Religion 18/08/19 Korea welcomes first church specializing in matrimony - Busan Family Church is offering affordable wedding ceremonies, marriage counseling an

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Korea welcomes first church specializing in matrimony

Busan Family Church is offering affordable wedding ceremonies, marriage counseling and family ministry

Busan Family Church in Pusan Diocese is the first of its kind in South Korea to specialize in the sacrament of marriage and family ministry. (Photo supplied by Pusan Diocese)

ucanews.com reporter, Seoul
South Korea
August 21, 2018

The first Catholic church specializing in the sacrament of matrimony has opened in the southwest coastal city of Busan, South Korea, allowing parishioners who can't afford a lavish Korean wedding to cut costs. Pusan Diocese recently completed building the Busan Family Church in Choryang-dong. It will focus on Catholic marriage rites and family ministry affairs in the diocese. Pusan is the former spelling of Busan. Instead of serving as a traditional parish church, it will be a pivot for the evangelization of families, according to local clergy. At the church, wedding Masses will be celebrated in similar style to a typical Sunday Mass, making marriage ceremonies possible for many who could otherwise not afford the prohibitive cost of a wedding in the country. Pusan Diocese built the church as part of a larger pastoral plan to spread the values of matrimony and support the growth of new families. Father Romano Song Hyeon, the diocesan director of family ministry affairs, will head the church. The family ministry office will be located inside the church. It will also support services for families such as catechism classes and marriage counseling. "Busan Family Church will be a new milestone for family ministry and family evangelization in Korea," Father Song said. It opened its doors on Aug. 19 with a Mass presided over by Bishop Paul Hwang Chul-soo of Pusan.

The diocese dedicated 2017 as the Year for Parish Evangelization and presented guidelines.