Imdong Cathedral

Overview

The Imdong Cathedral is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Gwangju in Im-dong, Buk-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City. Separated from Bukdong Church, it was established as a parish on January 1, 1967, and held the dedication ceremony of the cathedral on September 28, 1983. Its patron saint is Anselm of Canterbury, Bishop and Doctor, and this church was dedicated as a memorial to the 5th diocesan bishop, Archbishop Harold Hyun, and to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Catholic Church in Korea.

History

The Imdong Church homepage explains that with the church building already completed, the first pastor, Father Patric Brandon, and the assistant priest, Father Lee Cheon-su (Lazarus), took office at the same time as the parish registers of the faithful in the Imdong jurisdiction were separated from Bukdong Church and assigned to Imdong Church on January 1, 1967. On February 2, 1967, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, the first Mass of the parish church was offered on the site where the kindergarten now stands. To honor the intention of Brother Anselm from the United States, who gave financial help for the founding of the parish, Anselm, his given name, came to be honored as the patron saint of the parish, which the homepage notes was at the suggestion of Archbishop Harold Hyun.

The Archdiocese of Gwangju homepage explains that on a site of more than 3,000 pyeong prepared with the help of American Brother Anselm, Father Patric Brandon (Patric Brandon), who took office as the first pastor, built a small church in April 1967. According to the Digital Gwangju Culture Encyclopedia, Imdong Church was founded to spread the Gospel to Yudong, Yangdong, Sinan-dong, and part of Nongseong-dong, centered on Im-dong. As the Gwangcheon-dong Catholic mission chapel was elevated to a parish, the parish registers of more than 800 faithful were transferred out on November 9, 1970, and a kindergarten was opened on March 8, 1978 and continues to operate.

Before the present Imdong Church built in 1983, Bukdong Church was the cathedral. The Archdiocese of Gwangju homepage explains that as the number of newly baptized Catholics surged in the late 1970s, Bukdong Church had become old and too small to fulfill its function as a cathedral, and therefore the diocese resolved in June 1979 to promote the construction of a cathedral and decided to build the cathedral in Im-dong. Construction of the cathedral began on December 15, 1980, and the dedication was held on September 28, 1983, presided over by the then diocesan bishop, Archbishop Yun Gong-hui. The Imdong Church homepage records this date as the parish day (September 28).

According to the Archdiocese of Gwangju homepage, this church was dedicated as a memorial to the 5th diocesan bishop, Archbishop Harold Hyun, who ministered in the Archdiocese of Gwangju for 43 years and laid the foundation for the development of the diocese, and as a church commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Catholic Church in Korea. The Imdong Church homepage also records that on September 28, 1983, the dedication ceremony of the “Memorial Cathedral for the late Archbishop Harold Hyun” was held, presided over by Archbishop Yun Gong-hui.

Significance for Faith and Context for Visiting

The Imdong Church homepage lists the patron saint of the parish as Anselm (Anselm) of Canterbury (Canterbury), Bishop and Doctor (1033–1109, feast day April 21), and introduces the dispatched religious community as the Sisters of Charity of Jesus. The parish jurisdiction is given as Im-dong in Buk-gu (Tong 1 to 23), Yudong (Tong 4 to 14), part of Sinan-dong, and Yang3-dong and Yang1-dong in Seo-gu (Tong 7 to 10).

Related Places and People

• Bukdong Church - It is the mother parish of Imdong Cathedral. According to the Archdiocese of Gwangju homepage, it began as a Catholic mission chapel with 10 faithful in 1929 and was elevated to the first parish in the Gwangju area on May 21, 1933; it was first called “Gwangju Parish” and changed to its present name in 1949. The present building was dedicated on June 26, 1938, during the time of the 4rd pastor, Father Gu Thomas (Thomas Quinlan), and it became the cathedral when the Gwangju Prefecture was elevated to a Vicariate on January 21, 1957. In 1999, the church and the rectory were designated as Gwangju Metropolitan City Monument No. 25. Together with Imdong Cathedral, it is presented as a cathedral of the Archdiocese of Gwangju (Bukdong Co-Cathedral).
• Father Patric Brandon (Patric Brandon) - He is the first pastor of Imdong Church.
• Father Lee Cheon-su (Lazarus) - He is the first assistant priest of Imdong Church.
• Archbishop Harold Hyun - He is the 5th diocesan bishop of the Archdiocese of Gwangju, and the Imdong Cathedral is the church commemorating him.
• Archbishop Yun Gong-hui - He is the then diocesan bishop who presided over the dedication and consecration ceremony of the cathedral on September 28, 1983.
• Gwangcheon-dong Church - As the Gwangcheon-dong Catholic mission chapel was elevated to a parish, the parish registers of more than 800 faithful were moved from Imdong Church on November 9, 1970.

References and Sources

1. Archdiocese of Gwangju, Cathedral. The parish founding on January 1, 1967, the building of the small church in April 1967, the resolution to build the cathedral in June 1979, the start of construction on December 15, 1980, the dedication on September 28, 1983, and the history of the Bukdong Co-Cathedral were confirmed.
   https://www.gjcatholic.or.kr/church/cathedral
2. Imdong Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Gwangju, Parish History. The separation from Bukdong Church, the first Mass on February 2, 1967, the origin of Anselm as patron saint, the consecration ceremony and parish day on September 28, 1983, and the jurisdiction were confirmed.
   http://imdong.or.kr/m_page.php?ps_pname=page_limdong_history
3. Digital Gwangju Culture Encyclopedia, Imdong Church. The purpose of foundation and the first pastor, the transfer of faithful in 1970, the opening of the kindergarten in 1978, and the decision to build the cathedral in 1979 and the dedication in 1983 were confirmed.
   https://gwangju.grandculture.net/gwangju/bukgu/toc/GC60003280