Morae Catholic Church

History & origins

Moraenae Parish received approval for its establishment from the Diocese of Incheon on January 14, 2008. After the new parish was created, its first pastor and community began laying the groundwork for a permanent church, and succeeding pastors and parishioners continued the effort. The parish grew into a community of about 3,700 Catholics, but securing a dedicated church was a process that required sustained preparation.

Parishioners undertook a campaign to offer 250,000 decades of the Rosary for the intention of obtaining a church site, and during this process the parish acquired a five-story commercial building. A groundbreaking Mass was celebrated on October 13, 2012, after which the building was remodeled for parish use. Construction was completed about seven months later, on May 12, 2013. The completed building had five floors above ground and a total floor area of 1,915 square meters. The first floor contained offices, the pastor's office, and a Eucharistic adoration chapel; the second and third floors formed a 460-seat main church; the fourth floor contained catechetical rooms, a hall, and a kitchen; and the fifth floor held the rectory and a small meeting room, with a garden and rest area on the roof. The former commercial building had thus been reorganized around the parish's liturgical, educational, and communal needs.

On September 29 of the same year, Bishop Boniface Choi Ki-san presided at the dedication of the new church. The roughly five-and-a-half years from parish approval to dedication show a community that was first formed pastorally and then, through the prayer and participation of its members, established a permanent sacred home. The early history of Moraenae Parish is therefore the story of a new urban Catholic community gradually securing stable space for liturgy, formation, and fellowship.