Chilgok Catholic Church

Overview

Chilgok Church is a church in Eupnae-dong, Buk-gu, Daegu Metropolitan City, belonging to the Archdiocese of Daegu. It is a church that began as the Chilgok Catholic mission chapel in 1932, which was separated from Waegwan Parish on April 9, 1957 and elevated to a parish, with Saint Joseph as its patron and German Father Müller (Moanse) Ansgario as its first pastor.

History

[Beginning of the Chilgok mission chapel] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that in 1932, Park Dal-yong, who ran an onggi-kiln pottery shop in Eupnae-dong, Chilgok, gathered onggi-kiln workers and nearby faithful and first founded the Chilgok Catholic mission chapel, serving as its first mission chapel chairman. Park Dal-yong held Sunday services at his own house and made his Easter confession at Daegu Church. In 1942, Jo Byeong-cheol was appointed as the 2th mission chapel chairman and kept Sunday services at the house of Kim Sam-jo, and in 1945, with liberation, Park Yun-jun, who had returned from Japan, took over the onggi-kiln pottery shop in Eupnae-dong and became the 3th mission chapel chairman. At the time there were about 40 faithful, and the mission chapel belonged to Bisan-dong Parish in Daegu.

[Mission chapel building and elevation to parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, faith kept growing even during the Korean War, and on March 10, 1953, with donations from the faithful of Bisan-dong Parish, about 200 pyeong was purchased at the present site of Sujeong Pharmacy in Eupnae-dong, Chilgok, and with part of the timber donated, a mission chapel building with a floor area of 23 pyeong was newly built on April 10, 1954. A blessing ceremony was held officiated by the 7th pastor of Bisan-dong Parish, Father Jeong Su-gil (Joseph), and Saint Joseph was designated as patron. In November of the same year the Marian Association was organized and Sister Park Virishi was appointed as its first president. Seo Chang-deuk, elected as the 4th mission chapel chairman in 1955, donated land of 1,090.90 square meters for the church site together with a house on it, and a house for the residence of the head of evangelization. In May 1956 the Chilgok mission chapel came under the Benedictine Abbey of Waegwan, and requesting elevation to a parish, it came to use by bidding the present site of Chilgok Church (at the time, land of 330 pyeong and fields of 350 pyeong at lot 532-2 in Eupnae-dong, Chilgok-myeon, and 1 guesthouse buildings). Finally, on April 9, 1957, the Chilgok mission chapel was elevated to a parish, and German Father Müller took office as its first pastor. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that it was separated and established from Waegwan Parish, and the Archdiocese of Daegu parish information also lists the date of establishment as April 9, 1957 and the patron as Saint Joseph.

[Early facilities] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Father Müller purchased adjacent land within the church site in May 1957 and then began construction of a rectory and hall, completing the rectory on July 5 and offering a Mass for the new hall in September. Chilgok Parish, then under the 2th pastor, Father Choe Chang-seong, consisted of 464 parishioners in the parish itself and 52 in the Dongmyeong mission chapel, 123 in the Haksang mission chapel, 28 in the Donam mission chapel, 58 in the Namwon mission chapel, 28 in the Hakmyeong mission chapel, 108 in the Baeksan mission chapel, and others. When Father Choe left for the Benedictine Abbey of Waegwan on July 15, 1968, church statistics had grown to a total of 1,238, with 730 in the parish and 11 mission chapels with 508 faithful.

[Transfer to the Archdiocese of Daegu and the 1970s-80s] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that jurisdiction over Chilgok Parish was transferred to the Archdiocese of Daegu during the term of the 3th pastor, Father Park Byeong-won, who took office on August 1, 1968 and served for just over 6 months. The 4th pastor, Father Seo Jeong-gil, obtained permission for the Chilgok Catholic community cemetery in March 1969, and in June set up a credit union office and completed a Marian grotto. The 5th pastor, Father Lee Chang-ho, among the 9 mission chapels under the parish, transferred 5 to Waegwan Parish in March 1970, launched the parish bulletin in October 1972, and the church credit union also obtained approval from the Ministry of Finance. During the term of the 6th pastor, Father Haupt (W. Haupt), the church water supply was completed in October 1976, and in July 1978 the Dongmyeong mission chapel was elevated to a quasi-parish, with 3 mission chapels transferred. The 7th pastor, Father Son Sang-o, opened the Joseph Infant Home on April 1, 1982, and on April 25 of the same month built the ‘House of Encounter’ and held its blessing ceremony, the education center was completed in February 1985, and on October 24 of the same year an education center was built as a project commemorating the 200th anniversary of the introduction of Catholicism.

