Doosan Church

Overview

Dusan Church is a church of the Archdiocese of Daegu located in Dusan-dong, Suseong-gu, Daegu Metropolitan City. It was established by separation from Beomeo-dong Parish, its name at the time of establishment was Jisan-dong Parish, and with the dedication of the new church on June 24, 1989 its name was changed to Dusan-dong. Its patron saint is St. John the Baptist.

History

[Establishment] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Dusan-dong Parish was separated and established from Beomeo-dong Parish on December 1, 1977, and its name at the time of establishment was Jisan-dong Parish. The Korean Catholic Bishops’ Conference directory and the Archdiocese of Daegu parish information record the date of establishment as January 4, 1978, differing by source. The encyclopedia states that this area had been under the jurisdiction of Duryu Parish.

[Church before establishment and early ministry] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, before the establishment of the parish a church was newly built on August 1960 and a rectory was newly built on April 1975, and in 1980 a convent building was built with the help of the Sisters of Christian Education and used as a catechism classroom. The first pastor was Fr. Jang Tae-sik (Lino) (1978.3–1982.7). The encyclopedia states that this place was an outlying area of Daegu, most residents were poor farmers, clan-based natural villages were scattered about, Confucian ways of thinking prevailed, and the proportion of lapsed faithful was also rather high. Successive pastors strengthened the St. Joseph Association to assist bereaved families and to conduct funerals with dignity, and during Lent and the year-end and New Year season practiced sharing with poor and marginalized neighbors through offerings collected from the faithful. They revitalized the district and small-group organization and assessed and analyzed neighborhood conditions through small-group meetings to devise evangelization measures, and members of the Legion of Mary took part in guiding catechumens and visiting the sick and lapsed faithful. From 1980 the Sisters of Christian Education were dispatched.

[New church and renaming to Dusan-dong] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as the growth in the faithful made a new church necessary, a new church site at No. 742-7, Dusan-dong was secured through the donation of Seo Yeong-hui (Teresa), a parishioner of Gyesan-dong Parish, and construction began. On June 24, 1989 the dedication ceremony was held for the new church on a site of 650 pyeong, with 1 basement floor and 2 above-ground floors and a total floor area of 460 pyeong, together with the rectory and the convent, and at that time the parish name was changed from Jisan-dong to Dusan-dong. In the summer of 1993 an education hall was newly built.

[Growth in faithful and division of Jisan 1-dong Parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the Dusan-dong Parish area was developed as a new residential district and a large apartment village was formed, so the number of faithful surged. All members of the Legion of Mary became street evangelization members and actively carried out the evangelization campaign, producing 1,477 newly baptized persons in 1992–1994, and in 1994 the church reached full capacity with 2,500 households and more than 7,500 persons. As division of the parish became urgent, it was decided to build a new church at No. 443-1, Jisan-dong, the site of the former Dusan-dong parish, construction began on January 1994 and was completed on June 4 the following year. The encyclopedia notes that the Jisan 1-dong Church, with 1 basement floor and 3 above-ground floors and a total floor area of 725 pyeong, is significant in that it was built purely by the strength of the faithful of Dusan Parish alone.

[Status in 1995 and jurisdiction] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, after the division of Jisan 1-dong Parish, Dusan-dong Parish as of 1995 was organized into 6 districts and 50 small groups, with 52 praesidia of the Legion of Mary and the Association for Ministry to the Dying, the catechist teachers association, the choir, the altar society, the mothers’ association, the Inseong Association and others active. Church statistics were 557 persons in 1981, 719 persons in 1983, 966 persons in 1987, 3,162 persons in 1991, and 7,250 persons in 1994, and the jurisdiction was part of Jisan 1-dong, the whole of Jisan 2-dong, and part of Dusan-dong. The Korean Catholic Bishops’ Conference directory records the jurisdictional area as the whole of Jisan 2-dong (excluding Halla and Hyeophwa Apartments) and parts of Dusan-dong and Jisan 1-dong, the number of faithful as 3,831, the affiliated congregation as the Sisters of Christian Education, and no Catholic mission chapel.

[Successive pastors] The successive priests recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the first Jang Tae-sik Lino (1978.3–1982.7), the 2 Kim Bu-gi Gabriel (1982.7–1983.2), the 3 Chae Yeong-hui Joseph (1983.2–1984.8), the 4 Sin Sang-jo Stephen (1984.8–1985.10), the 5 Lee Gil-jun Paul (1985.10–1990.7), the 6 Kim Mu-han Francis Xavier (1990.7–1991.7), the 7 Seo Gyeong-don Alberto (1991.7–1992.7), the 8 Lee Pan-seok Joseph (1992.7–1995.4), and the 9 Lee Jae-myeong Paul (1995.4–at the time of writing of the encyclopedia).

Architecture and Space

According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the new church dedicated on June 24, 1989 was built at No. 742-7, Dusan-dong on a site of 650 pyeong, with 1 basement floor and 2 above-ground floors and a total floor area of 460 pyeong, and the rectory and the convent were dedicated together. The divided Jisan 1-dong Church (No. 443-1, Jisan-dong) has 1 basement floor and 3 above-ground floors with a total floor area of 725 pyeong.

Related Places and Persons

• Beomeo-dong Church: on December 1, 1977 Dusan-dong Parish (then Jisan-dong Parish) was separated and established from this parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Duryu Church: the Dusan-dong Parish area had previously been under the jurisdiction of this parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Jisan 1-dong Church: completed on June 4, 1995 by the strength of the faithful of Dusan-dong Parish and divided from Dusan-dong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Seo Yeong-hui (Teresa): a parishioner of Gyesan-dong Parish, whose donation made it possible to secure the new church site in Dusan-dong (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Korean Church History Research Institute, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Dusan-dong Parish”. Separation and establishment from Beomeo-dong Parish, renaming from Jisan-dong to Dusan-dong, dedication of the new church in 1989, division of Jisan 1-dong Parish, church statistics, jurisdiction, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/1498
2. Korean Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Korean Catholic Directory “Dusan” (Archdiocese of Daegu). Date of establishment 1978.01.04, patron St. John the Baptist, number of faithful, congregation, jurisdictional area.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&gubn=4&gyogu=201000021&code=201000802&gubn2=all&char=all
3. Archdiocese of Daegu, Parish Information “Dusan”. Date of establishment January 4, 1978.
   https://www.daegu-archdiocese.or.kr/page/area.html?menu=c4&number=41&premenu&srl=church_search