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From Returned Missionaries
Church Beginnings in Korea 1955-1962 Part Two-A
Updated August 11, 2007.
Church Beginnings in Korea Part Two
September 1959 to July 1962
By Paul C. Andrus
President of The Northern Far East Mission 1955-1962
Kaneohe, Hawaii, December 10, 2002
Monday May 15, 1961. Beginning at 7:30 AM Brother Hinckley, Sister Andrus and I met with all twenty three missionaries of the Korean District at the Seoul Central Branch in Sam Chung Dong. During my talk I asked the missionaries to work at least 60 proselyting hours each week and to work toward a goal of baptizing 500 converts this year. During his talk, Brother Hinckley asked the missionaries to work between 65 and 70 proselyting hours each week and said he felt that 1,000 converts could be brought into the church in Korea during a one year period!
After this meeting we enjoyed lunch together with all the missionaries at Sam Chung Dong. After lunch Brother Hinckley interviewed each missionary separately while I met with Elder Bradshaw and Elder Waddell to work out new missionary assignments. I then met with Brother Hong and Brother Shin. On our way back to the hotel we stopped off at the home of Brother Shin where I gave a name and a blessing to his two month old daughter. Brother Hinckley, Sister Andrus and I enjoyed dinner together at the hotel.
Tuesday May 16, 1961. Early this morning the military forces of the Republic of Korea took over the government in a military coup. There was considerable shooting and some casualties and Brother Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I were right in the middle of it.
At 4:30 this morning Sister Andrus and I were awakened by what sounded at first like a string of Chinese firecrackers exploding in the street directly beneath our hotel room window. When the explosions continued we went to the windows and looked out and about then the explosions increased in intensity and became much louder. I then recognized the sounds to be gunfire including automatic weapons. It seemed incredible at the time but when I saw a tracer bullet fly past our window, I was convinced. The heavy firing continued unabated. We put on our clothes and then decided it would be a good idea to have brother Hinckley who was in a room one floor below us, come up to our room so that we would be together in case we were rounded up by the troops. I went down to Brother Hinckley=s room and found him standing in his pajamas in his room with heavy firing going on in the street right below his window. Together we looked out of his window and I caught sight of a Korean soldier standing with his rifle at the ready position. Brother Hinckley said he would get dressed and come up to our room so I returned to be with Sister Andrus in our room. When Brother Hinckley arrived, heavy firing was still going on but we had no idea who was doing the shooting or why. Firing then began to subside and then resumed again with new intensity so Brother Hinckley, Sister Andrus and I lay down on the floor for safety. We remained lying and sitting on the floor until the firing finally subsided. The heavy firing had continued from 4:30 AM till about 5:00 AM. Even after the nearby heaving firing had stopped, we could still hear distant sporadic firing continuing in other parts of the city, but this too finally subsided and we ventured out of our room to go up on the roof to see what we could see. By this time it was quite light and we could see armed troops filling the street below. We met a Korean man who had a transister radio and he told us that the military forces had taken over the government. We then went down to our rooms and freshened up and then went down to the hotel lobby. At 7:00 AM we went into the dining room and sat down to breakfast. At 7:15 there was another outbreak of distant gunfire but it only lasted for a minute or two.
We had been right in the midst of some heavy shooting as evidenced by the number of bullet marks on the walls and the number of bullet holes in the windows of the building across the narrow street from ours. This building is only about 100 feet or 150 feet at the most away from our hotel rooms. We counted 26 bullet pock marks and bullet holes on the wall and in the windows of this building. The Korean Government Ministry of Home Affairs building is located behind our hotel on the other side from the side our rooms are in. The Ministry of Home Affairs building and compound was surrounded by Korean Marines and much of the shooting had taken place there. Prime Minister Chang has been staying at the Bando hotel which is only about a block from our hotel and the Korean troops entered the Bando Hotel and took him by force from his quarters there. We usually stay at the Bando Hotel but this time we were not able to obtain rooms there. Brother Hinckley observed that this was providential and we agreed.
