| St Mary's Cathedral | |
|---|---|
| Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians, Patroness of Australia | |
| St Mary's Basilica | |
 St Mary's Cathedral at night | |
  St Mary's Cathedral | |
| 33°52′16″S 151°12′48″E / 33.87111°S 151.21333°E | |
| Location | Sydney, New South Wales |
| Country | Australia |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | stmaryscathedral |
| History | |
| Former name(s) | St Mary's Chapel |
| Status | Minor basilica (since 1932) Cathedral (since 1835) Chapel (1821–1835) National shrine[1] |
| Founded | 21 October 1821 |
| Dedication | Immaculate Conception, Mary Help of Christians |
| Dedicated | 29 June 1865 |
| Consecrated | 8 September 1882 |
| Relics held | First class relic of St Francis Xavier displayed, various others privately held |
| Events | Ruined by fire (29 June 1865) |
| Past bishop(s) | George Pell, Edward Clancy, John Bede Polding |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Architect(s) |
|
| Architectural type | Chapel (first building) Cathedral (present building) |
| Style | Geometric Decorated Gothic |
| Years built | 1851 (first cathedral) 1928 (nave completed) 2000 (spires added) |
| Groundbreaking | 1821 (St Mary's Chapel) 1868 (present-day cathedral) |
| Specifications | |
| Length | 107 metres (351 ft) |
| Nave width | 24.3 metres (80 ft) |
| Nave height | 22.5 metres (74 ft) |
| Number of spires | 2 |
| Spire height | 74.6 metres (245 ft) |
| Materials | Sydney sandstone, Oamaru stone, marble, alabaster, Moruya granite |
| Bells | 14 |
| Tenor bell weight | 34 long cwt 1 qr 3 lb (3,839 lb or 1,741 kg) |
| Administration | |
| Province | Sydney |
| Metropolis | Sydney |
| Archdiocese | Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sydney |
| Deanery | City Deanery |
| Parish | St Mary's |
| Clergy | |
| Archbishop | Anthony Fisher OP |
| Auxiliary Bishop(s) | Terence Brady, Richard Umbers, Danny Meagher |
| Dean | Donald Richardson |
| Chancellor | Chris Meney (Lay Chancellor) |
| Assistant priest(s) | Brendan Purcell, Emmanuel Lubega, Lewi Barakat |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | Daniel Justin |
| Organist(s) | Simon Niemiński (Assistant Director of Music) |
| Servers' guild | Archconfraternity of St. Stephen |
| Official name | St. Mary's Catholic Cathedral and Chapter House; Saint Mary's Cathedral; St Marys Cathedral |
| Type | State heritage (complex / group) |
| Designated | 3 September 2004 |
| Reference no. | 1709 |
| Type | Cathedral |
| Category | Religion |
| Builders | Jacob Inder (Chapter House) |
The Cathedral Church and Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians, Patroness of Australia (colloquially, St Mary's Cathedral) is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney and the seat of the Archbishop of Sydney, currently Anthony Fisher OP. It is dedicated to the "Immaculate Mother of God, Help of Christians", Patroness of Australia and holds the title and dignity of a minor basilica, bestowed upon it by Pope Pius XI on 4 August 1932.[2]
St Mary's has the greatest length of any church in Australia. It is located on College Street near the eastern border of the Sydney central business district in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. Despite the high-rise development of the central business district, the cathedral's imposing structure and twin spires make it a landmark from every direction. In 2008, St Mary's Cathedral became the focus of World Youth Day 2008 and was visited by Pope Benedict XVI who consecrated the new forward altar. The cathedral was designed by William Wardell and built from 1866 to 1928. It is also known as St Mary's Catholic Cathedral and Chapter House, Saint Mary's Cathedral and St Mary's Cathedral. The property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 3 September 2004.[3]
- ^ "Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sydney". GCatholic.org. Archived from the original on 8 January 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2011.
- ^ Pope Pius XII (1933). Ecclesia Cathedralis Sydneyensis ad Basilicae Minoris Dignitatem Evehitur [Sydney's Cathedral Church is Elevated to the Dignity of a Minor Basililca] (PDF). Acta Apostolicae Sedis (in Latin). Vol. 25. The Holy See. pp. 200–201. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
- ^ "St. Mary's Catholic Cathedral and Chapter House". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. H01709. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC BY 4.0 licence.
