잠원동 성당

History & origins

The origins of Jamwon-dong Parish go back to July 1947, when Seongsimwon and a small chapel were established at 13 Jamsil-ri. Fr. Simon Lee Woo-cheol of Yakhyeon Parish opened Seongsimwon, and Masses celebrated there with local Catholics gradually formed a community that functioned as Jamsil-ri Parish.

Seongsimwon and the church were destroyed during the Korean War, but after the armistice a wooden building was erected again with help from U.S. forces and Catholic relief organizations. As the district's name changed, the parish adopted the name Jamwon-dong in the mid-1970s, while Seongsimwon itself moved to Yongin in 1984.

According to the parish's official introduction, the present church building was consecrated on August 28, 1983 by Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan. The parish's history is therefore one of rebuilding after wartime destruction and eventually establishing the permanent church community that continues in Jamwon-dong today.