About 6:30 AM I phoned Elder Bradshaw at Sam Chung Dong and instructed him to have all the missionaries stay off the streets today. I also instructed him to send some Korean members to the Soul West Branch and to the Seoul East Branch to let the missionaries know they should stay off the streets today. There were some missionaries scheduled to return to Pusan today so I instructed Elder Bradshaw to instruct them to stay in Seoul and stay off the streets. At 8:00 Am Elder Bradshaw phoned back saying that all missionaries had been contacted and instructed to stay off the streets. Brother Hinckley then wrote out a telegram and we sent it off to the First Presidency letting them know that all missionaries in Korea are safe.
Things were quiet until 9:50 AM when another outbreak of gunfire took place. This gunfire seemed to be taking place in the area of the Bando Hotel and only lasted for two or three minutes. A heavy guard has been thrown up around the Ministry of Home Affairs compound immediately behind our hotel and there are troops scattered all over the city.
At 10:15 AM Brother Hong came to our hotel to bring us up to date on what is happening and about thirty minutes later Brother Shin arrived at our hotel.. They said that the military coup was carried out simultaneously in all of the major cities throughout the nation and that all cities are now under martial law. All seaports and airports have been closed, the banks have been closed, meetings have been banned, a curfew has been placed in effect from 7PM until 5AM, and plundering has been forbidden. We all listened to the 11AM American news broadcast and heard official statements by General Macgruder and by the American Charge d=affairs supporting the constitutionally elected government and Prime Minister Chang. These same statements were repeated on the 12 Noon broadcast. This makes the situation very dangerous because the American armed forces do not support the Korean revolutionary forces in this coup and have taken a stand supporting the government which was overthrown. The American armed forces are opposing the Korean armed forces. The situation is very dangerous.
Brother Hinckley, Sister Andrus and I spent the rest of the day in the hotel listening to the radio broadcast every hour and staying off the streets in accordance with the instruction from the American Embassy. There were no further news announcements but Brother Hong and Brother Shin came to our hotel again in the afternoon and filled us in on what meager news had filtered out to the Korean citizens. We went to bed early not knowing what would happen during the night and hoping that things would remain quiet.
Wednesday May 17, 1961. The night was quiet and another beautiful day weatherwise dawned quietly on Seoul. After breakfast Brother Hinckley and I telephoned the American Embassy and were told that Americans should still stay off the streets except for essential business. Brother Hinckley and I decided it was essential to go visit the missionaries and then inspect the land in the Seoul East Branch. We jumped in a taxi and were at the District Headquarters in Sam Chung Dong by 7:30 AM. We met with Elder James Bradshaw and Elder Lynn Waddell for about two hours finishing up important church business. We then took a taxi over to look at the East Gate property once more. This is a beautiful meetinghouse site and has a nice wall around it now which it did not have when Brother Hinckley looked at it one year ago. We then returned to our hotel and checked out and arrived at the Northwest Airlines office in the Bando Hotel by noon.
Northwest Airlines informed us that our flight would depart on schedule so we said goodbye to the missionaries and members at the Bando Hotel and rode out to the airport in the Volkswagon Van limousine bus. Upon arriving at the airport we were surprised at the small number of military guards and soldiers on duty there. All things went smoothly with the government checkout procedures but after everyone had been cleared and boarded the airplane we had to wait about two hours before the military authorities finally cleared the airplane to take off. We were at last in the air by 4PM Korea time and arrived in Tokyo at about 7:30 PM Japan time. There was a large group of photographers and reporters out to meet the airplane in Tokyo because it was the first flight to arrive from Seoul since the military coup took place yesterday. So ended Brother Hinckley=s second visit to Korea.
Monday May 22, 1961. Today Elder James R. Bradsaw who has served as President of the Korean District for the past year and Elder Glen Underwood who has served as the Mission Secretary for the past six months were honorably released from their missions and sailed for America from Yokohama.
Wednesday May 24, 1961.Elder John R. Leasure and Elder Sterling G. George have been assigned to labor in Korea and flew from Tokyo to Seoul today.
