Gonghang-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Gonghang-dong Church is a parish belonging to the 17 Gangseo District of the West Seoul Region of the Archdiocese of Seoul, located in Gonghang-dong, Gangseo-gu, Seoul. It was separated and established from Dangsan-dong Parish on December 14, 1966, and its patron is St. Francis of Assisi. It began as the Banghwa-ri Catholic mission chapel, established under the jurisdiction of Gimpo Parish in 1955.

History

[Banghwa-ri Mission Chapel] In the present Gonghang-dong area, the Banghwa-ri Catholic mission chapel under the jurisdiction of Gimpo Parish had been established in 1955. After the Diocese of Incheon was separated and became independent from the Diocese of Seoul in 1961, and Yangseo-myeon, Gimpo-gun, to which the mission chapel belonged, was incorporated into Seoul on January 1, 1963, the Banghwa-ri mission chapel was also incorporated into Dangsan-dong Parish of the Archdiocese of Seoul. The faithful of the mission chapel suffered the inconvenience of having to go to Dangsan-dong Parish to attend Mass, and on the basis of 400 pyeong of land at lot 24721, Banghwa-ri, purchased in advance, they campaigned to build a hall and to be raised to a parish.

[Establishment as a Parish] In 1965, with the help of U.S. Air Force chaplain Father Francis P. Brennan, after selling the existing land, the community purchased again 360 pyeong of land at lot 734-3, Banghwa-dong, and began building a church. On February 6 of the following year, it completed a hall of about 85 pyeong and a rectory of about 33 pyeong, and celebrated the first Mass on July 5. Even after the hall was built, the Banghwa-ri mission chapel was maintained for 10 months, and then was raised to a parish on December 14, 1966. At that time, there were fewer than 400 faithful.

[Construction of the Church Building] When relocation of the parish became unavoidable because of the Gimpo Airport expansion plan, the 2th pastor, Father John Im Eung-seung, purchased in 1973 330 pyeong of land at lot 4-144, Gonghang-dong, and organized a preparatory committee for the construction of a new church building to raise funds, but faced difficulties because the surrounding land was bound by greenbelt regulations. On March 15, 1987, the present church site was secured and a groundbreaking ceremony was held, and 2 years later, on May 13, 1989, a new church building with 719 pyeong of land and 980 pyeong of total floor area was blessed. In 1987, 20 years after the parish was established, the total number of faithful reached more than 5,700.

[Finalization of the District and Religious Congregation] In September 1992, Gayang-dong Parish was divided and this area was separated, finalizing the present district. In December 1978, a branch house of the Sisters of Inbo Eucharist was established, and its sisters assisted in pastoral ministry.

[Church Statistics and Successive Pastors] The numbers of faithful recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are 939 in 1973, 1,874 in 1978, 2,683 in 1982, 5,747 in 1987, 6,136 in 1989, and 5,766 in 1993. The successive pastors are recorded as the first, Barnabas Kim Cheol-gyu (1967. 1~1970. 11), the 2th, John Im Eung-seung (1970. 11~1974. 5), the 3th, Simeon Park Go-bin (1974. 5~1978. 8), the 4th, Joseph Kim Jae-cheon (1978. 9~1980. 2), the 5th, Paul Jang Deok-beom (1980. 2~1985. 8), the 6th, Paul Jo Hak-mun (1985. 8~1990. 8), and the 7th, Peter Bae Gap-jin (1990. 8~).

Jurisdiction and Affiliation

The jurisdictional district recorded in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia is Gonghang-dong and the Banghwa 1·2-dong area. The online directory of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea lists it with foundation date 1966.12.14, patron St. Francis of Assisi, sisters’ congregation Sisters of Christian Education, belonging to the 17 Gangseo District of the West Seoul Region.

Related Places and People

• Dangsan-dong Parish: It is the mother parish of Gonghang-dong Parish.
• Gimpo Parish: It administered the Banghwa-ri mission chapel in 1955.
• Gayang-dong Parish: In September 1992 it was divided, finalizing the present district of Gonghang-dong Parish.
• Sisters of Inbo Eucharist: In December 1978 a branch house was established in the parish.

References and Sources

1. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, "Gonghang-dong Parish". Separation and establishment from Dangsan-dong Parish on December 14, 1966, patron St. Francis of Assisi, jurisdictional district, Banghwa-ri mission chapel (1955) and incorporation into the Archdiocese of Seoul, church construction and blessing in 1989, division of Gayang-dong Parish, church statistics, successive pastors.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/419
2. Online directory of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, "Gonghang-dong". Affiliated diocese and district (17 Gangseo District of the West Seoul Region), foundation date 1966.12.14, sisters’ congregation (Sisters of Christian Education), patron.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&char=all&code=201000045&gubn=4&gubn2=all&gyogu=201000011