Yongyu Catholic Church

History & origins

In January 2004, diocesan personnel announcements identified Yongyu as a newly established quasi-parish, with the appointment of its pastor taking effect on January 26. The Catholic Church Directory in Korea likewise gives January 26, 2004, as its establishment date. This marks the point at which the existing local Catholic community was organized as an independent quasi-parish pastoral unit of the diocese.

The circumstances of its early years are described in some detail in a 2009 Catholic Times report. According to the article, in 2005 the Yongyu community was still using an aging building that had formerly served as a mission station chapel, and it remained a small community with relatively few people attending Sunday Mass. Although it hoped to build a new church, finances were limited, so the parish spent several years raising construction funds through activities such as selling regional products.

This record shows that the early history of Yongyu Quasi-Parish involved more than an administrative act of establishment. The community maintained a place of worship inherited from its mission-station period while building the foundations of an independent community, and the faithful worked to improve their church environment through their own efforts. The present quasi-parish stands on that continuity and local commitment.