Godeok-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Goduk-dong Church is a parish belonging to the 9 Gangdong District of the East Seoul Region of the Archdiocese of Seoul, located in Goduk-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul. Established on February 21, 1986 by division from Cheonho-dong Parish, Amsa-dong Parish, and Gusan Parish, its patron is Saint Nicholas. It was established in the boundary area between Seoul and Gwangju County, Gyeonggi-do, where the number of the faithful had surged with the construction of apartment complexes, and was built in a form with the church, rectory, convent, and kindergarten housed in a single building.

History

From the late 1970s, as apartment complexes were built in Goduk-dong, a boundary area between Seoul City and Gwangju County, Gyeonggi-do, the number of incoming faithful surged. Cheonho-dong Parish, which was in charge of pastoral care for the area, acquired in September 1985 the jeonse right to part of Building 4 in Complex 6 in the Goduk district (basement 1 floor and above-ground 2 floors) in order to spin it off as a branch parish, and with the approval of the archdiocesan curia, Goduk-dong Parish was established in February of the following year. Its jurisdiction covered the Jugong apartment complexes in Goduk-dong and Sangil-dong in Gangdong-gu, the ordinary residential areas in Sangil-dong and Goduk-2-dong, Hail-dong, and part of Pungsan-dong in Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do. The number of the faithful grew to 2,211 in 1986, 5,066 in 1988, and 7,234 in 1993.

As the faithful already exceeded 2 thousand at the time of establishment and the building was cramped, the first pastor, Father Bernardo Hong Mun-taek, together with the faithful additionally leased the above-ground 1 floor of the same building in July 1986. With archdiocesan subsidies the parish secured a church site on two occasions, and in January 1987 received a donation of more than 760 pyeong of land at lot 357-2 in Goduk-dong from Maria Kang Seon-bi, but as the plan to expand the site proved ineffective due to surrounding circumstances, it purchased the present site of more than 90 pyeong in March 1987 and sold the former site in September of that year.

The parish repeatedly expanded and reorganized its jurisdiction and organized the pastoral council, establishing the Association for the Deceased, the choir, the Marian Association, and the youth group, and introducing the Legion of Mary. In 1986, it took over the kindergarten located in the building and named it ‘Saint Bona Kindergarten.’ Operating a nursery room, a small theater, a kindergarten, and the Nicholas Home for the Aged inside the new church building, it also carried out evangelization, re-education of the faithful, and campaigns to help underprivileged neighbors. The 2th pastor is Father Benedict Shin Jeong-sun (from February 1992), and a branch house of the Sisters of the Korean Martyrs was established in the parish, with the sisters assisting with the kindergarten and parish pastoral work.

Architecture and Space

Construction of the church building took more than 4 years, and the church dedication ceremony was held on September 20, 1991. It is in the form of the church, rectory, convent, and kindergarten housed in a single building, a modern building with a total floor area of 1,290 pyeong, with 1 basement level and 4 above-ground stories.

Related Places and People

• Cheonho-dong Parish, Amsa-dong Parish, and Gusan Parish: the mother parishes from which Goduk-dong Parish was divided.
• Father Bernardo Hong Mun-taek: the first pastor, in office from February 1986 to February 1992.
• Saint Bona Kindergarten: the kindergarten taken over and named by the parish in 1986.

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, “Goduk-dong Parish.” Confirmed the establishment by division from Cheonho-dong, Amsa-dong, and Gusan Parishes on February 21, 1986, the patron Saint Nicholas, the establishment process, the securing of the site and the church dedication (on September 20, 1991), and the ancillary facilities and successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/328
2. Korean Bishops’ Conference, Korean Catholic Directory, “Goduk-dong.” Confirmed the affiliated district (the 9 Gangdong District of the East Seoul Region), the date of establishment 1986.02.21, the patron Saint Nicholas, and the Sisters of the Korean Martyrs.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&char=all&code=201000041&gubn=4&gubn2=all&gyogu=201000011