Koreans in Minnesota by Sooh-Rhee Ryu

Author:Sooh-Rhee Ryu
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Press
Published: 2019-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

First unified Presbyterian church service, 1991: left to right, Chong Hae Jung, Yun Ho Lee, Young Ho Kang

Currently, about thirteen Korean evangelical churches, including the Korean Seventh-day Adventist Church, serve the community.

The Catholic Church

Unlike the evangelical Korean churches in Minnesota, the Korean Catholic church has maintained a single church community since it was officially established in 1974. Before that, believers gathered in small groups under the leadership of Deacon Min Soo (Timothy) Kim. Soon the faithful sought to have regular meetings and, in 1973, formed an executive committee to organize an official Catholic church. A year later, on April 16, 1974, with Reverend Francis Choe (Chi Kyu) leading the congregation, the new church was officially recognized by the Archdiocese of St. Paul–Minneapolis as the Catholic Church of the Korean Community of the Twin Cities. Since most of the congregants were students, the Korean Catholic church became part of the St. Lawrence Newman Center at the University of Minnesota. The early core members included Deacon Kim, Michael (Kangui) Hong, Joseph (Chang Jae) Lee, Andrea (Kyun) Huh, Maria (Hyunsil) Chang, and nuns Stephanan Choong and Yuriana Choe. Reverend Choe was officially designated as the church’s pastor in 1975.72

Over the next decade, the Catholic church thrived as the congregation grew and organized outreach events. In May 1975, the church arranged a panel discussion on human rights in Korea. In 1977, the church’s baseball and volleyball teams each won first place at a sporting event hosted by the Korean American Association of Minnesota. As membership increased, the church established a building fund. In the meantime, Cardinal Stephano Kim visited from Korea and baptized twenty-two members and confirmed seventeen.

Several church leaders celebrated academic achievements, including Reverend Choe with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from St. Thomas and Sister Choong with a doctoral degree in plant physiology. Reverend Choe and Sister Choong were among the earliest and most dedicated members in establishing and consolidating the Korean Catholic community.

Even as the congregation grew and continued to organize various religious and social activities, it didn’t have its own place to worship. Then, in 1979, the community’s longtime wish for its own building came true when the church moved to 580 Case Avenue in St. Paul. The first mass in the new church building was held on Christmas Eve.

Chang Jae (Joseph) Lee is a retired deacon of the St. Andrew Kim Church. A founding member of the early Korean Catholic community in Minnesota, he served two terms as its leader. Lee came to Minnesota with his family in 1973. He had been involved in the April 19, 1960, student revolution that toppled the authoritarian First Republic of South Korea. While working as a congressional correspondent for Daegu’s major daily newspaper, he innocently became involved in yet another political incident that led him to resign from his post. He intended to apply for political asylum in the United States, but because his wife is a doctor, he was able to take advantage of immigration preferences. With the help of Dr.

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