Yesan Church

Overview

Yesan Church is a church of the Diocese of Daejeon located in Yesan Town, Yesan County, South Chungcheong Province. It was separated from Hapdeok Parish (now Guhapdeok) in 1927 and established, and its patron is the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The present church building was completed in 1934, and on April 10, 2004 it was designated as Chungcheongnam-do Monument No. 164.

History

[Before the Establishment of the Parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, after the end of the Byeongin Persecution communities of the faithful began to form around Hapdeok, and from 1881 Father C. Doucet, in charge of the Naepo region, visited these communities and established Catholic mission chapels in various places. Notable among them was the Ganyang-gol community (now Ganyang-ri, Yesan Town). Father P. Pasquier, who entered the country on October 3, 1889, lived in Ganyang-gol from August of the following year and administered the northern and western parts of Naepo, including Cheonan, Asan, Yesan and Jiksan. However, in 1894 the Ganyang-gol parish was abolished because of the Donghak Peasant Uprising, jurisdiction was transferred to Yangchon Parish (now Guhapdeok), and Yangchon Parish changed its name to Hapdeok when it moved the parish to Hapdeok in 1898.

[Establishment] As the Church grew greatly under the pastoral care of Father P. Perrin, who arrived at Hapdeok Parish in 1921, Yesan Parish was separated and established in 1927 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). According to the Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia, as the faithful of the Yesan mission chapel increased, efforts to establish a parish in Yesan went forward, and Chairman Yun Chang-gyu (Ignatius), who had moved from Gaeseong and served as chairman of the Yesan mission chapel, built a 6-kan hanok traditional house at his own expense and prepared to invite clergy. At the time of separation from Hapdeok Parish there were about 1,500 faithful, and the first parish priest was Father Joseph Gu Cheon-u, formerly assistant priest at Hapdeok Parish. Chairman Yun Chang-gyu actively promoted the new church construction and donated a large amount of property.

[Construction and Dedication of the Church] The Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia states that Father Joseph Hwang Jeong-su, the 2 parish priest who arrived in 1928 and served from 1928 to 1943, completed the present church building in 1934 with the funds donated by Chairman Yun Chang-gyu. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia states that construction began in 1933 after the parish establishment, the church and rectory were completed the following year, and the dedication ceremony was held on September 12, 1935.

[Education Hall, Kindergarten and Division] Father E. Beaudevin, who arrived as the 7 parish priest in 1952, built a new Ochon-ri mission chapel hall of 16 pyeong the following year, erected a statue of the Virgin Mary in front of the church entrance and built a convent of 22 pyeong in 1954, and built a 2-story education hall in 1956 and a kindergarten in 1963 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia also records an education hall in 1956 and a Marian kindergarten in 1963, explaining that the attached Marian kindergarten is operating with a good reputation in the local community.

On September 19, 1966 Sapgyo Parish was separated and established, and the faithful in parts of Deoksan, Godeok, Bongsan and Oga Townships were transferred to the new parish. When rapid population growth was expected in the Sillyewon area in 1975 because of new factories, the Sillyewon mission chapel was elevated to a parish and separated in October 1977 by decision of Bishop Peter Hwang Min-seong, head of the Diocese of Daejeon. Afterwards the Daeryul mission chapel in Daeheung Township (1979) and the Sonji-ri mission chapel (1980), a catechism room (1981) and an education hall (1982) were newly built, the old convent was demolished and rebuilt as a Western-style house (1983), and the education hall and rectory were repaired and enlarged (1985). On August 17, 1988 Sanseong-ri Parish in Yesan was separated and established, transferring Jugyo-ri Districts 1 and 2, Oga Township and parts of Daeheung Township to the new parish, and at that time the parish name was changed to ‘Yesan Oridong Parish.’ Father Bernard Yun Jong-hak, the 15 parish priest, built new halls for the Gwigok mission chapel in Sinyang Township (1993) and the Sinyang mission chapel (1994), and Father Dionysius Baek Nam-ik, who arrived as the 16 parish priest in 1997, carried out block work for the churchyard walkways and driveways (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The parish name was changed back to ‘Yesan Parish’ in February 2000.

The Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia states that Sapgyo Parish in 1966, Sillyewon Parish in 1977 and Sanseong-ri Parish in 1988 were separated from Yesan Parish. The detailed information in that source states that the name was changed from Yesan Parish to Yesan Church in February 2002, while its main text states that the name was changed to Yesan Church in February 2000, so the renaming date appears differently within the same source.

