UCAN Diocesan Profiles Series

Diocesan Officials
A. Ordinary of Andong Diocese
		Bishop John Chrisostom Kwon Hyeok-ju was born on Sept. 5, 1957 in Uiseong-gun (county), Gyeongsangbuk-do (province). He was ordained a priest on Jan. 26, 1983 and appointed Bishop of Andong on Oct. 16, 2001. His episcopal ordination and installation as Bishop of Andong was on Dec. 4, 2001. Bishop Kwon is president of the Biblical Committee of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea (CBCK) and a member of the Episcopal Commission for Doctrine of the CBCK. Address: 136, Anmak-dong, Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 760-340, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-858-3111-3 Fax: (82) 54-858-3116 Email: sa3111@hanafos.com
		*Previous Ordinaries* Bishop Ignatius Pak Seok-hi, Ph.D., D. D. (1990-2000) Bishop Rene Dupont, MEP, D. D. (1969-1990)
		*Retired bishops* Bishop Rene Dupont, MEP, D. D.
B. Other Diocesan Officials
		Vicar General: Father Ignatius Kim Jae-moon Address: 150-7, Namseong-dong, Sangju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 742-904, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-531-1781 Fax: (82) 54-531-1784 Email: kim9101@hanafos.com
		Chancellor: Father Stephen Nam Jeong-hong Address: 136, Anmak-dong, Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 760-340, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-858-3111-3 Fax: (82) 54-858-3116 Email: nste1004@naver.com
		Pastoral Administrator: Father Michael An Sang-gi Address: 136, Anmak-dong, Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 760-340, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-858-3111-3 Fax: (82) 54-858-3116 Email: ansgfm@hanmail.net
		Chaplain of Korean Catholic Farmers' Movement (KCFM) in Andong Diocese: Father Peter Kim Si-young Address: 151-5, Naksang-ri, Pungyang-myeon, Yecheon-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 757-862, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-858-3111-3 Fax: (82) 54-853-0127 Email: ksypetrus@hanmail.net
		President of Catholic Social Welfare Service: Father Pious Choi Sung-gun Address: 259-1, Sangmang-dong, Yeongju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, 750-904, South Korea Phone: (82) 54-633-6761-2 Fax: (82) 54-633-6940 Email: cpio11@hanmail.net

Statistics

A. Catholic Population

According to the statistics from the diocese of Andong, as of the end of 2006, Andong diocese had 45,732 baptized Catholics, representing 5.9 percent of all 772,843 people in the territory. At that time, the diocese had 35 parishes with resident priests and 72 mission stations. During 2006, the diocese recorded 989 baptisms.

People in the Diocese

Baptized Catholics: 41,673, or 5.7 percent

Members of other Christian denominations: 83,450, or 11.4 percent

Followers of non-Christian religions or cults
(Buddhist, Won Buddhist and others): 261,317, or 35.8 percent

People without religions : 343,658, or 47.1 percent
(Surveyed by the National Statistical Office in 2005)

B. Diocesan and Religious Priests

Diocesan priests: 73 (All Koreans)
Missionary priests: 2 (All Foreigners)
Religious Priests: 4 (All Foreigners)

C. Religious Brothers , Sisters

Religious Brothers: 2 (All Foreigners)
Religious Sisters: 187 (177 Koreans, 10 Foreigners)

D. Major Seminary, seminarians

Diocesan seminarians: 20

Diocesan Activities and Organizations

A. Major Diocesan Commissions and Organizations

The Committee for Development of Shrines

The Committee for Family Pastoral Ministry

The Committee for Justice and Peace

The Committee for Promoting Christian Unity
and Interreligious Dialogue

The Committee for Social Correction Apostolate

B. Catholic Educational Institutions

	Schools	Students
Kindergartens	18	1,583
Secondary Schools	2	636
Post-secondary Schools	1	1,980

