Daesan Catholic Church

Overview

Daesan Church is a church in Daesan-ri, Daesan-eup, Seosan-si, Chungcheongnam-do, belonging to the Diocese of Daejeon. It was founded as the Daesan Catholic mission chapel under the Seosan Dongmun-dong Church in 1967, and was elevated and separated as a parish on August 19, 1989. The background to its establishment was the increase in believers as a petrochemical industrial complex was built in Daesan-eup and adjacent areas.

History

[Mission-Chapel Period] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that on May 15, 1967, the faith community of this area was founded centered on the Daesan Catholic mission chapel belonging to Seosan Dongmun Parish, and that under the guidance of assistant priest Yi Gye-chang of Dongmun Parish, catechesis for catechumens was given at Daesan Middle School. On May 30, 1968, through the efforts of the first mission-chapel president Kim Gi-pung (Peter), then principal of Daesan Middle School, a site of 1,200 pyeong was donated by Kim Su-yeon, who lived in Jigok-myeon, and a concrete building of 30 pyeong was newly built, moving the mission chapel here from the school auditorium. To commemorate the construction of the Daesan mission-chapel hall, the diocese newly built and donated a science room of 20 pyeong to Daesan Middle School. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia also states that it was founded on May 15, 1967, as the Daesan Mission Chapel under the Seosan Dongmun-dong Church.

[Elevation to Parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as this area, which had remained a mission chapel for over 20 years, was expected to grow rapidly in population as it developed into a coastal industrial area, Dongmun Parish planned to elevate the Daesan mission chapel to a parish. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia states that from the mid-1980s onward a specialized petrochemical industrial complex was created in the Daesan area, bringing an influx of population and an increase in Catholic believers, and that although a mission chapel had already been established in 1967 and gatherings were held, it was insufficient to accommodate the growing believers, so the Diocese of Daejeon separated and elevated the Daesan Mission Chapel, which had been a mission chapel of the Seosan Dongmun-dong Church, into Daesan Church. The Daesan mission chapel was elevated to a parish on August 19, 1989 (both sources agree), and the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records that it produced its first 12 baptized persons in December of that year and continued to grow steadily. The first parish priest was Father Yi Gwang-geun (Peter) (1989.8–1994.8), and the 2 parish priest was Father Go Yeong-hwan (Thaddeus) (from 1994.8, in office when the encyclopedia was compiled).

[Early Facilities] According to the Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia, in the early days after founding it used a mission-chapel hall of about 100 square meters as its church, then on December 20, 1991 newly built a prefabricated church of about 300 square meters (the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia describes it as construction of a prefabricated church of 90 pyeong on December 20, 1991). The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia adds that in May 1992 it newly built prefabricated buildings of 60 pyeong, 2 buildings in total, equipped with 6 Sunday-school classrooms, a credit-union office, storage rooms and the like, and in May 1993 newly built a rectory of 98 pyeong. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia states that in 1993 it newly built a rectory and a convent in a 2-story structure.

[Credit Union and Believers’ Groups] In February 1993 it established a credit union to promote economic cooperation among believers (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). According to the same source, 18 groups were organized and active, including the Haeseonghoe and Gyouhoe pursuing workplace evangelization and fellowship within Hyundai Oil Refinery and Hyundai Petrochemical, as well as the Legion of Mary, the Association for the Deceased and the Honhwa Association. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia states that, because an industrial complex has been created in the area, many workplace fellowship groups have been organized as a characteristic feature, and that social service and fellowship activities are carried out centered on believers’ groups organized by workplace, such as the LG Fellowship, the Honam Fellowship and the Haeseonghoe.

[Construction of the Present Church] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that a church-building committee comprising all believers as members was organized and was carrying out church-building activities with completion scheduled for 1996. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia states that on February 27, 1997 a branch of the Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help was established, that the groundbreaking ceremony for a new church building was held on August 19, 1998, and that the present church was completed on October 4, 1999 at 149-141 Daesan-ri, Daesan-eup.

[Jurisdiction and Church Strength] The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia gives the jurisdiction at the time of establishment as the Daesan-myeon and Jigok-myeon areas, while the Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia states that it has jurisdiction over the coastal areas of Seosan such as Jigok-myeon centered on Daesan-eup, and in its Daesan Church entry gives the jurisdiction as the entire Daesan-eup area of Seosan-si. The church strength recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia is 491 persons in 1989, 1,058 persons in 1992, and 1,205 persons in 1994. According to the Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia, as of 2010, affiliated believers numbered 1,408, 5.8% of the jurisdictional population, with 1 priest and 2 sisters.

[Assessment] The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia assesses that Daesan Church was elevated and established as a church together with the creation of the industrial complex, and that establishing a church in an area where the existing believers were few but population influx was expected, and carrying out pastoral care attentive to local particularities such as workplace fellowship groups, shows a different aspect from the earlier Catholicism of the Seosan area, which had been established against the background of persecution and Catholic villages.

Related Places and People

• Seosan Dongmun-dong Church: The mother parish to which the Daesan mission chapel belonged. The Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia explains that as the believers of Dongmun-dong Church grew, its mission chapels were elevated and separated into parishes, recording that Taean Church was separated on August 4, 1964, Unsan (mission chapel to parish) on November 20, 1974, Haemi Church on April 10, 1985, Seongnim-dong Church on August 17, 1987, Daesan Church on August 19, 1989, and Yecheon-dong Church on January 8, 2004.
• Daesan Middle School: The place where catechesis for catechumens was given after the establishment of the Daesan mission chapel in 1967, and first mission-chapel president Kim Gi-pung (Peter) was principal at the time (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Seosan Yecheon-dong Church: The church last separated from Seosan Dongmun-dong Church and Seongnim-dong Church on January 8, 2004 (Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Daesan Parish” (Vol. 3). Separation and establishment from Dongmun Parish on August 19, 1989, mission-chapel period, elevation to parish, early facilities, credit union and believers’ groups, church strength, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/1274
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia “Daesan Church”. Founding background, mission chapel and elevation to parish, completion of the new church on October 4, 1999, workplace fellowship groups, jurisdiction and church strength.
   https://www.grandculture.net/seosan/toc/GC04101280
3. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia “Churches”. Overview of churches in the Seosan area, jurisdiction of Daesan Church and completion on October 4, 1999, churches separated from Dongmun-dong Church.
   https://www.grandculture.net/seosan/toc/GC04101296
4. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Seosan Culture Encyclopedia “Catholicism”. Separation of Taean Church from Seosan Dongmun-dong Church on August 4, 1964, and elevation of the Unsan mission chapel to a parish on November 20, 1974.
   https://www.grandculture.net/seosan/toc/GC04100046