Yeongcheon Church

Overview

Yeongcheon Church is a church in Seongnae-dong, Yeongcheon-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, belonging to the Archdiocese of Daegu. It was separated and established from Yongpyeong Parish on January 1, 1936, its patron saint is the Assumption of Mary, and its first pastor was Father Raymond Froidevaux (R. Froidevaux).

History

[Period of Catholic mission chapel establishment and Yongpyeong Parish] The Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism records that, while undergoing the Gihae Persecution (1839), the Byeongo Persecution (1846) and the Byeongin Persecution (1866), believers from northern Gyeongsang-do migrated to the south, forming many Catholic villages in places such as Gyeongju, Ulsan, Eonyang, Gijang and Dongnae, and the Catholic village of Yongpyeong-dong, Hwasan-myeon was also formed by descendants of believers who settled there escaping persecution in the early 1870s. Before 1885, the Wondang Catholic mission chapel was established in the Yeongcheon area, followed by the Seokchon Catholic mission chapel. In 1888, although suffering persecution including the detention of believers such as Kim No-tak (Laurence) of the Seokchon Catholic mission chapel in the Daegu provincial office, they maintained their life of faith under the jurisdiction of Father Robert (Robert), and in 1893, Kim Tae-ho (Francis) moved from Seokchon-dong to Yongpyeong-dong and prepared a Catholic mission chapel in his own house, establishing the Yongpyeong Catholic mission chapel.

[Yongpyeong Parish] The Yongpyeong Catholic mission chapel was elevated to Yongpyeong Parish on May 30, 1907, and Father Kim Seung-yeon (Augustine), a native of the area, was appointed as first pastor. Father Kim Seung-yeon began construction of a church and rectory, completed the church on January 6, 1912 and celebrated its blessing, and opened a village school inside the church to teach doctrine and Chinese classics. When French priests returned to their home country because of World War 1, the number of priests became insufficient, so on June 7, 1915 Father Kim Seung-yeon was transferred to Jeju-do, and Yongpyeong Parish became a Catholic mission chapel belonging to Daegu Parish until 1919. In November 1919 Father Yu Heung-mo (Andrew), the 2 pastor, took office and the mission chapel was re-elevated to Yongpyeong Parish, and in 1925 Father Yu Heung-mo expanded the church and enlarged the village school.

[Establishment of Yeongcheon Parish] According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism, Father Louis Deslandes (L. Deslandes), who took office in May 1934 as the 3 pastor of Yongpyeong Parish, purchased an inn house in Gwajeon-dong, Yeongcheon-eup in 1935 and established the Gwajeon Catholic mission chapel and promoted church construction, as the diocese decided to establish a parish in the central town of Yeongcheon-eup considering that Yongpyeong Parish was on the outskirts. On January 1 of the following year Yeongcheon Parish was established and Father Froidevaux was appointed as first pastor. The parish information of the Archdiocese of Daegu also records the date of establishment as January 1, 1936 and the patron saint as the Assumption of Mary. Father Froidevaux used the Gwajeon Catholic mission chapel building as a temporary church and, receiving donations for church construction from relatives in Switzerland, began new church construction and completed the church in October of the same year.

[Father Deslandes and the end of the Japanese period] The Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism records that Father Deslandes, during his term in 15, carried out various social welfare works operating a nursery, rehabilitation center, nursing home, free clinic, soup kitchen and settlement for leprosy patients, continued the social welfare work begun at Yongpyeong Parish despite many difficulties from Japanese oppression, and in March 1950 moved to Songjeong beach at Yeongil Bay in Pohang for the growth and activity of the religious community. Father Lucas (R. Lucas), who took office in 1940, could hardly carry out pastoral activity because of religious oppression at the end of the Japanese period and was transferred in 1948 as spiritual director of the Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres in Daegu. Afterwards Yongpyeong Parish became a Catholic mission chapel belonging to Yeongcheon Parish, and after the establishment of Sinnyeong Parish in 1966 it became a Catholic mission chapel under Sinnyeong Parish and has continued as a mission community to the present.

[1950s to 60s] With the appointment of the Korean Father Lee Myeong-u as 3 pastor, the parish was revitalized through exchange with the local community. The Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism records that Father Lee Myeong-u endeavored to change the perception of non-believers who regarded Catholicism as a foreigners’ religion, and after Saetbyeol Kindergarten opened on August 20, 1951, local people’s favor toward Catholicism grew. The number of believers surged, so church expansion work began in July 1957 and was completed in November of the same year. Father Kang Chan-hyeong, the 4 pastor, implemented “one area, one mission chapel” and established the Jayang, Pyeongcheon, Gogyeong and Songpo Catholic mission chapels, and in May 1962 opened the “Vocational Boys’ Reformatory School,” which was operated with free service by incumbent teachers until December 1968. The parish separated the Uiseong Catholic mission chapel under its jurisdiction into a parish in December 1959, and the Sinnyeong Catholic mission chapel into a parish in May 1965.

