From the street, Kyungdong Presbyterian Church doesn’t advertise itself the way many Korean churches do. There’s no neon cross. Instead, visitors see a monolithic red brick building braced by roughly 10 exterior buttresses, a form that can read like a temple, a school, or a fortress until you get closer.
The church is a landmark work by modern Korean architect Kim Swoo-geun (1931–1986), and it’s now becoming easier for the public to experience. Starting in July, the church began offering official tours that allow visitors into the main sanctuary and an upper chapel that was originally designed as an open-air space.
The approach is part of the architecture. The entrance sits at the rear, pushing visitors to walk the perimeter and then descend a winding staircase the church associates with Calvary. Kim’s work drew inspiration from how traditional Korean mountain temples separate sacred space from the everyday world outside. He also leaned hard into red brick, a material he described as “the most Korean building material” of his era, and used throughout a trilogy of religious buildings that includes Sacred Heart Cathedral in Changwon (1979) and Bulgwang-dong Catholic Church in northern Seoul (1985).
Inside Kyungdong’s sanctuary, the mood flips. The design reinterprets early Christian catacombs with small exterior windows, repetitive trapezoidal ceiling supports, and exposed concrete walls that contrast with the brick exterior. A single beam of light lands on the altar cross, which only becomes visible once you enter the worship space. The sanctuary also includes a central stained-glass panel that functions as an automatic sliding door that opens during Christmas, Easter, and weddings.
For mason contractors and restoration crews, one detail stands out. A roof was added over the upper chapel after nearby residents complained about noise, and church members now agree in principle to remove that roof once funding is secured for demolition and restoration. It’s a familiar jobsite reality, later changes can solve one problem while compromising the original design, and undoing them takes careful planning to protect existing masonry and finishes.
Tours are free. The next one is scheduled for Aug. 8 at 2 p.m., and the church plans to offer periodic tours through the end of 2026, then move to a regular schedule in January 2027.
Read the full, original article from The Korea Times here.