C. Catholic Social Welfare

All: 31

1 Clinic with 2 doctors and 4 nurses

4 General Welfare Institutions: 2 multi social service centers and 2 others

4 Welfare institutions for adolescent: 1 protective facility and 3 shelters

1 Welfare institutions for women: 1 shelter

7 Welfare institutions for the aged: 3 homes and 4 social service centers

3 Welfare institutions for the disabled: 1 protective facility, 1 institution of vocational training and 1 social service center

3 Welfare institutions for the homeless: 3 facilities for free meal service

8 Welfare institutions for lepers: 1 hospital, 1 nursing home and 6 leper village

D. Social Communications

A Bookstore run by the Daughters of St. Paul

E. Other Church Organizations and Associations

Korean Catholic Farmers' Movement

Saving Our Farmland Movement

Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Catholic Professors' Association

Catholic Nuns' Association

Catholic Taxi-Drivers' Association

Cursillo Movement

Charismatic Renewal

Legion of Mary

Youth Association

Hong Yu Han Retreat House

Marriage Encounter

Choice

Lay Apostolate Council

Happy Family Movement

Religious Congregations, Societies and Institutes

A. Religious Institutes of Men

Carthusian Order

B. Religious Institutes of Women

Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul ~ DCSVP

Daughters of St. Paul ~ FSP

Franciscan Missionaries of Mary ~ FMM

Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Assisi ~ SFMA

Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Service

Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus ~ SSCJ

Little Servants of the Holy Family of Seoul

Missionary Benedictine Sisters of Tutzing, Daegu Priory ~ OSB

Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus ~ MSC

Olivetan Benedictine Sisters of Busan ~ OSB

Order of Discalced Carmelite Nuns ~ OCD

Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul of Suwon

Sisters of Christian Doctrine ~ DC

Sisters of Jesus the Good Shepherd ~ SGBP

Sisters of Peace Pentecost

Sisters of St. Paul of Chartres ~ SPC

Sisters of the Annunciation

Sisters of the Blessed Korean Martyrs

General Characteristics of the Diocese

In a land area of 10,782 square kilometers, the Andong diocesan territory includes cities of Mungyeong, Sangju, Andong, Yeongju and counties of Bonghwa, Yeongdeok, Yeongyang, Yecheon, Uljin, Uiseong, Cheongsong in Gyeongsangbuk-do (province). (The rest is same.)

The diocese belongs to the Ecclesiastical Province of Daegu which comprises Daegu archdiocese, and the dioceses of Cheongju, Masan and Pusan.

Andong diocese was carved out of Daegu archdiocese on May 29, 1969, as a suffragan diocese of Daegu Metropolitan. At that time, it had only 18 parishes and 175 mission stations with 27,742 Catholics.

Bishop John Chrisostom Kwon Hyeok-ju of Andong issued a special pastoral letter on Nov. 28, 2004, asserting that the diocese has made the pastoral care of farmers its top priority. He noted that the number of farmers in the country has dramatically decreased from around 10 million in 1983 to 3.5 million in 2003. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, as of Dec. 31, 2005, South Korea produces only 29.4 percent of food it needs.

Population
In Andong diocesan jurisdiction, the population is 772,843 at the end of 2006. (Some 1.6 percent of the whole population 49,624,269 in the country) Most residents are ethnic Koreans.

Climate
Andong diocese falls within the temperate zone and has the seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. The yearly average temperature here is 13.2 degrees Celsius. The annual precipitation in the region averages 1,046 millimeters. Most of the rainfall is concentrated in the rainy months of June through August.

Topography
Andong is located in the southeastern part of the Korean peninsula, in Gyeongsangbuk-do.

Language
Standard Korean is in use. English, a mandatory subject in schools, can be spoken and understood in tourist areas. All traffic signs are in English and Korean.

The website of Andong diocese can be found at: www.acatholic.or.kr

< Last updated on: August 29, 2006 >