[Since the 1990s] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that Father Jeong Sun-jae, who took office as the 11rd pastor in July 1991, paid attention to the fact that the parish, despite having 35 years of history, had not yet produced a single priest, and organized a Veron group for children and students to teach catechism. The parish area was a rural village on the outskirts of the city, but as a large housing estate was developed under the government project to promote construction of 200 thousand houses, the number of faithful grew rapidly: in 1990 there were about 1,800 faithful, and by the time the 12th pastor, Father Jeong Seong-u, took office around 1995, they had grown to about 3,000. The 15st pastor, Father Choe Chang-ho, divided 1,334 faithful to the newly established Dongcheon Parish and 434 to Gukwoo Parish on January 30, 2002, and helped build churches for the two new parishes. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that in 2007, in preparation for the 50th anniversary of the parish establishment, the parish launched and is operating a ‘Parish 50-Year History Preparation Committee’.

[Jurisdiction and church statistics] The jurisdiction recorded by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia covers all of Gwaneum-dong, Dongho-dong and Eupnae-dong. Church statistics were in 1957 420, in 1967 1,390, in 1972 756, in 1977 852, in 1980 821, in 1984 1,275, in 1987 1,511, in 1990 1,774, in 1995 3,163, in 1999 3,600, in 2003 1,779. Successive pastors were the first, Müller (A. Müller) Ansgario (1957.4~1962.2), the 2th, Choe Chang-seong, Paul (1962.2~1968.7), the 3th, Park Byeong-won, Philip (1968.8~1969.1), the 4th, Seo Jeong-gil, John (1969.1~1970.1), the 5th, Lee Chang-ho, Andrew (1970.1~1972.11), the 6rd, Haupt (W. Haupt) (1972.11~1981.4), the 7th, Son Sang-o, Luke (1981.4~1986.1), the 8th, Lee Sang-ho, Peter (1986.1~1989.6), the 9nd, Kim Jun-u, Mario (1989.6~1990.2), the 10th, Choe Yong-byeong, Benedict (1990.3~1991.7), the 11th, Jeong Sun-jae, Peter (1991.7~1995.2), the 12th, Jeong Seong-u, Paul (1995.2~1998.2), the 13th, Kim Yeong-u, Chrysanthus (1998.2~2001.2), the 14th, Hwang Yong-sik, Thaddeus (2001.2~7), the 15th, Choe Chang-ho, James (2001.7~).

Related places and people

• Waegwan Church and Benedictine Abbey of Waegwan in Waegwan: the parish to which the Chilgok mission chapel belonged in 1956 and from which Chilgok Parish was separated in 1957 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Bisan-dong Parish in Daegu: the parish to which the Chilgok mission chapel belonged in the early days and whose faithful collected donations when the mission chapel building was newly built (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Dongmyeong mission chapel (Dongmyeong Church): elevated to a quasi-parish in July 1978, with 3 mission chapels transferred (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Dongcheon Parish and Gukwoo Parish: parishes newly established on January 30, 2002 by dividing faithful from Chilgok Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and sources

1. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Chilgok Parish” (11 volume). Separation and establishment from Waegwan Parish on April 9, 1957, beginnings of the Chilgok mission chapel and mission chapel building, jurisdiction, church statistics, successive pastors, divided parishes.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/6108
2. Archdiocese of Daegu, parish information “Chilgok Church”. Date of establishment April 9, 1957, patron Saint Joseph.
   https://www.daegu-archdiocese.or.kr/page/area.html?menu=c4&number=77&premenu=c1&srl=church_search&y_id=77