Jeondong Catholic Church: built on the exact spot where Korea’s first Catholic martyrs were beheaded
A Jeonju, in Corea del Sud, la chiesa cattolica di Jeondong sorge sul luogo dove, l’8 dicembre 1791, Paolo Yun Ji-chung e il cugino Giacomo Kwon Sang-yeon furono decapitati fuori dalla porta sud della città, la Pungnammun, durante la persecuzione Sinhae, puniti per aver bruciato le tavolette ancestrali e rifiutato i riti confuciani nel cosiddetto “incidente di Jinsan”: furono i primi martiri cattolici coreani. Allo stesso terreno di esecuzione sono legati anche martiri più tardi, vittime della persecuzione Sinyu del 1801, tra cui Yu Hang-geom e Yun Ji-heon. Il terreno fu acquistato nel 1891 dal sacerdote francese François-Xavier Baudounet, e la costruzione della chiesa, iniziata nel 1908 per commemorare il centenario della persecuzione, si concluse nel 1914; il progetto si deve all’architetto Victor Louis Poisnel, lo stesso che avrebbe disegnato la Cattedrale di Myeongdong a Seoul, da cui deriva la forte somiglianza tra i due edifici. In stile romanico-bizantino — il primo edificio in questo stile costruito nella regione di Honam, o Jeolla — la chiesa è una basilica in mattoni a pianta rettangolare con tre cupole bizantine sui campanili e soffitti a volta a crociera; alcune delle pietre utilizzate nelle fondamenta provengono, secondo fonti cattoliche coreane, dallo smantellamento di un tratto delle mura cittadine di Jeonju, demolito nei primi anni del Novecento dalla Residenza Generale giapponese per costruire una nuova strada, con il permesso ottenuto da padre Baudounet di riutilizzarne le pietre. La chiesa è stata dichiarata Monumento Storico nazionale n. 288 il 25 settembre 1981, resta una parrocchia cattolica attiva della Diocesi di Jeonju ed è oggi uno dei luoghi più fotografati dell’area del Villaggio Hanok di Jeonju. Yun Ji-chung e Kwon Sang-yeon non furono tra i 103 martiri coreani canonizzati da Papa Giovanni Paolo II nel 1984, ma furono beatificati, insieme ad altri 122 martiri coreani tra cui lo stesso Yun Ji-heon, da Papa Francesco a Seoul il 16 agosto 2014.
About Jeondong Catholic Church
In Jeonju, South Korea, Jeondong Catholic Church stands on the site where, on 8 December 1791, Paul Yun Ji-chung and his cousin James Kwon Sang-yeon were beheaded outside the city’s south gate, Pungnammun, during the Sinhae Persecution, punished for burning ancestral tablets and refusing Confucian rites in what became known as the “Jinsan incident”: they were Korea’s first Catholic martyrs. Later martyrs from the 1801 Sinyu Persecution, including Yu Hang-geom and Yun Ji-heon, are also associated with the same execution ground. The land was purchased in 1891 by French priest François-Xavier Baudounet, and construction of the church, begun in 1908 to mark the persecution’s centennial, was completed in 1914; the design is credited to architect Victor Louis Poisnel, who also designed Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul, accounting for the strong resemblance between the two buildings. In Romanesque-Byzantine style — the first building in this style constructed in the Honam, or Jeolla, region — the church is a rectangular brick basilica with three Byzantine domes atop its bell towers and cross-vaulted ceilings; some of the stones used in its foundations, according to Korean Catholic sources, came from a section of Jeonju’s city walls dismantled in the early 1900s by the Japanese Residency-General to build a new road, with Father Baudounet obtaining permission to reuse the stones. The church was designated South Korean Historic Site No. 288 on 25 September 1981, remains an active parish church of the Diocese of Jeonju, and is today one of the most photographed sites in the Jeonju Hanok Village area. Yun Ji-chung and Kwon Sang-yeon were not among the 103 Korean martyrs canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1984, but were beatified, together with 122 other Korean martyrs including Yun Ji-heon, by Pope Francis in Seoul on 16 August 2014.
Key facts
- 8 December 1791: Korea’s first Catholic martyrs executed on this site
- 1908-1914: the church built to mark the persecution’s centennial
- Romanesque-Byzantine style, the first of its kind in the Honam region
- Foundation stones reportedly reused from Jeonju’s dismantled city walls
- 1981: designated South Korean Historic Site No. 288
- 16 August 2014: the site’s founding martyrs beatified by Pope Francis in Seoul
History
Building a church directly on a site of execution, timed to the exact centennial of that persecution, made Jeondong Catholic Church a deliberate act of memorial architecture from its founding — a pattern reinforced over a century later by the 2014 beatification of the martyrs themselves. The claimed reuse of stones from Jeonju’s own dismantled city walls adds a layer of local material continuity to a building otherwise built in an imported European architectural style.
What you see
A rectangular brick basilica rises in Romanesque-Byzantine style, its three domed bell towers and cross-vaulted interior echoing the design of Seoul’s Myeongdong Cathedral by the same architect. The church’s brick construction and domed silhouette stand out sharply against the surrounding traditional hanok rooflines of Jeonju’s historic village.
Practical information
- Opening hours: generally open daily outside Mass times; check current hours before visiting
- Address: Jeonju Hanok Village area, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, South Korea
Getting there
Jeondong Catholic Church stands at the edge of Jeonju’s Hanok Village, easily reached on foot from the historic district. GPS: 35°48′49″N, 127°08′56″E.
Nearby
- Jeonju Hanok Village — the historic traditional-house district beside the church
- Gyeonggijeon Shrine — the Joseon dynasty royal portrait hall nearby
Sources
- Wikipedia — “Jeondong Cathedral” (en.wikipedia.org)
- Catholic Times Korea — coverage of Historic Site No. 288, Jeondong Catholic Church (catholictimes.org)
- Diocese of Jeonju — pilgrimage information (jcatholic.or.kr)
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