Jeonnong-dong Church

Overview

The Jeonnong-dong Church is a parish belonging to No. 7 Dongdaemun-Jungnang District in the East Seoul Region of the Archdiocese of Seoul, located in Jeonnong-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul. It was separated and established from Cheongnyangni Parish on December 18, 1965, and its name at the time of founding was Dapsimni Parish. Its patron is Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows. It started without even a place for Mass prepared at the time of its founding, and in 1975 it newly separated Dapsimni Parish and changed the parish name to Jeonnong-dong, and in 1978 it separated Jangan-dong Parish.

History

[Founding] In the mid-1960s, Cheongnyangni Parish had a vast jurisdiction and a cramped church building, causing many difficulties in pastoral care. At the request of the faithful in Jangan-dong, Jeonnong-dong and Dapsimni, who lived far from the church, Father Jo In-won, the 4 pastor of Cheongnyangni Parish, petitioned the diocesan bishop for a division of the parish. With no financial backing and with most of the faithful in this area barely making a living by farming and labor, fundraising was extremely difficult. Amid these circumstances, on December 18, 1965, Dapsimni Parish, with jurisdiction over part of Jeonnong-dong and the Dapsimni and Jangan-dong areas, was separated and established, but neither a place to celebrate Mass nor housing for the pastor had been prepared. O Sang-don (Bosco), a parishioner, provided free of charge about 40 pyeong of a 2-story building at lot 53, No. 5 in Jeonnong-dong, making it possible to celebrate Mass.

The first pastor, Father Choe Gwang-yeon, made the purchase of land for the church his 1 goal and selected land at Jeonnong-4-dong, lot 294, No. 3 (the present church site) as the church site, and in April 1966 repaired the existing building to provide a temporary church and a temporary rectory. With the arrival of the 2 pastor, Father Baek Il-seong, substantial construction of the parish began. As the land was sloped, all the faithful took part in leveling the ground, and together with the general chairman he visited parishioners’ homes and carried out a fundraising campaign of ‘one pyeong per family.’ Construction of the church began in July 1967, was completed on June 29, 1969, and the dedication ceremony was held with the administration of Confirmation, presided over by Cardinal Kim Sou-hwan.

The 3 pastor, Father Choe Seok-ho, installed the interior fittings and soundproof walls of the church and purchased a convent building. In 1971, he purchased forest land at lot 27 in Hwahyeon-myeon, Pocheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do to establish the parish cemetery, and on December 5 opened Anna Kindergarten. He had parishioners participate in the Cursillo movement for the first time in the parish, organized the Daegon fellowship association, and reorganized the management committee into the pastoral council.

The 4 pastor, Father Hwang In-guk, made the establishment of a new parish a priority in anticipation of the increase in parishioners. On May 9, 1975, he separated and elevated Dapsimni Parish, changing the parish name to Jeonnong-dong, and on August 18, 1978, separated and elevated Jangan-dong Parish. The cemetery was equipped as a park cemetery, and the unveiling ceremony of the statue of Our Lady donated by the Daegon fellowship association and the blessing ceremony of the cemetery were held. On September 4, 1977, the youth choir was founded, and on July 16, 1978, the Sunday school mothers’ association was formed.

The 5 pastor, Father Lee Seok-chung, reorganized and reinforced the pastoral council and centered parish administration on the laity, turning the chronically deficit cemetery project and parish finances into a surplus. As the church building, built more than 30 years earlier, had become old and the number of parishioners had grown, a new building became necessary, so the 8 pastor, Father Bong Jae-jong, demolished houses on newly purchased land in February 1998 and built a prefabricated building for meetings. The 9 pastor, Father Song Cheon-o, announced the construction of a new church on April 15, 2001, and beginning on January 19 of the following year began demolishing the church and annex buildings, holding the groundbreaking ceremony on February 3, presided over by Monsignor Hwang In-guk. Since February 2001, a ‘Mission Day Mass’ has been held on the last Thursday of every month.

According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the jurisdiction covers parts of Jeonnong-1, 2, 3 and 4-dong and Dapsimni-1, 2, 3 and 5-dong. The number of faithful was 2,500 in 1965, 6,105 in 1975, 4,293 in 1980, 5,318 in 1985, 3,233 in 1990, 3,944 in 1995, and 3,857 in 2000. Successive pastors are the first, Moses Choe Gwang-yeon (1965.12–1966.12), the 2 pastor, Dominic Baek Il-seong (1966.12–1971.5), the 3 pastor, Paul Choe Seok-ho (1971.5–1973.10), the 4 pastor, Matthew Hwang In-guk (1973.10–1979.6), the 5 pastor, John the Apostle Lee Seok-chung (1979.6–1984.8), the 6 pastor, John the Baptist Hong In-su (1984.8–1990.8), the 7 pastor, Joseph Jo Gun-ho (1990.8–1994.8), the 8 pastor, Mark Bong Jae-jong (1994.8–1999.9), and the 9 pastor, Andrew the Apostle Song Cheon-o (1999.9–).

Architecture and Space

At first, the 2-story building at lot 53, No. 5 in Jeonnong-dong, provided by parishioner O Sang-don, was used, and in April 1966 a temporary church and a temporary rectory were prepared at Jeonnong-4-dong, lot 294, No. 3 (the present church site). Construction of the church began in July 1967 and it was dedicated on June 29, 1969. In 2001, construction of a new church building was announced, and the groundbreaking ceremony was held on February 3, 2002.

Religious Significance and Visiting Context

According to the Korean Catholic Directory, the parish’s women’s religious congregation is the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres. The parish has operated a parish cemetery established in Pocheon-gun.

Related Places and People

• Cheongnyangni Parish: the mother parish from which Dapsimni (now Jeonnong-dong) Parish was separated on December 18, 1965.
• Dapsimni Parish (May 9, 1975) and Jangan-dong Parish (August 18, 1978): parishes separated and elevated during the tenure of the 4 pastor of Jeonnong-dong Parish.
• Parish cemetery: the parish cemetery established in Hwahyeon-myeon, Pocheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do in 1971.
• Anna Kindergarten: the parish kindergarten opened on December 5, 1971.
• Monsignor Hwang In-guk: served as the 4 pastor and presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for the new church on February 3, 2002.

References and Sources

1. Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Jeonnong-dong Parish (Dongdaemun)”. It confirmed the establishment as Dapsimni Parish on December 18, 1965, the patron Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows, jurisdiction, construction and dedication of the church, division of parishes, cemetery, successive pastors and statistics.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/5408
2. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, Korean Catholic Directory “Jeonnong-dong”. It confirmed the affiliated district (No. 7 Dongdaemun-Jungnang District in the East Seoul Region), founding date 1965.12.28, patron Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows, and the Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres. The encyclopedia gives the founding date as December 18, 1965, so the two sources differ.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&char=all&code=201000216&gubn=4&gubn2=all&gyogu=201000011