Gaenghwa

History & origins

The origins of Gaenghwa are connected with a period when Bonghwa Parish participated in settlement and self-support work for people affected by Hansen's disease. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that Father Jean-Marie Maurice Lee Seong-chun, the first pastor of Bonghwa Parish, established “Gaenghwawon” in Bongseong-myeon in 1960, began care work for people with Hansen's disease, and invited the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in the same year. At the time, the Church's pastoral work was closely linked with helping people who faced illness and social exclusion to build a stable basis for daily life.

The Guide to the Catholic Church in Korea records May 1, 1961 as the establishment date of Gaenghwa Outstation. After the settlement community of Gaenghwawon had been formed, an outstation community took root within that living environment, allowing Catholic faith life to continue alongside the processes of settlement and self-support.

When the Diocese of Andong was erected in 1969, diocesan records explicitly listed Gaenghwa as one of seven Hansen's disease settlement villages. This record shows that Gaenghwa was not regarded merely as a welfare facility but as a community continuously recognized within the pastoral landscape of the diocese.