Little Brothers (Franciscan Order)

History & origins

The Franciscan history of Chilam-dong began in connection with the mission of western Gyeongsangnam-do in the 1950s. According to official records of the Diocese of Masan, Fr. Constantio Joo of the Genoa Province in Italy arrived in Korea in 1955, followed the next year by Fr. Donato Kang Ji-hong and others. In 1957, the pastoral care of Okbong-dong Parish in Jinju was entrusted to Franciscan missionaries for the evangelization of western Gyeongsangnam-do, and the friars began to work with Jinju as one of their centers.

As the need arose for a friary in Jinju that could receive seminarians and religious, land was acquired in Chilam-dong in 1959 for a future friary and church. Construction of the friary began in 1964 and was completed that year, providing a base both for Franciscan community life and for the formation of a new parish.

On March 1, 1965, Chilam-dong Parish was erected after being separated from Okbong-dong Parish, and Fr. Donato Kang Ji-hong became its first pastor. The Catholic Encyclopedia of Korea records the same date as the foundation of the parish and identifies St. Francis of Assisi as its patron. The site subsequently continued as a place where a Friars Minor community and a parish shared the same location, and today Franciscan friars still carry out parish ministry together with pastoral care for migrants.