Shipjeong-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Sipjeong-dong Church is a church in Sipjeong-dong, Bupyeong-gu, Incheon Metropolitan City, belonging to the Diocese of Incheon. It was separated and established from Juwon Parish (now Ganseok 4-dong) on September 1, 1983, and its patron is St. Vincent de Paul. The parish history on the Incheon Diocese website lists this saint’s feast day as September 27.

History

〔Background and Founding〕 According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as the number of believers in the jurisdiction of Juwon Parish increased sharply in the early 1980s through Incheon City’s urban planning, the diocese planned on June 1982 to establish a new parish in Sipjeong-dong and purchased 514 pyeong of land at the present church site. At that time, Fr. R. Jézégou, the first pastor of Juwon Parish, is said to have given much help to the believers in the area to be separated. On September 1983, Sipjeong-dong Parish was established and Fr. Peter Hwang Sang-geun took office as its first pastor. The parish history on the Incheon Diocese website states that on September 1, 1983 it was “split and established from Ganseok 4-dong (Juwon) Church and Bupyeong 2-dong Church” and that St. Vincent de Paul (feast day September 27) was designated as patron. The directory of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea also lists the establishment date as September 1, 1983 and the patron as St. Vincent.

〔Temporary Church and Church Construction〕 The encyclopedia states that, as no place to celebrate Mass had been prepared, a parishioner’s chicken coop (鷄舍) was borrowed for use as a temporary church and a nearby row house was rented for use as a temporary rectory. Fr. Hwang Sang-geun began church construction on May 1984, but because of financial difficulties he completed only the exterior work of the church and rectory and had to move the church into the basement of the new building on September of that year. The 2 pastor, Fr. Luke Hong Chang-man, resumed the interrupted church construction on April 1986 and completed on February 1988 a church of 466 pyeong with 1 basement floor and 2 above-ground floors. In 1987, a branch convent of the ‘Notre Dame Sisters’ was established, and on September of the same year a 3-story building of 174 pyeong for use as a convent and education center was completed.

〔Devotional Activities and Facilities〕 The 3 pastor, Fr. Melchior Kim Jun-seok, concerned that devotional life had been neglected during more than 4 years of church construction, focused on strengthening devotion, offering 5-minute catechesis before Sunday Mass and founding several groups including the Association for the Deceased, the Daegeon Association, and the St. Vincent de Paul Society. The encyclopedia states that on February 1988 a statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was erected at the parish entrance, and on May of the same year a statue of Our Lady was erected, and that in the following year on June the jurisdictional districts were reorganized and men’s meetings by district were strengthened. The 5 pastor, Fr. Joseph Park Bok-nam, settled and revitalized district meetings during more than 6 years of ministry, and the 6 pastor, Fr. Thomas Kim Dong-cheol, continued this pastoral approach with an emphasis on faith education. In early 2000, as the existing education center had become too small, a 4-story building across from the church was purchased for use as an education center.

〔Church Statistics and Jurisdiction〕 The encyclopedia’s statistics are 918 people in 1983, 2,089 people in 1987, 4,228 people in 1991, 4,809 people in 1995, and 5,109 people in 1999. Its jurisdiction covered all of Sipjeong 1- and 2-dong and Ganseok 1- and 4-dong.

〔Successive Pastors〕 The encyclopedia lists the first, Fr. Peter Hwang Sang-geun (September 1983–February 1985), the 2 pastor, Fr. Luke Hong Chang-man (February 1985–February 1988), the 3 pastor, Fr. Melchior Kim Jun-seok (February 1988–January 1991), the 4 pastor, Fr. Peter Lee Yong-gwon (January 1991–February 1994), the 5 pastor, Fr. Joseph Park Bok-nam (February 1994–January 2000), and the 6 pastor, Fr. Thomas Kim Dong-cheol (January 2000–).

Related Places and People

• Juwon (now Ganseok 4-dong) Parish: the mother parish from which Sipjeong-dong Parish was separated and established in 1983 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The Incheon Diocese history states that it was divided from Ganseok 4-dong (Juwon) Church and Bupyeong 2-dong Church.
• Fr. R. Jézégou: the first pastor of Juwon Parish who helped establish Sipjeong-dong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Fr. Peter Hwang Sang-geun: the first pastor of Sipjeong-dong Parish (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Notre Dame Sisters: the congregation that established a branch convent at Sipjeong-dong Parish in 1987 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Sipjeong-dong Parish. Background of establishment in 1983, temporary church, church construction process, church statistics, successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/4050
2. Incheon Diocese website, Sipjeong-dong Parish history. Division and establishment on September 1, 1983 and designation of patron.
   http://www.caincheon.or.kr/church/church_jigu.do?churchIdx=14032
3. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea directory, Sipjeong-dong. Establishment date 1983.9.1., patron St. Vincent.
   http://directory.cbck.or.kr/m/catholicInfo.asp?code=201000395&gubun=4