Seojeong-dong Catholic Church

Overview

Seojeong-dong Church is a church in Seojeong-dong, Pyeongtaek-si, Gyeonggi-do, belonging to the Suwon Diocese. It began when the Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel was elevated to a parish from under Pyeongtaek Parish in October 1938, and it is the second church established in the Pyeongtaek area after Pyeongtaek Church. Its patron is St. Therese of the Child Jesus (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). Osan Parish and Songtan Parish were separated from this parish.

History

[Seojeong-ri Catholic Mission Chapel] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Seojeong-ri, which was under the jurisdiction of Pyeongtaek Parish, received the Gospel later than neighboring areas, to the extent that the 'Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel' was established only in the early 1930s. However, 1-2 years after its establishment, the number of faithful grew greatly to 150 by early 1934, and it gradually became the center of the mission chapels in Jinwi-gun (now northern Pyeongtaek-si). Father J. Moimard, pastor of Pyeongtaek Parish, purchased 200 pyeong of land near Seojeong-ri Station in January 1934, built a temporary Korean-style rectory in May, and erected a 37-pyeong hall on September 29. Around 1937, he newly built a church (100 pyeong, the present kindergarten building) and a rectory (65 pyeong) in preparation for elevation to a parish. The Pyeongtaek City History also records that as Father Moimard of Pyeongtaek Church came to administer the Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel from 1929, he prepared a site in Seojeong-ri, Songtan-myeon in 1932, built a temporary Korean-style rectory in 1934, completed the church and rectory in 1938, and took office as the first parish priest.

[Parish Establishment and Early Period] According to the encyclopedia, the Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel was elevated to a parish in October 1938, and the first pastor, Father Moimard, devoted himself to settling the parish. In August 1948, when Father Moimard was transferred to Geumsari Parish in Buyeo, Father P. Cleary took office as the 2th pastor, but the Korean War broke out and he soon returned to his home country, the faithful spent about 2 years without a priest, and most of the parish's principal documents were lost at that time. In July 1952, Father Yu Su-cheol (Dominic), who took office as the 3th pastor, founded 'Hyomyeong Higher Civic School' in May of the following year. With the help of a nearby United States military unit, this school built a wooden school building (75 pyeong) on January 7, 1954, was approved as 'Hyomyeong Middle School' on July 12 of the same year, and, with an attached high school, was elevated to 'Hyomyeong Comprehensive High School'. Father Yu purchased 845 pyeong of land at 338-3, Sinjang-ri, Songtan-myeon, on August 14, 1954, and in March 1956 established a 5,500-pyeong church cemetery in Jangdang-dong. The Pyeongtaek City History records that Father Yu, who took office as the 3rd pastor of Seojeong-dong Church in 1952, prepared a site in Sinjang-ri and carried out the work of separating Songtan Church.

[Branches and New Church Construction] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, in the early 1960s the parish faithful reached 3 thousand. In July 1964, under the 6th pastor, Father Kim Deok-je (Cyril), Osan Parish was newly established and 1,242 parish registers were transferred, and in August of the following year Ssukgogae (now Songtan) Parish was separated and more than 1,200 registers were transferred again, so parish strength declined greatly but began to grow again around the 1980s. The Pyeongtaek City History records that Songtan Church was founded in 1965 and Father Kang Won-yu took office as its first priest. The encyclopedia records that a convent (64 pyeong) was newly built in December 1981 and the rectory was repaired, and in June of the following year, through an adjustment of jurisdiction, 113 parishioners in 25 households were transferred to Songtan 2 Parish (now Songseo Parish). As the faithful again increased greatly from the late 1980s, construction of a new church began on June 17, 1989, and 4 years later, on October 5, 1993, a church of 1,057 pyeong with 1 basement floor and 3 above-ground floors was completed. It also records that an apartment complex was built in the Hansan-ri area and a new site was being purchased and a parish division prepared.

[Jurisdiction, Parish Strength, and Successive Pastors] The jurisdiction recorded by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia is all of Doil-dong, Mogok-dong, Jangdang-dong, and Jangan-dong and parts of Seojeong-dong, Gajae-dong, Ichung-dong, Godeok-myeon, and Cheongbuk-myeon, and the mission chapel is 1 in Jwagyo-ri. Parish strength was about 600 in 1938, 3,000 in 1964, 1,315 in 1971, 1,967 in 1978, 2,077 in 1983, 2,416 in 1990, and 4,058 in 1996. Successive pastors are the first Joseph Moimard (1938.10-1948.8), the 2th Patrizio Cleary (1948.8-1950.6), the 3th Dominic Yu Su-cheol (1952.7-1961.1), the 4rd John Kang Won-yu (1961.1-6), the 5th Paul Yun Byeong-hui (1961.6-1962.12), the 6th Cyril Kim Deok-je (1962.12-1968.10), the 7nd Leo Yu Jin-seon (1968.10-1970.7), the 8th John Chrysostom Jang Geum-gu (1970.7-1972.7), the 9th Pancratius Kang Ju-hui (1972.7-1975.4), the 10th James Jo Won-gyu (1975.5-1977.3), the 11th Stephen Han Jong-hun (1977.3-1981.6), the 12th Matthias Choe Gyeong-hwan (1981.6-1982.3), the 13th Dominic Bae Mun-han (1982.3-1984.12), the 14rd Peter Kim Chun-ho (1984.12-1985.7), the 15th Cletus Han Bong-ju (1985.7-1988.2), the 16th Andrea Im Eon-gi (1988.2-1994.1), the 17nd John the Baptist Kim Hak-mu (1994.1-1997.2), and the 18th Matteo Lee Jeong-hui (1997.2-). The Pyeongtaek City History records that the Bangchuk-ri Catholic mission chapel was incorporated into Seojeong-ri Parish in October 1938 and then changed to a mission chapel belonging to Pyeongtaek Parish in November 1967.

Related Places and People

• Pyeongtaek Parish: the mother parish from which Seojeong-dong Parish was separated. Father Moimard, as pastor of Pyeongtaek Parish, administered the Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel and built the church (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, Pyeongtaek City History).
• Father J. Moimard: the missionary who administered the Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel and became the first parish pastor in 1938 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Osan Parish and Songtan Parish: parishes separated from Seojeong-dong Parish in July 1964 and August 1965 respectively (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Songseo Parish: in June 1982 Seojeong-dong Parish transferred 113 parishioners in 25 households to Songtan 2 Parish (now Songseo Parish) (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Hyomyeong Middle School and Hyomyeong Comprehensive High School: the schools begun by Father Yu Su-cheol as Hyomyeong Higher Civic School in 1953 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, 'Seojeong-dong Parish' (Volume 7). Elevation to a parish in October 1938, patron, jurisdiction, parish strength, successive pastors, mission-chapel era, foundation and growth, branches and completion of the church in 1993.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/3187
2. Pyeongtaek City, Pyeongtaek City History 'Catholicism in Pyeongtaek'. Seojeong-ri Catholic mission chapel and completion of the church in 1938, separation of Songtan Church, incorporation of the Bangchuk-ri Catholic mission chapel.
   https://sisa.pyeongtaek.go.kr/bbs/board.php?bo_table=ca17&wr_id=12