St Mary’s Basilica

St Mary’s Basilica is the Mother Church of Australia, where devotion to “Our Lady of the Southern Cross” is promoted and where an original paint­ing by Paul Newton was installed prior to WYD08 and blessed by Pope Benedict XVI.

The Basilica is also home to the recently installed artwork “St Joseph and the Holy Family” by Sydney artist, Sally Ryan. The artwork was created in the year of St Joseph to celebrate St Joseph and his significance as Patron of the Universal Church. A relic of Saint Francis Xavier is also housed in the Basilica. Four canon­ised saints have visited this cathedral to date and it was the centre of worship for the 500,000 who took part in the World Youth Day celebrations in 2008.