Jeongseon Church

Overview

Jeongseon Church is a church in Jeongseon-eup, Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, belonging to the Diocese of Wonju. It was established on April 12, 1957, separated from Yeongwol Parish, and in 2026 it held the ‘Jeongseon Arirang Church Open Ground’ timed to the Jeongseon Arirang Festival, featuring the ‘Golgotha Arirang Way of the Cross’ created along the church exterior walls.

History

[Early History and Founding of Mission Chapels] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, after Yi Seung-hun (Peter) was martyred in the Sinyu Persecution of 1801, his grandson Yi Jae-ui (Thomas) moved to Jeongseon land in Gangwon-do to escape persecution, but the exact place is unknown. In the Jeongseon area, a geographically rugged mountainous backcountry, the Gospel was first sown in Imgye-myeon, about 40 km northeast of Jeongseon-eup, where descendants of ancestors who had moved into the mountains to escape the persecution under Daewongun kept the faith while making a living by firing and selling earthenware. In 1953, a community was formed when the believer Jeong Yeong-bok (Andrew) and his wife of Pyeongchang Parish moved to Jeongseon. On April 10, 1954, Father Bourke (Pyo), pastor of Gangneung Parish (now Imdang-dong), celebrated the first pan-gong sacrament at Jeong Yeong-bok’s house, and in May 1955 the Jeongseon Catholic mission chapel was established in the house immediately next to the present parish. In July 1955, the Jeongseon mission chapel was transferred from Gangneung Parish to Yeongwol Parish, and in August it moved for economic and family reasons to the sarangchae, the detached guest quarters, of believer Yi Tae-uk at 339 Bongyang-ri, Jeongseon-eup.

[Parish Establishment] In March 1956, the believers of the Jeongseon mission chapel formed a committee to promote parish establishment and church construction and asked the diocesan bishop to establish a parish. In October 1956, they held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new church, and on April 12 of the following year they completed construction and held a blessing ceremony. The first pastor, Father Francis Ferrie (Hwang), newly established the Nampyeong, Dong-myeon, Jangpyeong, Sugam, and Jangyeol mission chapels from 1958 to 1961, in addition to the Nam-myeon, Godan, Imgye, and Golji mission chapels under his jurisdiction (all from the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia). The address book of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea lists the founding date as April 12, 1957.

[Belonging to the Diocese of Wonju and the 1960–1970s] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, during the tenure of the 2 pastor, Father Patricio Smyth (Cheon), in 1965 the Diocese of Wonju was separated from the Diocese of Chuncheon and established, and Jeongseon Parish came to belong to the Diocese of Wonju. The 3 pastor, Father Cornelius Quirke (Gu), focused on vitalizing basic family communities. In the 1970s, parishioners took part every year in J.O.C. education and Cursillo education, and on October 8, 1971, during the tenure of the 7 pastor, Father Roberto Brennan (An), sisters of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary came to serve in the parish. The reinforced-concrete cinder-block church built in 1957 had been built with materials used at the U.S. military base in Chuncheon and became dilapidated over time; therefore Father Brennan began reconstruction in reinforced-concrete slab in May 1974, completed it on December 4, and held a blessing ceremony. In May 1976, St. Francis Clinic was established for local residents and provided itinerant medical care in medically underserved villages, and in 1977 Archbishop Dossena, the papal nuncio, was invited to give a lecture on ‘Labor and God.’

[The 1980–1990s] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the 8 pastor, Father Matthew Kim Jong-in, placed emphasis on re-education of believers through M.B.W. Holy Spirit seminars and similar programs, and the 10 pastor, Father Mark Lee Gyu-yeong, formed a parish bulletin editorial committee in January 1984 and began publishing the bulletin on March 4. The 11 pastor, Father Anthony Shin Hyeon-bong, closed St. Francis Clinic when a public health subcenter opened in the area on February 29, 1988, and converted it into a nursing home for elderly people with physical disabilities. The 12 pastor, Father Matthew Jo Gyu-deok, held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new education hall and convent on April 15, 1990, and completed it as a 2-story brick-slab building on August 21 with a blessing ceremony. The 13 pastor, Father Barnabas Kim Yeong-jin, held Newcomers’ Invitation Day events every spring and autumn, and on May 24, 1996, held the Cursillo diocesan Ultreya at the Jeongseon Culture and Arts Hall for the first time as a parish-level event, and in the same year repaired the church interior and exterior through a church beautification campaign. When the building of the Yeoryang mission chapel in Buk-myeon was to be demolished under urban planning, it was decided to separate and establish a parish, and on October 5, 1997, a groundbreaking ceremony for Auraji Church was held, completed on November 17 of the following year, with a blessing ceremony officiated by Bishop James Kim Ji-seok of Wonju.

[Jurisdiction and Church Statistics] The jurisdiction at the time recorded by the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia was Jeongseon-eup, Dong-myeon, Bukpyeong-myeon, Buk-myeon, and Imgye-myeon in Jeongseon-gun, and part of Godan-ri, Wangsan-myeon, Myeongju-gun. Church statistics were 633 believers in 1963, 1,131 believers in 1970, 1,346 believers in 1975, 1,275 believers in 1980, 1,118 believers in 1985, 1,170 believers in 1990, 1,587 believers in 1995, and 1,490 believers in 2000. The address book of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea lists the current jurisdiction as Jeongseon-eup, Bukpyeong-myeon, and Hwaam-myeon in Jeongseon-gun, the number of believers as 1,826, and the number of mission chapels as 3. The encyclopedia lists the patron as St. Columbanus, while the Bishops’ Conference address book lists St. Ignatius Kim Je-jun.

