| Jurisdiction: | Metropolitan Archdiocese |
| Seoul | |
| Latin: | Archidioecesis Metropolitae Seulensis |
| Local: | 서울대교구 |
| Coat: | Archdiocese of Seoul.png |
| Territory: | Seoul and Hwanghae |
| Province: | Seoul |
| Area Km2: | 17,349 |
| Population: | 9,765,869[1] |
| Population As Of: | 2021 |
| Catholics: | 1,534,887 |
| Catholics Percent: | 15.7 |
| Parishes: | 232 |
| Denomination: | Catholic |
| Sui Iuris Church: | Latin Church |
| Rite: | Roman Rite |
| Established: | 9 September 1831 (as Apostolic Vicariate) 10 March 1962 (as Archdiocese) |
| Cathedral: | Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Seoul |
| Patron: | Blessed Virgin Mary |
| Priests: | 954 |
| Bishop Title: | Archbishop |
| Metro Archbishop: | Peter Chung Soon-taick |
| Emeritus Bishops: | Andrew Yeom Soo-jung |
| Map: | Archdiocese of Seoul.svg |
The Metropolitan Archdiocese of Seoul (Latin: Archidioecesis Metropolitae Seulensis, ko|'''서울대교구''') is a Metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church comprising the metropolitan area of Seoul, South Korea, whose province comprises parts of South Korea (which has two more provinces) and all North Korea, yet depends on the missionary Dicastery for Evangelization. Its Metropolitan bishop as the Archbishop of Seoul resides at his Myeongdong Cathedral in Jung-gu, Seoul. The Archbishop of Seoul is also the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Pyongyang in North Korea.
There are 57 Catholic secretly active parishes in North Korea, but due to the current regime in place, no Catholic priests are permitted permanent residency at the present time.
Pope Francis announced that the Archdiocese will be the host of the 2027 international celebration of World Youth Day.[2]
, it pastorally served 1,534,887 Catholics (15.7% of 9,765,869 total) on 17,349 km2 in 232 parishes with 954 priests.[1]
Pope Leo XIII was the first to approve the separation of the community from the control of diocese of Beijing and assigned priests from the Paris Foreign Missions Society but never went due to the Anti-Christian sentiment and persecutions during that time.
Pope Gregory XVI issued a papal bull, Ex debito pastoralis, on 9 September 1831, establishing the Apostolic Vicariate of the Korean Kingdom, 조선/Corea (Curiate Italian)/朝鮮 (正體中文), on territory split off from the then Diocese of Peking,[3] in what used to be part of Imperial China. It was renamed on 8 April 1911 as the Apostolic Vicariate of Seoul 서울/漢城 (正體中文), when it also ceded territory to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Taiku (Daegu).
It lost more territories, beginning on 8 May 1920, to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Wonsan. On 17 March 1927, it again ceded territory to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Hpyeng-yang, and on 25 April 1939, it lost territory again to establish the Apostolic Prefecture of Shunsen.
The Apostolic Vicariate was again officially renamed on 12 July 1950 after its See as Apostolic Vicariate of Seul. It lost territories again on 23 June 1958 to establish the Apostolic Vicariate of Cheongju and the Apostolic Vicariate of Daijeon, and on 6 June 1961, it lost again to make the Apostolic Vicariate of Incheon, all three now have Suffragan bishops.
The diocese was raised to the level of Metropolitan Archdiocese on 10 March 1962.[4]
It lost again on 7 October 1963 to establish the Diocese of Suwon and it ceded territory again on 24 June 2004 to establish the Diocese of Uijeongbu, now both its suffragans.
The archdiocese has hosted official Papal visits by Pope John Paul II in May 1984 and October 1989 and by Pope Francis in August 2014.
The Metropolitan's ecclesiastical province comprises his own Archdiocese and the following suffragan bishoprics, mostly in South Korea :