Yongho Catholic Church

History & origins

Yongho Parish began as an independent parish in 2002 when it was separated from Gunpo Parish. Soon after the new community was formed, work began to secure a permanent church: construction started in April 2003, and an entrance Mass was celebrated in the new church in October 2004. This was part of the process by which Catholics in a rapidly growing residential area of Gunpo established a parish within their own daily living area.

Work on the church and parish community continued after the entrance Mass. According to records of the Diocese of Suwon, the church was solemnly dedicated on September 28, 2008, with Bishop Paul Choi Deok-ki presiding. By then the building included the main church, catechetical rooms, and prayer spaces, and the diocesan community formally dedicated to God the church that parishioners had helped build through their participation and offerings.

The early history of Yongho Parish can therefore be traced through a clear sequence over roughly six years: separation from Gunpo Parish, groundbreaking, entrance into the new church, and final dedication. The official record preserves a characteristic story of an urban parish in which pastoral needs created by a growing residential district led to a new parish and then to a permanent church built by the community. At the time of dedication, the building also contained catechetical rooms, gathering areas, and an underground prayer room for the educational and communal life of the parish. The diocesan account notes the direct participation of parishioners in building the church, showing that the construction process itself helped strengthen the bonds of the new community.