Marian devotion
La parroquia de Gimpo was born in 1946 under the patronage of Mary, Queen of the Holy Rosary. Its history brings together the rural evangelization of the early 20th century, the interruption caused by the Korean war and the preservation of a stone temple recognized as a modern heritage.
Advocation: Mary, Queen of the Holy Rosary.
Korean name: Mohu and Maegoe (Rosario)-ui Mohu.
Temple: 김포성당 · Gimpo Catholic Church.
Address: 29-12 Bukbyeon-ro, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do 10098, Korea del Sur.
Parish Foundation: 22 November 1946.
Jurisdiction: Catholic diocese of Incheon.
Coordinates checked: 37.6296379, 126.7082786.
From a small missionary station to a parish
The documented evangelization of the area began around 1900. In 1910, a community dependent on the parish of Haengju was established in Geolpo-ri. The growth of the faithful allowed them to be raised to the parish on November 22, 1946.
At first it was named Geolpo-ri. In 1949, he was named Gimpo and began to prepare a temple in a place more suitable for the development of the population.
A work interrupted by war
The construction began in early 1950, but the outbreak of the Korean war forced it to stop. The community had to wait and rebuild its material and pastoral possibilities.
In 1952 a wooden church was erected. Then, the parish priest Luke Shin In-sik and the faithful worked together to build the stone temple, blessed on December 17, 1956 by Archbishop Paul Ro Ki-nam.
The old stone temple
As the parish grew, a new temple was built, opened in 1999, without removing the previous building. Both of them live together in the parish and allow them to read materially different stages of their history.
The old temple was restored and adapted as a retreat space. In 2013 he received protection as a good of modern cultural heritage, for its value as an example of religious architecture of post-war stone and as a matrix of the Catholic life of Gimpo.
Queen of the Holy Rosary
The Korean title retains the traditional voice maegoe along with modern clarification Rosary. Both designate the contemplative prayer with which the believer walks, accompanied by Mary, the mysteries of Christ.
Mary is called Queen not by worldly rule, but by her humble participation in the victory of her Son. As Queen of the Rosary, it leads to listening to the Gospel, contemplating Jesus and turning that contemplation into life.
A prayer that sustained the reconstruction
The Rosary has accompanied generations exposed to family displacements, losses and divisions. In Gimpo, near the Han River estuary and the inter-Korean border, this prayer can be read as perseverance in the midst of a geography marked by separation.
The coexistence of the ancient and new temple expresses a concrete form of hope: to go forward without destroying memory, and to receive from those who reconstructed the community a responsibility for the present.
verified location for the map
The official address of 29-12 Bukbyeon-ro coincides with the chart of Gimpo Catholic Churchincluding the parish phone. The coordinates 37.6296379, 126.7082786 they point out the whole parish.
The geographical centre of Gimpo and an approximate location have not been used; the marker corresponds to the area where the historical and current temples live together.
To visit and pray
The parish remains active and the old temple has heritage value. Time frames should be confirmed, celebrations respected and indications of access to historical spaces should be addressed.
The Rosary can be prayed for peace on the Korean peninsula, for those who rebuild their lives after a war and for communities that protect their memory without being locked in it.
Prayer to the Queen of the Holy Rosary of Gippo
Mary, Queen of the Holy Rosary, who you accompanied the community of Gimpo in the years of war and reconstruction, guards those who live near borders and supports separate families. Teach us to contemplate Jesus Christ, to keep the memory grateful and to build a firm peace with works of reconciliation. Amen.
Sources consulted
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