[1970s to 80s] According to the Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism, from the appointment of the 5 pastor Father Shin Sang-do until before the appointment of the 8 pastor Father Park Won-chul, the parish was not stable because of frequent changes of pastors, but it gradually became stable as Father Park Won-chul devoted himself to faith education and the introduction of the Cursillo. The 9 pastor Father Choi Yeong-su organized a pastoral council and developed believer-centered pastoral care. The 10 pastor Father Lee Jeong-chu abolished the monthly bulletin and published a parish bulletin from February 1977, which was published until May 1983 and then replaced by the diocesan bulletin, renovated the church wooden floor into a concrete floor in May 1978, and rebuilt in May 1980 the church stone wall demolished by road expansion. The 11 pastor Father Choi Bong-do held Holy Spirit renewal seminars, meditation meetings and night prayers. Father Kim Sang-gyu, the 12 pastor from Yeongcheon Parish, organized the John Association, Joseph Association, Paul Association, Luke Association, Matthew Association, Hasang Paul Association, Miriam Association and Youth Association, and in 1984, as a project commemorating the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Korean Catholic Church, prepared the site at lot 212 in Yasa-dong to establish the Yeongcheon Second Parish 2, and in August 1985, as a project commemorating the 50th anniversary of the parish establishment, rebuilt the rectory with 2 stories (200 pyeong) and in September completed the new hall of the Jacheon Catholic mission chapel (42 pyeong) and celebrated its blessing.

[After the 1990s] The 14 pastor Father Jeong Seong-u prepared an adoration chapel. The 16 pastor Father Jang Yeong-il completed in June 1998 an education building with 1 basement floor and 2 above-ground floors (280 pyeong) and celebrated its blessing, and on September 3 of the same year transferred 181 households and 379 faithful registers of the Imgo Catholic mission chapel and Pyeongcheon Catholic mission chapel to separate and establish Imgo Parish. The 17 pastor Father Kim Jun-u purchased in July 2000 the site at lot 1808 in Jacheon-ri, Hwabuk-myeon (306 pyeong) and promoted the expansion of the Jacheon Catholic mission chapel, expanded the hall of the Goeyeon Catholic mission chapel in April 2001 (131 pyeong) and on the same day completed the “Retreat House” (106 pyeong).

[Jurisdiction and church statistics] The jurisdictional area recorded by the Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism is all of Dongbu-dong, Jungang-dong, Seobu-dong, Wansan-dong, Nambu-dong, Hwanam-myeon, Hwabuk-myeon and Bukan-myeon and part of Cheongtong-myeon, and the Catholic mission chapels under its jurisdiction are 4 sites including Gogyeong, Goeyeon, Jacheon and Songpo. Church statistics are 2,337 persons in 1967, 2,230 persons in 1973, 2,818 persons in 1978, 2,737 persons in 1983, 3,116 persons in 1987, 2,920 persons in 1991, and 4,059 persons in 2000. Successive pastors are the first Raymond Froidevaux (R. Froidevaux) (1936.1 to 1940.4), the 2 Louis Deslandes (L. Deslandes) (1940.5 to 1950.3), the 3 James Lee Myeong-u (1950.4 to 1959.9), the 4 Pascal Kang Chan-hyeong (1959.9 to 1966.12), the 5 Francis Shin Sang-do (1966.12 to 1967.12), the 6 Dominic Park Do-sik (1967.12 to 1968.9), the 7 Peter Lee Sang-ho (1968.9 to 1970.1), the 8 Thomas Park Won-chul (1970.1 to 1972.10), the 9 John Choi Yeong-su (1972.10 to 1976.10), the 10 Paul Lee Jeong-chu (1976.10 to 1980.5), the 11 Francis Xavier Choi Bong-do (1980.5 to 1983.5), the 12 Philip Kim Sang-gyu (1983.5 to 1986.5), the 13 Paul Won Dong-su (1986.5 to 1989.7), the 14 Paul Jeong Seong-u (1989.7 to 1993.10), the 15 John the Baptist Maeng Bong-sul (1993.10 to 1996.8), the 16 Grissando Jang Yeong-il (1996.8 to 1999.11), and the 17 Mario Kim Jun-u (1999.11 to present). The Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism also writes the first pastor as “Froidevaux” in the narrative section.

Related Places and People

• Yongpyeong Parish (Yongpyeong Catholic mission chapel): the parish from which Yeongcheon Parish was separated; after the establishment of Yeongcheon Parish it became a Catholic mission chapel belonging to Yeongcheon Parish, and after 1966 it became a Catholic mission chapel under Sinnyeong Parish (Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism).
• Sinnyeong Parish: in May 1965 the Sinnyeong Catholic mission chapel of Yeongcheon Parish was separated and elevated to a parish (Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism).
• Uiseong Parish: in December 1959 the Uiseong Catholic mission chapel under Yeongcheon Parish was separated and elevated to a parish (Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism).
• Imgo Parish: on September 3, 1998 the faithful registers of the Imgo Catholic mission chapel and Pyeongcheon Catholic mission chapel were transferred to separate and establish it from Yeongcheon Parish (Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism).
• Father Deslandes and Father Lee Myeong-u: the 2 pastor Father Deslandes led social welfare work, and the 3 pastor Father Lee Myeong-u led the opening of Saetbyeol Kindergarten and church expansion (Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism).

References and Sources

1. Encyclopedia of Korean Catholicism, “Yeongcheon Parish” (vol. 9). Separated and established from Yongpyeong Parish on January 1, 1936, period of mission-chapel establishment and Yongpyeong Parish, church construction and expansion, branch parishes, jurisdictional area and mission chapels, church statistics, successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4531
2. Archdiocese of Daegu, parish information “Yeongcheon Church”. Date of establishment January 1, 1936, patron saint Assumption of Mary.
   https://www.daegu-archdiocese.or.kr/page/area.html?menu=c4&number=100&premenu=c1&srl=church_search&y_id=100