Yangyang Catholic Church

Overview

Yangyang Church is a church in Yangyang-eup, Yangyang-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, belonging to the Chuncheon Diocese, and on May 1921 it was elevated from a Catholic mission chapel under the jurisdiction of Naepyeong Parish to a parish. Its current patron is St. Therese of the Child Jesus, and it is carrying on a prayer campaign for the beatification and canonization of the 3 pastor, Father Lee Gwang-jae (Timoteo), who on June 1950 was taken by the Communist army and martyred.

History

[Faith communities in the Yeongdong region] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, tradition in the Yangyang area holds that the Gospel spread when Peter Lee, who had lived in the Baeron Catholic village in Jecheon, Chungbuk, fled to Beombaengigol in Hwail-li, Yangyang-myeon during the Byeongin Persecution, and that a Catholic village was later formed when Peter Lee’s younger brother Paul Lee, Kim Deok-su, and Kim Deok-su’s paternal uncle moved there. Another tradition holds that Oh Gwang-seon, who had lived in Cheongju, Chungcheong-do, moved to Hongje-dong, Gangneung to escape the Byeongin Persecution, and that his eldest son Paul Oh Chun-yeong moved to Domun-dong, Sokcho and built the “Ssarijae earthenware shop,” and that Beombaengigol and Ssarijae were the first faith communities formed in the Yeongdong region.

[Catholic mission chapels and jurisdictional parishes] According to the encyclopedia, in the autumn of 1882 Father G. Mutel (Min Deok-hyo) was first dispatched and toured until the spring of the following year, establishing 8 Catholic mission chapels including Swiil (Hwail-li, Yangyang-eup), the first Catholic mission chapel in Yangyang, and after the Ssarijae Catholic mission chapel in 1887, chapels such as Jangseunggol, Hanjae, Jeongbawi, Jangdugol, Myeongjigol, Imok-dong, and Sinheung were established, so that there were 9 Catholic mission chapels in the Yangyang-Sokcho area. This area belonged to Seopgaji Parish (Seopg-gol, Yongpo-ri, Sannae-myeon, Icheon-gun) founded by Father V. Deguette (Choe Dong-jin) on April 1883, and after Father Le Merre (Lee Ryu-sa) moved to Pungsuwon in Gangwon-do in the autumn of 1888 and founded Pungsuwon Parish, it was briefly under Pungsuwon Parish and then transferred back to Wonsan Parish in 1890. From 1891 it received pastoral visits from Father E. Chargeboeuf (Song Deok-mang) of Anbyeon Parish, and on February 1896, when Father T. Bouladoux (Na Hyeong-muk), the 4 pastor of Anbyeon Parish, moved his residence to Naepyeong in Anbyeon and founded Naepyeong Parish, it remained under Naepyeong Parish until 1921.

[Parish establishment] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that, as believers in the Yeongdong region increased but pastoral visits were difficult because Naepyeong Parish was far away, Bishop Mutel established Yangyang Parish on May 5, 1921 and appointed Father Choe Mun-sik (Peter), who had been at Joyangha Parish in Bukgando, as the first pastor. Father Choe first lived in Ssarijae in Sangdomun-ri, Sokcho, but judging the thatched house built as both church and presbytery to be crude and the prospects for evangelization poor, he planned a move, and on February 17, 1922 moved the church to No. 282, Seomun-ri, Yangyang-eup, purchased nearby land, and in the same year began construction on November and completed it on December 22. The Chuncheon Diocese website states that on May 1921 Father Choe Mun-sik built a Catholic church in Sangdomun-ri, Yangyang, at which time it became a parish and its patron was the “Sacred Heart of Jesus,” and that on December 1921 he secured a house in Seomun-ri and moved the parish there.

[The present church site and the church of 1940] The 2 pastor, Father Yu Jae-ok (Francis), held retreats for Catholic mission chapel chairpersons 4 times or more and organized youth and women’s groups. After the church was completely flooded in the summer flood of 1936, it was decided to move to the town center and land of 1,140 pyeong at the present church site was purchased (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Chuncheon Diocese website states that Father Yu Jae-ok secured land at the present location on August 1937 and began building a new church. The 3 pastor, Father Lee Gwang-jae (Timoteo), completed the church (65 pyeong) and the education hall (25 pyeong) on February 28, 1940 and held a blessing ceremony (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia), and the diocese website states that the dedication ceremony for the new church was held on February 1940.

