Roman Catholicism in Korea, North
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The Catholic Church in North Korea retains a community of several hundred adherents who practice under the supervision of the state-established Korean Catholic Association (KCA) rather than the
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
hierarchy. The
dioceses In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
of the Church have remained vacant since Christian persecutions in the late 1940s. The most prominent congregation is that of
Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populat ...
, which meets at
Changchung Cathedral Changchung Cathedral is the nominal cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pyongyang, North Korea, located in the Changchung neighborhood of Songyo-guyok, Pyongyang. It is one of only four official Christian places of worship in Pyongyang. ...
. According to a KCA official, two other congregations exist. The state ideology of
Juche ''Juche'' ( ; ), officially the ''Juche'' idea (), is the state ideology of North Korea and the official ideology of the Workers' Party of Korea. North Korean sources attribute its conceptualization to Kim Il-sung, the country's founder and f ...
has largely displaced Catholic faith, and full services are provided only to people with a Catholic family background. Most, if not all, religious formation of Catholics in the country occurs across the
Tumen River The Tumen River, also known as the Tuman River or Duman River (), is a long river that serves as part of the boundary between China, North Korea and Russia, rising on the slopes of Mount Paektu and flowing into the Sea of Japan. The river ha ...
in China, where North Koreans occasionally cross illegally to meet with family from the South. Some North Koreans are baptized on the Chinese side and return to Korea, practicing their faith in secrecy.


History

The first
Catholic missionaries Missionary work of the Catholic Church has often been undertaken outside the geographically defined parishes and dioceses by religious orders who have people and material resources to spare, and some of which specialized in missions. Eventually, p ...
arrived in
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
in 1794, a decade after the return of
Yi Sung-hun Yi Seung-Hun (1756 – April 8, 1801, ''Ja'': Jasul (子述), ''Ho'': Mancheon, baptismal name Peter) was one of the first Catholic martyrs in Korea. Biography He was born in 1756 in Seoul. His father was Soam Yi Dong-uk (蘇巖 李東郁, 17 ...
, a diplomat who was the first Korean to be baptized into the
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
faith (which occurred in
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
). He established a grassroots lay Catholic movement in the peninsula. However, the writings of the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci, who was resident at the imperial court in Beijing, had been already brought to Korea from China in the seventeenth century. Scholars of the ''
Silhak Silhak was a Korean Confucian social reform movement in late Joseon Dynasty. ''Sil'' means "actual" or "practical", and ''hak'' means "studies" or "learning". It developed in response to the increasingly metaphysical nature of Neo-Confucianism ( ...
'' ("Practical Learning") were attracted to Catholic doctrines, and this was a key factor for the spread of the Catholic faith in the 1790s. The penetration of Western ideas and Christianity in Korea became known as ''
Seohak Seohak was the introduction of technology, philosophy and most prominently, Catholicism and Western ideas to Joseon Korea in the 18th century. It is also occasionally referred to as ''Cheonjuhak'' () which means 'Heavenly Learning'. Literally mea ...
'' ("Western Learning"). A study of 1801 found that more than half of the families that had converted to Catholicism were linked to the ''Silhak'' school. Largely because converts refused to perform
Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...
ancestral rituals, the Joseon government prohibited the proselytization of Christianity. Some Catholics were executed during the early nineteenth century, but the restrictive law was not well enforced. A large number of Christians lived in the northern half of the peninsula where Confucian influence was not as strong as in the south. Before 1948,
Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populat ...
was an important Christian center: one-sixth of its population of about 300,000 people were Christian converts. The population of the Pyongyang diocese as of 1943 was 3,650,623, all ethnic
Koreans Koreans ( South Korean: , , North Korean: , ; see names of Korea) are an East Asian ethnic group native to the Korean Peninsula. Koreans mainly live in the two Korean nation states: North Korea and South Korea (collectively and simply re ...
. After the division of Korea, however, the Communist government under
Kim Il-sung Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...
persecuted Christians as imperialist collaborators and
spies Spies most commonly refers to people who engage in spying, espionage or clandestine operations. Spies or The Spies may also refer to: * Spies (surname), a German surname * Spies (band), a jazz fusion band * Spies (song), "Spies" (song), a song by ...
. Much of the Catholic community was either killed or imprisoned, and many more fled south. The
martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
dom of the
Benedictine monks , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
of Tokwon Abbey was documented as the process of
beatification Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...
was initiated for them. The Korean Catholic Association (the state-run church) was set up on 30 June 1988. Samuel Chang Jae-on has been its president since its establishment. The association published a catechism and a
prayer book A prayer book is a book containing prayers and perhaps devotional readings, for private or communal use, or in some cases, outlining the liturgy of religious services. Books containing mainly orders of religious services, or readings for them are ...
in 1991. Kim Jong-il invited
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...
to Pyongyang after the
2000 inter-Korean summit 2000 inter-Korean summit was a meeting between South Korean president Kim Dae-jung and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's supreme leader Kim Jong-il, which took place in Pyongyang from June 13 to June 15, 2000. It was the first inter-Kore ...
, but the visit failed to materialize. A similar invitation to
Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
was made by Kim Jong-un following a series of
inter-Korean summits Inter-Korean summits are meetings between the leaders of North and South Korea. To date, there have been five such meetings so far (2000, 2007, April 2018, May 2018, and September 2018), three of them being in Pyongyang, with another two in ...
in 2018. In 2022, Pope Francis expressed interest in visiting North Korea, if invited by the North Korean government.
Caritas Internationalis Caritas Internationalis is a confederation of 162 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations operating in over 200 countries and territories worldwide. Collectively and individually, their missions are to work to build a bet ...
has operated in North Korea, running hospitals and other humanitarian projects. "Proselytism" is strictly forbidden, with customs seizing religious texts upon entry. An invitation for the KCA to attend a
Papal Mass A Papal Mass is the Solemn Pontifical High Mass celebrated by the Pope. It is celebrated on such occasions as a papal coronation, an ''ex cathedra'' pronouncement, the canonization of a saint, on Easter or Christmas or other major feast days. ...
in
Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...
on 18 August 2014, during a 4-day visit to South Korea by
Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
, was declined by the association. In 2016, the KCA released a fiery communique concerning then-South Korean
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
Park Geun-Hye Park Geun-hye (; ; often in English ; born 2 February 1952) is a South Korean politician who served as the 11th president of South Korea from 2013 to 2017, until she was impeached and convicted on related corruption charges. Park was the fi ...
, denouncing her and her "satanic hordes" of supporters, saying Catholics were united with their fellow DPRK citizens in opposing her leadership.


