Mukho Pilgrimage Catholic Church
Parish
묵호 순례 성당
About this place
Mukho Pilgrimage Church is an entry that presents the same physical site as Mukho Star of the Sea Church on Balhan-ro, Donghae, specifically from the perspective of pilgrimage. The Catholic Church directory in Korea and the Diocese of Chuncheon identify it as “Mukho Pilgrimage Church” or “Mukho Church (Fr. Patrick Reilly, Martyr),” clearly distinguishing its role as a place of pilgrimage that remembers Fr. Patrick Reilly, who was martyred during the Korean War.
Its pilgrimage significance lies not simply in the age of the church building. The central memory is the life of Fr. Reilly, who served as parish priest at Mukho, refused to abandon his parishioners when war came, and ultimately suffered martyrdom. A portion of the relics of St. Andrew Kim Taegon is enshrined in the church, and the parish community has continued to commemorate and honor Fr. Reilly. This entry therefore focuses less on Mukho as a parish facility and more on its identity as a pilgrimage site where visitors follow the memory of martyrdom.
History & origins
The historical significance of Mukho Pilgrimage Church becomes especially clear with the arrival of Fr. Patrick Reilly as parish priest of Mukho in August 1949. When the Korean War broke out in 1950, parishioners urged him to evacuate, but he chose to remain rather than leave the community entrusted to him. After hiding for a time and continuing to celebrate Mass, he was arrested and transferred with other prisoners toward Gangneung. In August 1950, he was shot and killed at Bamjae-gol. His remains were later moved to the clergy cemetery at Jukrim-dong.
After the war, the Diocese of Chuncheon incorporated the memory of priests who had died during the conflict into the building of new churches. At Mukho, the present church was completed in June 1957, and a portion of the relics of St. Andrew Kim Taegon was enshrined inside. In 1974 the Mukho community erected a memorial to Fr. Reilly on the church grounds and continued to observe an annual day of remembrance around the anniversary of his death.
A memorial and pilgrimage tradition also developed at Bamjae-gol, the actual place of Fr. Reilly’s martyrdom, but safety concerns arose because the earlier site lay close to the railway. In response, the Diocese of Chuncheon established a new pilgrimage site in Okgye-myeon, Gangneung, in 2021. The fact that pilgrims can now visit both Mukho Pilgrimage Church and the separate martyrdom site reflects a long process of diocesan commemoration that links Fr. Reilly’s pastoral ministry with the place where he gave his life.
Weekly Mass Schedule
No mass times yet Add a mass time
한국 가톨릭 장소백과
Mukho Pilgrimage Catholic Church의 첫 기록
아직 공개된 한국 가톨릭 장소백과 문서가 없습니다. 확인 가능한 출처와 함께 이 천주교 장소의 역사와 이야기를 기록해 보세요.
Would you like to record this place in your pilgrimage passport?
Sign in to keep this record with you.
Photos
No photos yet.
Information details
- Information Status
- Official
- Source
- Official source
- Data freshness
- Fresh
- Last updated
- Agreement
- Unconfirmed
- Community confirmations
- 0
- Source
- 한국천주교주교회의 온라인 주소록
Diocese
Chuncheon Diocese (Diocese of Chuncheon)
Official website: http://www.cccatholic.or.kr
Help verify information
Did the Mass schedule or church information change?
Let us know if you confirmed the displayed information or noticed something different.
Information Status: Official source
Sign in to confirm the schedule or report a change.
Reports are first saved for review. A change may be applied automatically after three different people report the same change; official-source links help the team verify it.