The History of the Catholic Church in Australia

By Dan Lee

  • Catholics Arrived In Australia Aboard The First Fleet

    Catholics Arrived In Australia Aboard The First Fleet
    Catholics aboard The First Fleet arrived as convicts. There were about 300 of them and they weren't allowed to gather for mass.

  • A Convict Priest Was Given Permission To Celebrate Mass

    A Convict Priest Was Given Permission To Celebrate Mass
    A convict Priest, Father James DIxon, was given permission to celebrate Mass. But, this didn't last long. After 10 months, his permission was revoked.

  • A Priest Celebrates Mass Illegally

    A Priest Celebrates Mass Illegally
    Father Jeremiah O'Flynn came to Australia. He celebrated Mass inside families homes without government permission. Because of that, he was deported after 18 months, but left the sacrament in a family home.

  • The First Priests Were Appointed For Catholics In Australia

    The First Priests Were Appointed For Catholics In Australia
    The first priests officially appointed to minister to Catholics in the colony were Father John Therry and Father Philip Conolly in 1820. Father Therry managed to build the first church in the colony, later know as St Mary's Cathedral.

  • First Australian Catholic Bishop Arrives

    First Australian Catholic Bishop Arrives
    John Bede Polding, the first Catholic Bishop in Australia arrived in
    1835. He organised the colony into regions so Priests could respond to needs quickly, and was later appointed ArchBishop.

  • Catholics Continue the Mission of Jesus

    Catholics Continue the Mission of Jesus
    Catholics started to recognise the many things the colony needed, and worked to continue the mission of Jesus: To serve others. One of those people was Caroline Chisholm. She helped make sure that there were better working conditions for women prisoners and immigrants.

  • Mary Mackillop Started Schools and More

    Mary Mackillop Started Schools and More
    In the 1850's, Mary Mackillop brought education to children in the poorer areas and founded a religious order for women: The sisters of Saint Joseph.

  • More Catholics Come To Help

    More Catholics Come To Help
    In the 1870's more and more religious brothers and sisters were invited to Australia to continue the work of those before them and to continue the mission of Jesus.