Simwon

History & origins

Simwon Mission Station began in September 1967 during the ministry of Fr. Bae Yeong-geun (Joseph) at Gochang Parish. A thatched house in Yeonhwa-ri was used as the first mission space, and the early community consisted of about twenty Catholics led by Son Du-ye (Teresa), the first mission-station president. Its beginning in a small domestic setting reflects a common pattern in the formation of rural Catholic mission communities.

The Catholics themselves raised funds to create a more stable place of worship. They sold rice cakes and collected sheaves of rice, combining their efforts with support from the parish to build a brick mission-station building at the present site. The new building was blessed on January 21, 1980, in a liturgy presided over by Bishop Kim Jae-deok (Augustine).

The mission station was subsequently improved in stages according to the community’s needs. In 2007 assistance from Catholics of another diocese helped renew interior devotional items and facilities, and in 2010 the parking area, landscaping, roof, and related features were improved. Rather than a history of large-scale reconstruction, Simwon’s story is one of a small community continually caring for its space. It shows how local Catholics, in connection with Gochang Parish, created and preserved their own mission station through voluntary effort.