Mokgam Catholic Church

Overview

Mokgam Church is a church in Siheung City, Gyeonggi Province, belonging to the Siheung District of the Ansan Vicariate of the Suwon Diocese. Separated from the Jangnae-dong (now Jungang) Parish in Anyang, it was newly established as a quasi-parish on February 18, 1993 and elevated to a parish on January 1, 1995. Its patron is Saint Francis Xavier.

History

[Establishment as a Quasi-Parish] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in 1992, Go Geon-seon (Paul), parish priest of Jangnae-dong Parish, formed the Mokgam Church Preparatory Promotion Committee on January 19, 1992, centered on the faithful in the Mokgam-dong, Nongok-dong, Jonam-dong and Mulwang-dong areas belonging to Jangnae-dong Parish, in order to strengthen the faith life of the faithful in the Siheung area and to evangelize the region, and entrusted responsibility for establishing the new parish to Park Seung-man, assistant priest of Jangnae-dong Parish and a member of the Society of the Divine Word. On January 10, 1993, a prefabricated temporary church (80 pyeong) was built and blessed, and a month later, on February 18, it was designated as a quasi-parish. The Digital Siheung Culture Encyclopedia gives the founding period as February 2, 1992, while explaining that it was separated from Jangnae-dong Church in Anyang (now Jungang Church) and newly established as a quasi-parish on February 18, a month after the blessing of the temporary church in January 1993.

[Elevation to Parish Status and Afterward] According to the encyclopedia, on May 16, 1993, the Legion of Mary’s “Help of Christians” Curia was founded, and service groups such as the Saint Francis Xavier Association, a service organization of male faithful in their 30~50s, were formed together with the Ultreya, marking the beginning of activities by the various devotional groups. From 1994, the “Parish Day” event has been held to foster fellowship among parishioners, and pilgrimages to holy places have been carried out several times each year by elementary, middle and high school Sunday school students and by devotional group. As personnel and material requirements were met, it was elevated to a parish in 1995 (the Culture Encyclopedia gives January 1, 1995), and in February 1996, when jurisdiction was transferred from the Society of the Divine Word to the Suwon Diocese, Father Jang Dong-ju, who took office as the 3th parish priest, devoted himself to expanding church membership and building the church. According to the Culture Encyclopedia, in February 1996 it was transferred from the Anyang Vicariate to the Ansan Vicariate.

[Jurisdiction and Present State] The encyclopedia lists the jurisdiction as Mokgam-dong, Nongok-dong, Jonam-dong, Mulwang-dong, Ansan-dong, Jangsang 1·2-dong, Jangha-dong, Hwajeong-dong, Gwangseok-dong, Sanhyeon-dong and Geumi-dong in Siheung City, and gives church membership as 885 people in 1993 and 964 people in 1994. The Culture Encyclopedia lists, as of March 2018, the jurisdiction as Mokgam-dong, Jonam-dong, Sanhyeon-dong, Mulwang-dong and Nongok-dong in Siheung City and Suam-dong, Jangsan-dong and Jangha-dong in Ansan City, and states that as of the end of 2017, there were 2,091 faithful in 26 districts. It commemorates December 3 every year as Parish Day, and according to the Culture Encyclopedia, in 2024 the church moved from 26 Jonam-gil [Jonam-dong 179-2] to 198 Mokgam-Dulle-ro [Jonam-dong 728] in Siheung City.

[Successive Parish Priests] The successive priests listed in the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia are the first, Mariano Venzo (M. Venzo, Jomano) (1993.2~1994.8), the 2th, Vincentio Park Seung-man (1994.8~1996.2), and the 3th, Bartholomew Jang Dong-ju (from 1996.2). The Culture Encyclopedia states that as of March 2018 the parish priest was Father Hyeon Jae-bong (Peter).

Related Places and Persons

• Jangnae-dong Parish (now Jungang Church): the parish in Anyang from which the Mokgam quasi-parish was separated (encyclopedia, Culture Encyclopedia).
• Society of the Divine Word: the religious order to which Father Park Seung-man belonged at the time of the establishment of the Mokgam quasi-parish; in February 1996 jurisdiction over Mokgam Parish was transferred from the Society of the Divine Word to the Suwon Diocese (encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia “Mokgam Parish”. Background of the establishment as a quasi-parish, elevation to a parish, jurisdiction, church membership, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/2051
2. The Academy of Korean Studies, Digital Siheung Culture Encyclopedia “Mokgam Church” (written by Jeong Min-chae). Foundation and changes, transfer between vicariates, present state.
   https://siheung.grandculture.net/siheung/toc/GC06900828