On Saturday August 24, 1961, Sister Andrus and I flew to Seoul for a three day visit with the missionaries and members in Korea. We were met at the airport by Elder Waddell, Supervising Elder for the Korean District, his companion Elder Harris, and Brother Husted, an LDS Serviceman. Brother Husted had arranged for a USA government sedan so we rode to the Bando Hotel in style.
On Saturday evening we attended the Priesthood and Relief Society Sessions of the Korean District Conference. Sunday morning we attended the General Session of the Korean District Conference at the Kyung Buck High School and enjoyed an excellent meeting with about 350 Koreans in attendance. In the afternoon we met with the LDS Servicemen=s Group in their regular Sacrament Meeting at the 8th Army Chapel with about 20 servicemen in attendance. Sunday evening we attended th MIA Session of the Korean District Conference at the Kyung Buck High School and enjoyed another excellent meeting with about 350 Koreans again in attendance. On Monday we met with all 20 of the missionaries now laboring in Korea at the District Headquarters at Sam Chung Dong before we returned to Tokyo in the afternoon. Our missionaries are all well and happy in their work and our visit with them was inspiring.
The church in Korea is making good progress among the Korean people. At this Conference six more Korean men received the Melchizedek Priesthood. Three of the five branches in Korea are now operating with Korean Priesthood holders filling all positions in the Branch Presidency. In the other two branches Missionaries are still serving as Branch Presidents but the Counselors in the Branch Presidency are Korean Priesthood holders and we are working toward having all the Branch Presidencies fully staffed by Korean Priesthood holders in the near future.
Saturday, December 2, 1961. I flew to Seoul this morning and was met at the airport by Elder Waddell, Supervising Elder for the Korean District, Elder Royce Grant his companion, and Brother Husted, an LDS Serviceman. Brother Husted had arranged for an army jeep in which we all rode into the city.
Saturday evening I attended the Priesthood Session of the Korean District conference which was held at the Sam Chung Dong meeting house. This was a good meeting and I felt that I was led by the spirit in my remarks. After the meeting, a Presbyterian Minister who was in attendance came up to me and told me that I had answered many of the questions he had in his mind about the Mormon Church. Also after this meeting, I was invited into another room to meet eight Korean Boys who are the first Boy Scouts for the church in Korea.
Sunday at 8:30AM I met with the members of the Branch Presidencies in a special leadership meeting held at the Duck Song University. The General Session followed beginning at 10:30 AM. At this session three more Korean men were sustained to receive the Melchizedek Priesthood. Right after this meeting Elder Waddell and I took a taxi to the US Army Seoul Area Post and attended the Korean District LDS Servicemen=s Conference. I was happy to meet Brother (Lieutenant) Hanson who is now the President of the LDS Servicemen=s Korean District. After this meeting Elder Waddell and I met with all LDS Servicemen=s Group Leaders and Assistants in a Leadership Training Meeting. Right after this meeting Elder Waddell and I took a taxi back to the Duck Song University to attend the MIA Session of the Korean Conference.
After this meeting Elder Waddell and I went with Sister Young Sook Kim to visit her mother, Sister Pil Kun Park, widow of President Ho Jik Kim. We found Sister Park to be suffering with sugar diabetes and not well at all. She is worried about her son in France and also about her son in America. She is also worried about her business which is not doing well. Elder Waddell and I administered to her and joined our faith with the faith of herself and her family that all these problems could be worked out satisfactorily.
We now have 22 missionaries laboring in Korea and I met with all of them on Monday beginning at 7 AM at Sam Chung Dong.. Elder Royce Grant is not well and we all administered to him at the beginning of this meeting. After our meeting he went to the hospital and was examined but the Doctor advised him to rest in his quarters and he should feel better. The health of the missionaries in Korea continues to be worrisome.
Saturday March 3, 1962. Brother and Sister Gordon B. Hinckley have been touring The Northern Far East Mission since February 18th and today Sister Andrus and I flew to Korea with them to attend Conferences of the Korean District and of the Korean LDS Servicemen=s District in Seoul. We were met at the airport by Elder Waddell, Supervising Elder of the Korean District, Brother Husted, an LDS Serviceman, and by Brother (Colonel) Robert Slover who is in Korea temporarily on US Army business. Brother Slover had arranged for an Army staff car to drive from the airport to our hotel in Seoul.