Dioceses and archdioceses

*
Archdiocese of Seoul The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Seoul (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Metropolitae Seulensis'', ko, 서울대교구) is a Metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church comprising the metropolitan area of Seoul, So ...
서울 (Seat in South Korea) * Diocese of Chunchon 춘천 (Seat in South Korea) * Diocese of Hamhung 함흥 * Diocese of Pyong-yang 평양 * Territorial Abbacy of Tŏkwon 덕원


Cathedrals in North Korea

*
Changchung Cathedral Changchung Cathedral is the nominal cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pyongyang, North Korea, located in the Changchung neighborhood of Songyo-guyok, Pyongyang. It is one of only four official Christian places of worship in Pyongyang. ...
in Pyongyang, North Korea (Diocese of Pyong-yang 평양) * Tokwon Abbey of
St. Benedict Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Christianity in Italy, Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Ortho ...
in Tokwon 덕원, North Korea (Territorial Abbacy of Tŏkwon 덕원)


See also

*
Persecution of Christians in North Korea The persecution of Christians in North Korea is an ongoing and systematic human rights issue in North Korea. According to multiple resolutions which have been passed by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the North Korean government c ...
* Religion in Korea * Religion in North Korea * Christianity in Korea * Catholic Church in South Korea *
List of Catholic Dioceses in Korea The Catholic Church of all Korea is united under a single episcopal conference for the entire politically divided peninsula. All territorial jurisdictions in Korea are part of the Latin Church, covering both South Korea and North Korea, comprising ...
* List of Saints from Asia


References

{{Asia topic, Christianity in
North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
Religion in North Korea