[Golgotha Arirang Way of the Cross] The Catholic Times reported that, in connection with the 51 Jeongseon Arirang Festival held from October 1 to 4, 2026, the parish opened the church doors to local residents and tourists by holding for the first time the ‘Jeongseon Arirang Church Open Ground: Arirang, Embracing Life.’ The ‘Golgotha Arirang Way of the Cross,’ unveiled with a blessing ceremony on March 8 of the same year, consists of 14 stations created along three sides of the church exterior walls, artistically embodying the resemblance between Jeongseon Arirang and the journey of Christ’s Cross. Father Francis Lee Dong-hun, who had been appointed parish pastor 3 years earlier, had been reflecting on the meeting of Jeongseon Arirang and Catholic faith, and explained that seeing the Resurrection Cross behind the altar upon entering the church after praying all 14 stations likewise carries the same meaning of moving from Passion to the hope of Resurrection. Kim Jeong-hui (Matilda), head of the parish Arirang choir, said that believers pray this Way of the Cross before the Sunday Mass on the last Sunday of each month. During the Open Ground period, there were a ‘Golgotha Arirang Gyeongchang Contest’ (October 2) with the participation of believer families and small communities and a concert by the singer ‘Indian Suni,’ and on October 4 the Sunday Mass was celebrated by Father Lee Dong-hun as the closing Mass of the Season of Creation, and in the afternoon believers and local residents prayed the Way of the Cross.

[Successive Pastors] According to the Korean Catholic Encyclopedia, the following served: the first, Father Francis Ferrie (F. Ferrie, Hwang) (1957.4–1962.11), the 2 pastor, Father Patricio Smyth (P. Smyth, Cheon) (1962.11–1963.2), the 3 pastor, Father Cornelius Quirke (C. Quirke, Gu) (1963.2–1968.11), the 4 pastor, Father Oliver Kennedy (O. Kennedy) (1968.11–1969.9), the 5 pastor, Father Roberto Brennan (R. Brennan, An) (1969.9–1970.7), the 6 pastor, Father William Schaefer (W. Schaefer, Gi Yeong-su) (1970.7–1971.9), the 7 pastor, Father Brennan (1971.9–1979.11), the 8 pastor, Father Matthew Kim Jong-in (1979.11–1982.5), the 9 pastor, Father Stephen Kim Seong-hun (1982.5–1983.9), the 10 pastor, Father Mark Lee Gyu-yeong (1983.9–1987.9), the 11 pastor, Father Anthony Shin Hyeon-bong (1987.9–1990.8), the 12 pastor, Father Matthew Jo Gyu-deok (1990.8–1993.2), the 13 pastor, Father Barnabas Kim Yeong-jin (1993.2–1999.2), the 14 pastor, Father Cuniberto Jo Gyu-nam (1999.2–2003.1), and the 15 pastor, Father Simon Shin Hyeon-man (2003.1–). The Bishops’ Conference address book and the Catholic Times list the current pastor as Father Francis Lee Dong-hun.

Architecture and Space

The cinder-block church built in 1957 was constructed with materials used at the U.S. military base in Chuncheon, and reconstruction in reinforced-concrete slab began in May 1974 and was completed on December 4 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

The education hall and convent groundbroken on April 15, 1990, were completed as a 2-story brick-slab building on August 21 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

According to the Catholic Times, 14 stations have been created along three sides of the church exterior walls, and upon finishing prayer at 14 stations and entering the church, the Resurrection Cross is visible behind the altar.

Related Places and Figures

• Yeongwol Church: the mother parish to which the Jeongseon mission chapel belonged in 1955 and from which Jeongseon Parish was separated in 1957 (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Auraji Church (Yeoryang, Buk-myeon): it was separated and established as a parish in 1997–1998 following the demolition of the Yeoryang mission chapel building (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Imgye area: where the Gospel was first sown in the Jeongseon area (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).
• Jeong Yeong-bok (Andrew) and his wife: believers who moved from Pyeongchang Parish to Jeongseon in 1953 and formed the Jeongseon Catholic community (Korean Catholic Encyclopedia).

References and Sources

1. Research Institute of Korean Church History, Korean Catholic Encyclopedia ‘Jeongseon Parish.’ Parish establishment in 1957, early history and founding of mission chapels, new construction and reconstruction of the church, jurisdictional districts, church statistics, successive priests.
   https://encyclopedia.catholic.or.kr/entry/5495
2. Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, Korean Catholic Address Book ‘Jeongseon.’ Founding date 1957.04.12, patron, number of believers, number of mission chapels, jurisdictional districts, pastor.
   https://directory.cbck.or.kr/OnlineAddress/Catholic/DetailInfo.aspx?cgubn=c&char=all&code=201000949&gubn=4&gubn2=all&gyogu=201000019
3. Catholic Times, ‘[Catholic Rest Stop] On Site at the Wonju Diocese Jeongseon Parish ‘Open Ground’ … “Meeting of Faith and Jeongseon Arirang”’ (2026.10.07). Jeongseon Arirang Church Open Ground, Golgotha Arirang Way of the Cross with 14 stations.
   https://www.catholictimes.org/article/20261005500113