Daedeok Catholic Church

Overview

Daedeok Church is a church in Daemyeong-dong, Nam-gu, Daegu Metropolitan City, belonging to the Archdiocese of Daegu. In 1978, it was established after separating from Daemyeong-dong Parish, and its patron is the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Located at the foot of Daedeok Mountain, it was named Daedeok Parish to avoid duplication with the name of its mother parish.

History

〔Background and Name〕 The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that the Daemyeong-dong area, then under the jurisdiction of Daemyeong-dong Parish, became a new residential area with a visibly increased number of the faithful as a ring road was opened and land readjustment was carried out following the development of Daedeok Park that began in 1970. As Daemyeong-dong Parish had jurisdiction over a wide area covering Daemyeong-dong, Seongdang-dong, and Songhyeon-dong, was located toward Daemyeong-dong, and its church was very small, the diocese decided to divide it, establishing a parish on July 1978 and naming it Daedeok Parish. The encyclopedia explains that, although this area belongs to Daemyeong-dong, the name was chosen because it lies at the foot of Daedeok Mountain, to avoid duplication with the mother parish’s name.

〔Date of Establishment〕 The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that it was established on July 5, 1978, while the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea directory and the Archdiocese of Daegu parish information list the date of establishment as August 20, 1978, differing by source.

〔Church Construction〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, after the parish was established, it temporarily used the church and rectory of the Carmelite Convent of the Immaculate Heart of Mary at 9 Daemyeong-dong, Nam-gu, No. 936-1, and sisters of the Sisters Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus were dispatched beginning on September 1978. In the same year, a church construction committee was formed on November, received a donation of two lots of land from the Carmelite Convent on February 1979, and began construction of the church, rectory, convent, and other buildings on March. It completed the reinforced-concrete church, rectory, and convent with 3 above-ground floors and a total floor area of 290 pyeong, and held the blessing ceremony on April 13.

〔Later History〕 The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that on March 1984 the convent was demolished and an education center was newly built in its place, with a catechetical room and auditorium on basement floor 1, a catechetical room on above-ground floor 1, and a convent also on floor 2. On December 18, 1993 it held a ceremony celebrating the construction of the parish senior center and a feast for the elderly. The kindergarten, which had opened as Our Lady Kindergarten under Gyesan-dong Parish on June 1926 and was renamed Hyoseong Kindergarten on April 1929, moved into Daedeok Parish in 1980 and was transferred to the Sisters Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on August 1994. On August 1988, marking the 10th anniversary of the parish’s establishment, it published the History of Daedeok Church for 10 Years, founded the Daedeok Association, a men’s group, on May 29, 1994, and held a youth group workshop on July 30 and an autumn concert hosted by the youth group on October 22.

〔Pastoral Work of Successive Pastors〕 The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that the first pastor, Andrew Kim Gi-jo, devoted himself to building the church and forming the new parish community, carrying out a campaign to seek out the faithful, Bible meditation meetings and retreats, and producing Cursillo course participants. The 2th pastor, Stephen Shin Sang-jo, in 1980 established neighborhood catechism classes, provided a study room, set up a legal counseling office, and launched the Inseong Association, and in 1982 founded the parish bulletin and organized the youth federation, and in 1983 was entrusted by the diocese with the mission of lead parish for promoting the construction of the Bonri-dong church and carried it out. The 3th pastor, Chrysanthus Lee Jong-heung, worked for helping neighbors, sanctification of families, and education of the faithful, and the Aosding Association, composed of 11 professors, took charge of lectures for the education of the faithful. The 4th pastor, Pascal Kang Chan-hyeong, continued pastoral work in 1986–1988 on themes such as the Eucharist and the family and the Eucharist and the Church, and at joint memorial Masses for Chuseok and Lunar New Year set up an incense altar inside the church so that family representatives could offer incense directly. The 5th pastor, Peter Lee Sang-ho, held a contest for the parish flag and parish song in 1993.

〔Jurisdiction and Statistics〕 The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia lists the jurisdiction as Daemyeong 1, 6, and 9–11-dong, and the number of the faithful as 1,349 in 1978, 2,398 in 1980, 3,361 in 1983, 4,120 in 1985, 4,964 in 1987, and 5,796 in 1993. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea directory lists the jurisdictional area as all of Daemyeong 6, 10, and 11-dong and parts of Daemyeong 1- and 9-dong, the number of the faithful as 3,477, the serving religious congregation as the Sisters Servants of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and no Catholic mission chapel.

〔Successive Pastors〕 The successive priests listed by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the first Andrew Kim Gi-jo (1978.7–1979.11), the 2th Stephen Shin Sang-jo (1979.11–1984.8), the 3th Chrysanthus Lee Jong-heung (1984.8–1986.1), the 4th Pascal Kang Chan-hyeong (1986.1–1989.6), the 5th Peter Lee Sang-ho (1989.6–1993.10), and the 6th Paul Lee Hong-geun (1993.10–to the time of the encyclopedia’s compilation).

Architecture and Space

According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Daedeok Church is a reinforced-concrete building with 3 above-ground floors and a total floor area of 290 pyeong, blessed on April 13, 1979, and an education center was newly built on the site of the convent on March 1984.

Related Places and Figures

• Daemyeong-dong Church: In 1978, Daedeok Parish separated from this parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Carmelite Convent of the Immaculate Heart of Mary: After the parish was established, it temporarily used this convent’s church and rectory and received a donation of two lots of land on February 1979 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Bonri Church: In 1983, Daedeok Parish was entrusted by the diocese with the mission of lead parish for promoting the construction of the Bonri-dong church (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Daedeok Parish” (Archdiocese of Daegu). Separation from Daemyeong-dong Parish in 1978, origin of the name, church construction, later history, pastoral work of successive pastors, statistics, jurisdiction, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/1250
2. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, Korean Catholic Directory “Daedeok” (Archdiocese of Daegu). Date of establishment 1978.08.20, patron Immaculate Heart of Mary, number of the faithful, religious congregation, jurisdictional area.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&gubn=4&gyogu=201000021&code=201000784&gubn2=all&char=all
3. Archdiocese of Daegu, Parish Information “Daedeok Church”. Date of establishment August 20, 1978, patron Immaculate Heart of Mary.
   https://www.daegu-archdiocese.or.kr/page/area.html?menu=c4&number=19&premenu&srl=church_search