Seongmodang

History & origins

The origin of Seongmodang goes back to 1911, when the Apostolic Vicariate of Daegu had just been established. Bishop Florian Demange, its first ordinary, vowed to build a grotto modeled on Lourdes at the finest place within the diocesan grounds if a bishop’s residence, a seminary, and the enlargement of the cathedral could be accomplished. When those three projects were realized within a few years, he fulfilled his vow by building Seongmodang.

The completed shrine was blessed on October 13, 1918. An inscription carved by Bishop Demange—“1911 EX VOTO IMMACULATAE CONCEPTION 1918”—still records that the place was erected in fulfillment of that vow. From 1973, annual Marian Night celebrations helped establish it as an important center of Marian devotion, and the relics of Saint John Yi Yun-il, the second patron of the archdiocese, were enshrined beneath the altar.

Seongmodang also became known beyond the archdiocese. Mother Teresa and Pope Saint John Paul II visited the shrine, and in 1990 it was designated Tangible Cultural Property No. 29 of Daegu.

In 2009 it entered a spiritual bond with the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, becoming a pilgrimage place where a plenary indulgence may be obtained under the prescribed conditions. Its history thus connects the founding vow of the local Church with Marian devotion, veneration of the martyrs, preservation of cultural heritage, and communion with the universal Church.