Although the Augustinians, one of the pioneering missionary orders involved in the evangelisation in East Asia, have maintained an active presence in the region over a period of four hundred years, it was only in the mid-1980s that the Order came to take its place in the already well-established and active Korean Church.

The Augustinian Delegation of Korea was founded in 1985 as a result of a direct initiative of the General Chapter, the main governing body of the Order, in 1983. Within two years of a commitment being made by the Province of Australia and the Province of England and Scotland to jointly sponsor the venture, the first community of four Augustinians was established in Korea at the invitation of the Diocese of Incheon. Personnel from the Philippines Province of Cebu began their collaboration in the Region in 1993. Currently there is one Australian Augustinian still serving in Korea.

The Delegation accepted its first Korean candidates in 1990 and still regards the task of training these first Korean-born Augustinians as a primary ministry. As of June 2011 eleven Korean Augustinians have now made their solemn profession in the Delegation, four of whom are non-clerical brothers, five are priests and two are still preparing for priesthood. As well, there are six young men in initial formation, two of whom have completed novitiate and made their first profession of religious vows.

In 1998 the Delegation of Korea was proud to open and dedicate its second major building, on Kang-hwa Island, near the city of Incheon, for the use of Augustinian candidates attending the nearby Incheon Diocesan Seminary.

The members of the Delegation have fostered an interest in the Order’s work and spirit among the lay people of the Korean church, through the formation of small groups of Lay Augustinians. These groups support the Order with their prayers and assist with their time and energies in many ways.

May 2000 saw the realisation of a number of years of planning for a modest apostolate in the area of social welfare with the opening of a home in Inchon for a community of adolescent boys deprived of the proper care and support of family. Having completed its first major building program, a central house in Incheon City in 1994, the Delegation developed an adjacent property and opened the St Rita Spirituality Centre in December 2006.

In March 2005 three Augustinians moved into a small house, Mother of Good Counsel Priory, on the side of a steep mountain near the small town of Yeonchon at the northern end of the new Diocese of Uijeongbu, north of Seoul.

This Priory is a place of prayer and retreats for individuals, small groups, and families, especially during the warmer summer months when some may wish to come and stay in tents to pray and enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery. After Incheon and Kang-hwa, this new venue is now the third community apostolate of the Augustinians in Korea, twenty-five years after their arrival in that nation.

The ministries of the Order in Korea presently include a retreat house in Incheon city centre, which also offers opportunities to both religious and lay people for spiritual guidance and direction; retreat opportunities in the countryside at Yeoncheon; the social welfare apostolate (Group Home) in Incheon; pastoral care of young men completing compulsory national service; teaching assignments at Catholic tertiary institutions; and regular commitments in parishes and other religious communities.

The work of the Delegation is still only in its early stages and the Order looks forward to the day when a good number of Korean Augustinians will not only be active in the local Church but also make a contribution to the wider mission of the Order in Asia and beyond in the coming years. Please pray for the Augustinians in Korea.

As of June 2011, the Augustinian Delegation has eleven Koreans in solemn vows (five priests, four lay brothers, and two clerical candidates), two in simple vows, and four postulants. Personnel from the Philippines Province of Cebu collaborated in the Delegation between 1993 and April 2011, after which one Australian remains there as the only expatriate Augustinian.

Address:

St Augustine's Priory ,
Chameojeon-ro 72, Beon-gil 11,
Chon Dong, Chung Gu,
Incheon 400-190
Republic of Korea

Telephone: (0011 82 32) 761 0768
Fax: (0011 82 32) 766 6149

E-Mail: osa@osakorea.or.kr

Website: http://www.osakorea.or.kr