Sacred Heart Cathedral, Wellington

Sacred Heart Cathedral
Metropolitan Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and St Mary his Mother
Wellington, Hill St
Sacred Heart Cathedral
41°16′36″S 174°46′34″E / 41.2766°S 174.7762°E / -41.2766; 174.7762
Location	Thorndon, Wellington Central City
Country	New Zealand
Denomination	Catholic
Website	mcshwellington.org
History
Former name(s)	St Mary's Cathedral
Founded	1851, 1901
Founder(s)	Philippe Viard, 1st Bishop of Wellington (St Mary's Cathedral, 1851); Francis Redwood, 2nd Bishop and 1st Archbishop of Wellington (Sacred Heart Cathedral, 1901)
Dedication	1851, 1901
Consecrated	18 March 1984[1]
Architecture
Heritage designation	Category I (2 April 1985)
Architect(s)	Francis Petre
Architectural type	Cathedral
Style	Palladian Revival
Completed	1901
Specifications
Materials	Oamaru stone
Administration
Archdiocese	Wellington
Parish	Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish
Clergy
Archbishop	Archbishop Paul Martin
Priest in charge	Fr Patrick Bridgman (Cathedral Administrator)
Laity
Reader(s)	Mrs Deborah Matheson (Lay Pastoral Leader and Extraordinary minister of Holy Communion)
Parish administrator	Mr Frank Doherty

The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and of Saint Mary His Mother, better known as Sacred Heart Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral church on Hill Street, Wellington, New Zealand. It is the parish church of the Thorndon Catholic parish (founded 1850) and the seat of the Archbishop of Wellington. The New Zealand Parliament is a close neighbour of the cathedral. However, the Thorndon Catholic parish predates that institution. The cathedral is part of a Catholic precinct which includes: St Mary's College; Sacred Heart Cathedral School; St Mary's Convent, the motherhouse of the Sisters of Mercy in Wellington; the Catholic Centre, in which Catholic administration is located; and Viard House, which is both the cathedral parish presbytery and the residence of the archbishop.

The church was popularly known as "the Basilica", because of its palladian architectural style.^[2] It was designated as the cathedral of Wellington in 1984 after earthquake strengthening and the addition of the Blessed Sacrament chapel, foyer, sacristy, courtyard, hall (called Connolly Hall) and piazza. The parish of Thorndon was administered by the Society of Mary (Marist Fathers) for eighty-five years until 1935,^[3] although secular or diocesan clergy were also stationed there.^[4] The founder of the see, Bishop Viard, and the first two archbishops, Redwood and O'Shea, were also members of the Society of Mary. From 1954 all the archbishops and the resident clergy of the cathedral were secular clergy.^[3] However on 4 May 2023 the Marist residency was restored when Archbishop Paul Martin SM succeeded to the see.

Thorndon has always been the residence of the archbishops of Wellington except for the period 1935–1954 when Archbishop O'Shea continued to live at Paterson St, Mt Victoria which was his address as coadjutor.^[3]

On 13 July 2018, the main cathedral building was closed for seismic strengthening, with services continuing in the cathedral hall (off Guildford Terrace) or at St Thomas More Church, Wilton.^[5][6] The strengthening of the cathedral was completed, the sanctuary reordered with the high altar installed, the exterior and interior stone stripped of paint and restored, the ceiling repainted, the interior re-carpeted, and the building reoccupied in June 2024.^[7]