Marianist Sisters Convent

History & origins

The Daughters of Mary Immaculate were founded in Agen, France, in 1816 and entered Korea in 1979 at the invitation of the Society of Mary. According to the Catholic Times, the Korean Marianists sent an invitation to the congregation's Japanese province in 1976. After visits and preparation, and with approval from the Archdiocese of Seoul, two sisters were sent to Korea in 1979. In 1980 they established a convent in Mok-dong, Seoul, and began receiving Korean candidates, laying the foundation for the congregation's life in Korea.

The present Ganghwa site enters the historical record clearly in 2011. Groundbreaking for the Marianist Spirituality Center took place in Yangsa-myeon in March of that year, and the building was completed about eight months later. On November 25 a blessing ceremony was held under the presidency of the vicar general of the Diocese of Incheon, formally opening a spirituality center composed of a church wing and a retreat wing.

Today the Guide to the Catholic Church in Korea registers this address both as the 'Ganghwa Community' of the Daughters of Mary Immaculate and, in its retreat-house listings, as the Marianist Spirituality Center operated by the congregation. The construction and blessing of the spirituality center in 2011 is therefore a key historical event for understanding the apostolate now carried out by the Ganghwa community at this location.

The public sources located for this review do not establish that the administrative founding date of the Ganghwa religious community was identical to the blessing date of the center. For that reason, no unsupported branch-foundation date is assigned here; the account is limited to the documented fact that from 2011 this site functioned as an official center of the congregation's spirituality apostolate.