This afternoon Brother Hinckley and I and Elder Waddell looked at property for sale in Seoul and then met with all the missionaries at the Sam Chung Dong District Headquarters.. In the evening Brother Hinckley and I attended the Priesthood session of the Korean District Conference while Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus attended the Relief Society Session. These meetings were very well attended and had a fine spirit and all in attendance were benefitted by the messages delivered by Brother and Sister Hinckley.
Beginning at 7:30 AM on Sunday President Hinckley began interviewing the missionaries while I interviewed five Korean brothers for ordination to the Melchizedek Priesthood. The first General Session began at 10 AM at the Duck Soo Girls College in Seoul. The meeting hall was filled to capacity with over 500 Koreans in attendance and we enjoyed an excellent meeting highlighted by the talks by Brother and Sister Hinckley and the sustaining of five Korean men to be ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood.
After this meeting Brother Hinckley and I administered to Sister Pil Kun Park, widow of President Ho Jik Kim. Sister Park has been ill with sugar diabetes for some time and has been under great pressure because her business has not been going well and because of concern for her son in France and her son in the USA.
This afternoon Brother and Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I attended the General Session of the Korean LDS Servicemen=s District at the 8th Army chapel in the Seoul US Army Command Post in Seoul. There were about 60 servicemen in attendance and we enjoyed another uplifting meeting highlighted by the talks of Brother and Sister Hinckley.
In the evening Brother and Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I attended the final General Session of the Korean District Conference. Again the attendance was well over 500 Koreans and we enjoyed another inspiring and uplifting meeting. After this session Brother Hinckley and I administered to a Korean brother who was ill and requested a blessing from Brother Hinckley.
Brother Hinckley and I also met with Brother Byung Sik Hong and a Brother Kong who wanted Brother Hinckley=s advice on a business project they are considering.
On Monday Brother and Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I and Elder Wadell caught an early morning flight to Taegu arriving in Taegu at 9:30 AM. We caught a taxi into the city and then looked at two pieces of property for sale there. The second piece of property impressed all of us very favorably and we went right over to the real estate office and began negotiations on the price. The salesman said he would again negotiate with the seller and come back with a firm price. Brother and Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I then walked through the streets of Taegu. Taegu was devastated during the Korean war and is still in the throes of trying to rebuild its buildings and its economy and it was a sobering experience to view the struggles of the people of Taegu firsthand amidst all the debris of and the squalor of poverty. For several years I have looked forward to the church becoming established in Taegu and I believe that especially after today=s visit Brother Hinckley will help us move ahead in getting started in Taegu right away.
From Taegu we traveled on to Pusan by railroad train and were met at the station by my cousin Vaughn Terry who is a Major in the US Army stationed at Camp Hialeah in Pusan. Vaughn had an army staff car and his own Ford station wagon on hand to transport us around and he drove us out to inspect the Pusan Branch meeting house and the missionary living quarters. Renovation of the missionary living quarters had just been completed and Brother and Sister Hinckley and Sister Andrus and I were pleased with the living conditions for the missionaries in Pusan. Vaughn then drove us out to his home on base at Camp Hialeah where we enjoyed a pleasant visit with his wife and children before leaving for the airport to catch our flight back to Seoul.
Tuesday March 6, 1962. This morning Brother Hinckley, Elder Waddell and I inspected the Seoul East Branch property, the Seoul East Gate Branch property, and also some property for rent in the East Gate Branch area. We then returned to the hotel and checked out. Brother Daley
had arranged for an army staff car to take us out to the airport. Elder Waddell, Elder Royce Grant, and Sister Pil Kun Park, President Ho Jik Kim=s widow, came out to the airport to see us off and while waiting for our flight to be called, Brother Hinckley and I and Elder Waddell had a good visit with Sister Park and once again reviewed her problems with her health, her business and her son in France and her son in the USA.
