Jeong Hasang Retreat Center

History & origins

The establishment of Jeong Hasang Education Center arose from the Diocese of Daejeon's recognition that, after creating Daejeon Catholic University for the formation of clergy, the laity also needed a place for systematic faith formation and retreats. A diocesan record marking the center's tenth anniversary explains that Bishop Joseph Kye Kap-ryong, then bishop of the diocese, promoted the project with the vision of making it a “seedbed for the faith formation of the laity.”

The center celebrated the tenth anniversary of its opening in October 2011, confirming that it had been serving diocesan lay formation and retreats since the early 2000s. Under its first director, Fr. Kim Jeong-su, and those who followed, the center developed not simply as an event venue but as a place where Catholics could stay, pray, and learn. Its official facilities description likewise states that it was created to accommodate retreats and religious events for clergy and laity, together with community programs and symposia.

The buildings and spaces were organized to support education and lodging, prayer and community events in one setting. This arrangement reflects an approach to formation that does not reduce faith education to lectures but allows participants to spend time together in liturgy, prayer, learning, and fellowship. While capable of relating to nearby Catholic educational institutions, the center was designed to retain its own independent function.

By the time of its tenth anniversary, Jeong Hasang Education Center had already become a regular setting for various diocesan programs of formation and retreat. The circumstances of its founding and its original purpose remain the historical basis for understanding the center today as a place of diocesan faith formation.