Nosong-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Nosong-dong Church is a church in Wansan-gu, Jeonju-si, Jeonbuk Special Self-Governing Province, belonging to the Diocese of Jeonju. According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, on June 1, 1967 it was separated and established from Jungang Parish and Jeondong Parish, and its patron is St. Francis.

History

[Establishment] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, as the membership of Jungang Parish and Jeondong Parish grew, the newly separated and established Nosong-dong Parish held a blessing ceremony for a temporary church building on December 19, 1968 and began to take shape as a parish with the establishment of a branch of the Inbo Eucharistic Sisters.

[Construction of a new church] The encyclopedia states that in 1970 a credit union was founded to steadily raise funds for building a new church, and on March 19, 1976 a church, an education hall and various annex buildings were completed on a total site of over 1,000 pyeong with a floor area of 530 pyeong, followed by a blessing ceremony.

[Withdrawal of the Franciscan Order and division] According to the encyclopedia, the Franciscan Order, which had worked since the founding of the parish for about 12 years for the construction of the church and the consolidation of the parish, handed the parish over to the diocese and withdrew on December 1979 once the parish had laid its foundation. In 1984, when Soyang Catholic mission chapel, a mission under its jurisdiction, was included in the newly to be established Inhu-dong Parish, a bazaar was held to help build its church, and on January 24, 1987 it was completely divided off.

[Later developments] The encyclopedia states that as new parishes were established nearby and believers moved to new apartment complexes, elderly people came to make up the majority of the faithful and many faced economic difficulties, but Lenten and Advent aid for needy neighbors, re-education of the faithful, and visits to lapsed Catholics centered on Legion members continued. The parish was maintained with installations such as sound and heating and cooling facilities, and as an apartment complex was scheduled to be built in Ajung-ri, within its jurisdiction, new development was expected on that occasion.

[Jurisdiction, statistics, and successive priests] The jurisdictional area recorded in the encyclopedia is Namnosong-dong, Jungnosong-dong, Inhu-dong and Ajung-ri in Wansan-gu, Jeonju-si. The statistics are 1,800 persons in 1967, 3,972 persons in 1983, and 2,364 persons in 1993. The successive priests are the first, Marhello Pedraza (M. Pedraza) (1967.6~1969.6), the 2 pastor, Antonio Gonzalez (A. Gonzalez) (1969.6~1975.8), the 3 pastor, Joseph Gloria (J. Gloria) (1975.8~1976.2), the 4 pastor, Antonio Comtois (A. Comtois) (1976.2~1979.12), the 5 pastor, Thomas Kim Jeong-won (1979.12~1982.9), the 6 pastor, Benedict Kim Yong-tae (1982.9~1987.1), the 7 pastor, Thomas Lee Jae-hu (1987.1~1991.2), and the 8 pastor, Lawrence Park Jin-ryang (1991.2~the time of writing). The Korean Catholic Bishops’ Conference directory lists the parish as belonging to the 1 District, with an establishment date of October 1, 1968, its patron as St. Francis, and its affiliated sisters as the Inbo Eucharistic Sisters. The establishment date differs from that in the encyclopedia (June 1, 1967).

Architecture and Space

According to the encyclopedia, on March 19, 1976 a church, an education hall and various annex buildings were completed and blessed on a total site of over 1,000 pyeong with a floor area of 530 pyeong. Before that, on December 19, 1968, there was a blessing ceremony for a temporary church building.

Related Places and People

• Jungang Parish and Jeondong Parish: the parishes from which Nosong-dong Parish was separated (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Franciscan Order: it ministered from the founding of the parish for about 12 years and on December 1979 handed the parish over to the diocese and withdrew (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Inhu-dong Parish and Soyang Catholic mission chapel: as Soyang Catholic mission chapel was included in the newly to be established Inhu-dong Parish, it was completely divided off on January 24, 1987 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Korean Catholic History Research Institute, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Nosong-dong Parish” (Diocese of Jeonju, Vol. 2). Separation from Jungang and Jeondong Parishes, temporary building blessing in 1968, church completion in 1976, withdrawal of the Franciscan Order, jurisdictional area, statistics, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/1104
2. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, Korean Catholic Directory “Nosong-dong” (Diocese of Jeonju). Establishment date 1968.10.01, patron St. Francis, Inbo Eucharistic Sisters, 1 District.
   http://directory.cbck.or.kr/m/catholicInfo.asp?code=201001281&gubun=4