In March Sister Andrus and I learned from Brother Hinckley that we will be released in July and on June 10th we received a letter from Brother Hinckley letting us know that our replacements, President and Sister Dwayne Andersen, will arrive in Tokyo on July 12th. The First Presidency have also let me know of their decision to divide The Northern Far East Mission by creating the Korean Mission. President Gail Carr, one of our former missionaries in Japan and in Korea, has been called to be the first President of the Korean Mission. The First Presidency have authorized me to organize the Korean Mission and install President Carr as the Mission President. We will fly to Seoul with President and Sister Carr on July 6th and organize the Korean Mission on July 8th. We will then return to Tokyo to welcome President and Sister Andersen on July 12th. I will turn the Northern Far East Mission over to President Andersen on July 19th and Sister Andrus and I and our five children will depart from Tokyo for Honolulu in the evening of July 19th. President and Sister Carr and their baby son Aaron arrived in Tokyo on July 4th and Sister Andrus and I met them at the airport and took them to their hotel.
Friday July 6, 1962. Sister Andrus and I and President and Sister Carr flew from Tokyo to Seoul this morning. There was a fine group of missionaries and members at the airport in Seoul to welcome us. The Korean members had planned a Welcome Social for President and Sister Carr and a Farewell Social for Sister Andrus and me this evening at the Sam Chung Dong meeting house. The program consisted mostly of dances performed by a troupe of small Korean girls and a good time was enjoyed by all.
Saturday I met all day with President Carr and Elder Bruce Adams and turned over the affairs of the Korean District of the Northern Far East Mission from myself to President Carr. In the evening President Carr and I attended the Priesthood Session of the Korean District Conference while Sister Andrus and Sister Carr attended the Relief Society Session.
Sunday July 8, 1962. The Korean Mission came into existence today during the morning General Session of The Korean District Conference attended by over 500 Koreans. During this meeting, having been authorized by the First Presidency, I proposed that The Northern Far East Mission be divided and that The Korean Mission be organized and received a unanimous vote of approval from the congregation. I Then proposed that Gail Carr be sustained as President of the Korean Mission and that Gwenn Carr be sustained as President of the Relief Society of the Korean Mission. This proposal was also unanimously approved by the congregation. At that moment, The Korean Mission had come into existence and President and Sister Carr had been installed.. Korea was now on its own. I had presided over the church in Korea for six years and seven months and on this historic occasion I left Korea in the good hands of President Carr.
In the afternoon President and Sister Carr and Sister Andrus and I attended the a specisl conference of the Korean LDS Servicemen=s District at the 8th Army Chapel in Seoul. At this meeting I obtained a sustaining vote from the congregation for the division of the Northern Far East Mission and the creation of the Korean Mission. I also obtained a sustaining vote for President and Sister Carr. At this meeting those who had been serving as the LDS Servicemen=s Korean District Presidency were released and Brother William D. Daley was sustained as the LDS Servicemen=s Coordinator for the Korean Mission.
Monday July 9, 1962. Beginning at 6:30 AM President and Sister Carr and Sister Andrus and I met with all 19 missionaries in a fast and testimony meeting at Sam Chung Dong. Our plan was to end this meeting at 10:30 AM so that President Carr and I would have two or three hours to finish up all the details of turning all the Korean affairs over to President Carr. Unfortunately President Carr let the meeting get out of hand and it did not come to an end until shortly before noon. Because President Carr was presiding I felt that I could not interrupt and ask the missionaries to be brief in their remarks and President Carr did not do so. The meeting went on and on while we were running out of time to complete our business. Nevertheless, we did rush through all the remaining business and we did make it out to the airport on time to catch our plane back to Tokyo. A small group of Korean members including Sister Do Pil Kim-Lee and Sister Pil Kun Park, President Ho Jik Kim=s widow, had come to the airport to see us off. After saying goodbye to everyone we boarded our plane and enjoyed a comfortable flight back to Tokyo. Our experiences working with the members and the missionaries in Korea for six years and seven months created a bond of friendship and love which still binds our hearts to theirs and which time has not weakened. We count the members and missionaries we worked with in Korea as our everlasting friends and we look forward to continuing our association in this love and friendship forever.