[The martyrdom of Father Lee Gwang-jae] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that, with the arrival of the Communist regime, the church was seized during the Soviet army’s stationing, and that from 1948, as clergy, religious, and faithful from the Yeonji, Hamheung, and Wonsan areas headed south via Yangyang Parish, Father Lee Gwang-jae helped them safely move to the South. Father Lee Gwang-jae was taken by the Communist army on June 24, 1950, imprisoned in the Wau-dong prison in Wonsan, and shot on October 9. The Chuncheon Diocese website states that Father Lee Gwang-jae helped many clergy and religious cross south of Parallel 38, and that after going on June 1950 at the request of northern believers for a visit, he was arrested by the Communist army and martyred, and it explains that Yangyang Church steadily carries on a prayer campaign for his beatification and canonization and has held the “Parallel 38 Timoteo Trail” walking pilgrimage from 2009 to commemorate his martyrdom. The parish offered a Mass commemorating the 50 anniversary of Father Lee Gwang-jae’s martyrdom on October 8, 2000 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

[After the Korean War] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, when the church was lost to fire during the war and the parish priest post became vacant, Father P. McGowan (Won), who was ministering at Jumunjin Parish and Dongmyeong-dong Parish, took charge of the Yangyang area from 1952 to 1954 and newly built a church (65 pyeong). The 4 pastor, Father Thomas T. Sullivan (Seo), held a church blessing ceremony on November 30, 1954, founded the Ganghyeon Catholic mission chapel (sector 2 in Jeongam-ri, Ganghyeon-myeon) in 1956, built a hall on December 25, purchased land of 460 pyeong in Sanggwangjeong-ri, Hyeonbuk-myeon on January 10, 1958, and newly built the Hyeonbuk Catholic mission chapel hall of 32 pyeong on November 8. Construction of a convent began on April 1, 1960 and a convent with 2 floors was completed on July 12. Meanwhile, in the 1960 decade, the number of lapsed Catholics grew sharply and parish finances deteriorated severely. The Chuncheon Diocese website states that the church was completely destroyed in the Korean War and the present church was built and blessed on November 1954, at which time the patron was changed to “St. Therese of the Child Jesus.”

[After the 1970 decade] In 1972 the 7 pastor, Father Brendan B. Murray (Ham), devoted efforts to fostering the student association and Sunday school, and the 9 pastor, Father John J. Lynch (Im), ministered with attention to the sanctification of families. The 10 pastor, Father Malachy M. Smyth (Cheon), built a memorial hall for Father Lee Gwang-jae inside the church on October 1, 1983 and erected a martyrdom memorial pavilion to honor Father Lee’s faith and spirit of martyrdom. On April 6, 1988 the present convent (55 pyeong) was newly built, and as the church was small, the church was expanded on October 1, 1995 (75 pyeong), and the following year on October 4 the Hyeonbuk Home Care House was opened for elderly people without support in farming and fishing villages and its operation was entrusted to the Sisters of the Holy Family of Seoul. The 14 pastor, Father Lee Dong-ju (Simon), opened the “Timoteo Children’s House” immediately after taking office (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

[Church statistics and successive pastors] The numbers of faithful recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are in 1964 1,242 persons, in 1977 971 persons, in 1983 993 persons, in 1989 1,064 persons, in 1994 873 persons, and in 1999 1,043 persons, with jurisdiction over all of Yangyang-eup, Seo-myeon, Sonyang-myeon, and Hyeonbuk-myeon and parts of Hyeonnam-myeon and Ganghyeon-myeon, and 1 Catholic mission chapels in Hyeonbuk under its jurisdiction. The successive pastors are the first, Peter Choe Mun-sik (1921.4-1927.5), the 2 pastor Francis Yu Jae-ok (1927.5-1939.7), the 3 pastor Timoteo Lee Gwang-jae (1939.7-1950.10), the 4 pastor Thomas Sullivan (1954.11-1962.11), the 5 pastor Patrizio P. Healy (Han) (1962.11-1968.9), the 6 pastor Patrizio P. Smyth (Cheon) (1968.9-1972.5), the 7 pastor Brendan Murray (1972.5-1976.4), the 8 pastor Cornelio C. Murphy (Jeon) (1976.4-1977.5), the 9 pastor John Lynch (1977.5-1981.4), the 10 pastor Malachy Smyth (1981.4-1984.4), the 11 pastor James Song Byeong-cheol (1984.4-1990.1), the 12 pastor Thomas Kim Jeong-sik (1990.1-1994.6), the 13 pastor Joachim Lee Tae-hyeok (1994.6-1998.2), and the 14 pastor Simon Lee Dong-ju (1998.2-present). Here “present” means the time of writing of this encyclopedia.

Related Places and People

• Father Lee Gwang-jae (Timoteo): the 3 pastor of Yangyang Parish, martyred in 1950, for whose beatification and canonization the parish is carrying on a prayer campaign (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Chuncheon Diocese website).
• Father Choe Mun-sik (Peter): appointed in 1921 as the first pastor of Yangyang Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Beombaengigol and Ssarijae: the first faith communities formed in the Yeongdong region (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Naepyeong Parish: the parish that had jurisdiction over the Yangyang area from 1896 to 1921 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Yangyang Parish” (Volume 9). Faith communities in the Yeongdong region and changes of jurisdictional parishes, parish establishment in 1921, church relocation and new construction, martyrdom of Father Lee Gwang-jae, post-Korean War reconstruction, church statistics, successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4294
2. Chuncheon Diocese website, parish “Yangyang St. Therese of the Child Jesus Parish”. Founding year 1921.04., move to Seomun-ri in 1921, dedication in 1940, martyrdom of Father Lee Gwang-jae and walking pilgrimage, blessing of the present church and change of patron in 1954.
   https://www.cccatholic.or.kr/parish/parish/view/27