Hongsan Catholic Church

History & origins

Catholic life in the Hongsan area is documented well before the establishment of the parish. The Catholic Encyclopedia in Korea records a community of believers at Sapti in 1885 and Catholics living at Gadeok-ri by 1895. In the following decades, Catholics in the area continued their faith through mission-station communities under neighboring parishes, including Geumsari.

After the Korean War, the number of Catholics in the Hongsan area increased and the distance to the existing parish church made pastoral care more difficult, strengthening the need for an independent parish. Land for a church was secured in 1956, construction was pursued from late 1957, and on April 8, 1958 Hongsan was separated from Geumsari Parish and established as a quasi-parish. The church building was completed that year, giving the community a more independent pastoral base.

In October 1962 Hongsan was elevated to full parish status. In the following years a convent and other structures for local service were established, and during the 1960s the parish also developed activities such as a library and a credit union for Catholics and local residents. In the limited circumstances of a rural community, these efforts show how the parish broadened its social foundation through education and mutual assistance.

During the 1980s, efforts to honor Jiseok-ri, the birthplace of the martyrs Saint Peter Son Seon-ji and Saint Bartholomew Jeong Mun-ho, became more organized. A donation of land by a descendant enabled the installation of a memorial monument and the improvement of the surroundings, giving concrete form to the preservation of Jiseok-ri’s martyr heritage. This development shows that the history of Hongsan Parish became linked not only with the growth of a local parish but also with the recovery of the surrounding region’s memory of martyrdom.