[Designation as Cultural Heritage] According to the Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia, Yesan Church was designated as Chungcheongnam-do Monument No. 164 on April 10, 2004, and was redesignated as a Chungcheongnam-do Monument when cultural-property designation numbers were abolished by a public notice of the Cultural Heritage Administration on November 19, 2021. That source evaluates the church and rectory buildings as beautiful and of high cultural-heritage value.

[Present Status] The Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia states that Yesan Church oversees the Daeryul mission chapel in Daeheung, the Songseok mission chapel in Daesul, the Sinyang mission chapel, the Gwigok mission chapel in Sinyang and the Siwang-ri mission chapel, serving as the central church of the Catholic Church in the Naepo region, and that the succession continues from the 1 Father Joseph Gu Cheon-u to the 21 Father Luke Kim Yun-seok. The Church membership recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia is in 1949 2,374 persons, in 1959 3,631 persons, in 1969 3,511 persons, in 1979 2,268 persons, in 1989 1,769 persons, and in 1999 1,686 persons, and the mission chapels under its jurisdiction are recorded as 6 places: Sinyang, Siwang-ri, Songseo, Bigok, Iti and Daeryul.

[Successive Parish Priests] The successive priests recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the 1st Father Joseph Gu Cheon-u (1927.10–1928.5), the 2 parish priest Father Joseph Hwang Jeong-su (1928.5–1943.12), the 3 parish priest Father Augustine Yu Bong-gu (1943.12–1948.9), the 4 parish priest Father Emilio Beaudevin, E. Beaudevin, Jeong Dopyeong (1948.9–1950), the 5 parish priest Father Roberto Richard, R. Richard, Lee (1950–1950.8), the 6 parish priest Father Matthew Han Do-jun (1951–1952), the 7 parish priest Father Beaudevin (1952–1966.1), the 8 parish priest Father John Blanc, J. Blanc, Baek (1966.1–1971.10), the 9 parish priest Father James Yu Bong-un (1971.10–1972.12), the 10 parish priest Father John the Baptist Son Man-jae (1972.12–1977.10), the 11 parish priest Father Ludovico Yu Seong-suk (1977.10–1982.9), the 12 parish priest Father Augustine Lee Gye-chang (1982.9–1985.3), the 13 parish priest Father Francis Yu In-seong (1985.3–1989.8), the 14 parish priest Father John the Baptist Jo Gyu-sik (1989.8–1991.8), the 15 parish priest Father Bernard Yun Jong-hak (1991.8–1997.1), the 16 parish priest Father Dionysius Baek Nam-ik (1997.1–1998.2), the 17 parish priest Father Balthazar U Hui-su (1998.2–2002.1), and the 18 parish priest Father Michael An Sang-cheol (2002.1–) (as of the time of writing of the encyclopedia).

Architecture and Space

The present church building was completed in 1934 (Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia), and the same source states that the church and rectory buildings were designated as Chungcheongnam-do Monument No. 164 in 2004 for their high cultural-heritage value. The Korean Catholic Encyclopedia records the dedication of the church and rectory on September 12, 1935.

Related Places and People

• Hapdeok (Guhapdeok) Parish: the parish from which Yesan Parish was separated in 1927. Its predecessor Yangchon Parish changed its name to Hapdeok when it moved the parish to Hapdeok in 1898 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Ganyang-gol Community: Father Pasquier resided there in 1890 and administered the north and west of Naepo, but the parish was abolished in 1894 because of the Donghak Peasant Uprising (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Sapgyo Parish (1966), Sillyewon Parish (1977), Sanseong-ri Parish (1988): parishes separated from Yesan Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia).
• Chairman Ignatius Yun Chang-gyu: a faithful who moved from Gaeseong, served as chairman of the Yesan mission chapel, built a hanok house and donated funds for the new church (Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute for Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Yesan Parish”. Ganyang-gol community and parish lineage, establishment in 1927, church construction and dedication in 1933–35, division process, name changes, Church membership and successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4550
2. Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Yesan Culture Encyclopedia “Yesan Church”. Parish separation in 1927 and the role of Chairman Yun Chang-gyu, church completion in 1934, designation as Chungcheongnam-do Monument No. 164 and redesignation, divisions and present status.
   https://www.grandculture.net/yesan/toc/GC06601085