the Apostle.
   https://www.cdcj.or.kr/parish/parish/view/23038