Time Line
July 28, 1955 The Northern Far East Mission organized.
August 2, 1955 Korea dedicated for the preaching of the gospel by President Joseph Fielding Smith.
August 2, 1955 Ho Jik Kim set apart by President Joseph Fielding Smith as president of the Korean District of the Northern Far East Mission.
November 1, 1955 Paul C. Andrus set apart as president of the Northern Far East Mission and given the responsibility to move ahead in Korea.
January 20, 1956 President Andrus, President Kim, and President Groves meet in Seoul to lay plans for missionaries to enter Korea.
February 29, 1956 President Andrus, Colonel Robert Slover, and President Ho Jik Kim meet in Tokyo. President Ho Jik Kim is assigned to translate the Book of Mormon into Korean and to form a translation committee to assist him. Translation of the Joseph Smith Story pamphlet is completed and will be published in Seoul. President Kim expects to finalize missionary quarters in Seoul by April. President Andrus agrees to have missionaries ready.
.March 17, 1956 Elder Don Powell and Elder Richard Detton assigned to go to Korea.
March 23, 1956 President Ho Jik Kim finalizes lease of missionary quarters in Seoul
April 20, 1956 Elder Don Powell and Richard Detton arrive in Korea.
June 4, 1956 Elder Dean Andersen and Elder Newell Kimball arrive in Korea.
June 5, 1956 Elder Richard Detton and Elder Dean Andersen assigned to Pusan.
August, 1956 Elder Gail Carr, Elder Larry Orme, Elder Karl Fletcher, and Elder Claude Newman arrive in Korea..
September, 1956 Elder Don Powell returns home to his wife and daughter.
Elder Gail Carr appointed Supervising Elder.
Brother Young Bum Lee called as first Korean full-time missionary.
October, 1956 Church purchases Yurak Dong property in Seoul.
January 1957 President Andrus and President Kim meet in Seoul and decide to gain recognition of the church by the Korean government. They decide to form a religious corporation according to Korean law and register the church with President Ho Jik Kim as Responsible Officer.
July, 1957 Church purchases Sam Chung Dong property in Seoul.
August, 1958 President Andrus meets with Korea missionaries in Seoul and discusses the hepatitis threat to the missionaries health.
January, 1959 Elder Dean Andersen appointed Supervising Elder succeeding Elder Carr.
February 4, 1959 President Ho Jik Kim, Elder Dean Andersen, Elder Lowell Brown, and President Andrus meet with Mr. Han, Chief of the Korean Immigration Bureau, in Seoul and resolve the visas for missionaries problem.
May 15-18, 1959 Elder and Sister Mark E. Peterson visit Korea.
Elder Lowell E. Brown appointed Second Counselor in The Northern Far East Mission Presidency. Brother Byung Sik Hong and Brother Ho Nam Rhee appointed counselors to President Ho Jik Kim.
Purchase of property in Pusan authorized.
August 31, 1959 President Ho Jik Kim Dies.
September, 1959 Term of service for missionaries laboring in The Northern Far East Mission is reduced from three years to two and one-half years.
April, 1960 Anti-government demonstrations force President Syngman Rhee to resign.
June, 1960 Elder Gordon B. Hinckley visits Korea for the first time.
May, 1961 Elder Gordon B. Hinckley visits Korea for the second time.
May 14, 1961 Brother Byung Sik Hong sustained as President of Seoul Central Branch
Brother Ho Nam Rhee sustained as President of Seoul East GateBranch.
Brother Ba Yul Kum sustained as President of Pusan Branch.
May 16, 1961 Military Coup overthrows the Korean government. Elder Hinckley, and President and Sister Andrus witness shooting from their hotel windows.
March 3, 1962 President and Sister Gordon B. Hinckley arrive in Korea.
July 8, 1962 Korean Mission organized with Gail Carr as President.
The End