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About this place
Taepyeong-dong Catholic Church is a parish of the Diocese of Masan in central Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do, and is one of the oldest parish communities in the Tongyeong area. The Diocese of Masan lists it among the parishes of the Geoje district, and for generations it has served as a historic center where local Catholics have celebrated Mass and the sacraments and sustained catechesis and parish community life.
The significance of Taepyeong-dong Catholic Church extends beyond that of a single urban parish. In the present diocesan organization it belongs to the Geoje district, while the growth of its Catholic population and the transformation of Tongyeong helped create the conditions for additional parishes to be founded in the city. The parish also preserves some of Tongyeong’s earliest Catholic memories. Visitors can therefore encounter both present-day parish life and a long local Church history extending from memories of martyrdom during the persecutions to modern evangelization and the later expansion of the city.
History & origins
The Catholic history of Tongyeong begins in the sources with memories of martyrdom during the Byeongin Persecution. The Diocese of Masan records that sometime between 1866 and 1869 eight Catholics, including a man named John Yi from Dongnae, were arrested after taking refuge in Gijang and were beheaded in Tongyeong. The source does not establish direct institutional continuity between those martyrs and today’s parish, but the episode is an important background showing that Tongyeong already carried memories of Catholic faith and martyrdom during the persecution era.
The formation of the modern Catholic community in Tongyeong is associated with Francis Yun Won-jung. Around 1900, while living in Jeongnyang-ri, Yun traveled toward Gohyeon on Geoje and encountered Catholic prayer in a local household or mission community. He learned about Catholic doctrine and liturgy and was later baptized at the encouragement of Ubald Ban Seok-ho, a leader of Jesan Mission Station on Geoje. Yun then evangelized people around him, including Casimir Kang Hun-ik, helping a more stable Catholic community develop in Tongyeong.
On May 25, 1929, Fr. Paul Kim Hu-sang, the first pastor of Okpo Parish, established Sinjeong Catholic Church in Tongyeong-eup, and Yun Won-jung became its first lay parish leader. This community later became known as Chungmu Catholic Church and continues today as Taepyeong-dong Catholic Church. The establishment of the parish marked the point at which Catholics scattered across the Tongyeong area gained an independent center for pastoral care.
As the parish grew, Catholic pastoral space in Tongyeong also expanded. At the fiftieth-anniversary celebration in 1979, Bishop Joseph Jang Byeong-hwa called attention to the need for a second church, setting preparations in motion that eventually led to the establishment of Daegun Parish. Continued urban expansion and growth in the Catholic population later led to the founding of Buksin-dong Parish in 1993. The history of Taepyeong-dong is therefore not only the story of one parish’s growth but also the starting point for the differentiation and expansion of the Catholic Church across modern Tongyeong.
Korean Catholic Places Encyclopedia
Taepyeong-dong Catholic Church: history and architecture
Read about the place's history, architecture, people, and events in the Korean Catholic Places Encyclopedia.
Encyclopedia articles are currently available in Korean.
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Masan Diocese (Diocese of Masan)
Official website: https://cathms.kr
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