Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bendigo
 Tour Guide and Information Notes

KEY DATES

ARCHITECTS
Reed Smart & Tappin were the original architects. When work begun again in 1953 they were known as Bates Smart & McCutcheon

William Britten Tappin, 1854-1905, was the architect for the cathedral. He was born in Ballarat and died in Melbourne. He was describes as our foremost ecclesiastical architect when he died.

ENGLISH GOTHIC
The Sacred Heart Cathedral is, architecturally, English Gothic. The marvel of gothic architecture is that it provided great height and lots of light, without heavy, thick walls. Flying buttresses were devised to overcome the problem of holding up such high walls without their falling outward due to the weight of the roof. These are, in fact, the arches in the side aisles. But in classical European Gothic the buttresses are outside the walls of the building (as in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris), in English Gothic the buttresses are roofed in, thus giving a much wider building inside.

EAST-WEST ORIENTATION OF THE BUILDING
Traditionally Christian churches, if possible, are built on an East-West orientation. The rising sun is seen as a symbol or reminder of the Risen Christ. Just as the rising sun overcomes the darkness of night, so the risen Christ overcomes the darkness of sin and death. Therefore the main doors of such buildings are often referred to as the Great West Door.

LAND
The land was part of the Backhaus Estate left by the first priest on the Victorian Gold Fields. A lease on the Wattle Street site was taken out in 1886 for 500 years at the yearly rental of one shilling (ten cents). The comprises land bordered by McKenzie, Wattle and Short Streets, three short blocks from Bendigo's Alexandra Fountain.

BEGINNING OF CONSTRUCTION
 Work was begun on the building of a suitable cathedral for the dioceses in 1896. This enabled the church to give out-of-work miners employment. It really was an act of great courage to begin such major work during the depression of the 1890’s.

Money from the Backhaus Estate was not available at this time so the diocese took out a loan for £30,000 from George Lansell (known as the Quartz King) at six percent compound interest. When the money has been exhausted the nave was complete and the east end walled up awaiting completion at a later date. In 1902, when the money in the Backhaus Estate matured, the debt was discharged.

STONE USED IN THE BUILDING
The foundations consist of granite from Harcourt, near Bendigo. The walls are of sandstone, Barrabool and Ceres from the Geelong region. Dressings and carvings are of limestone from Waurn Ponds in the Nave and from Mt.Gambier in the new sanctuary. The floor is Calacutta Vagli Extra marble from Italy. The walls of the sanctuary are Sicilian Pearl marble, with Verdi Tinos surrounding the main altar which is of Dromana granite.

The Blessed Sacrament altar is of Swedish rose-red granite while the altar in the Lady Chapel is white Carrara marble. The altar of St. Patrick’s chapel is Harcourt granite while that of St. Augustine is of Brecia Aurora marble from the altars in the former Corpus Christi Seminary, Mt. Waverley (now the Police Academy). The inset strips across the opening of the four side chapels are of Lipos Brilliant marble. The altar in the Chapel of St. Joseph, the burial chapel, is of black granite from South Australia. The Baptismal Font features a variety of inlaid marbles.

The new white marble floor of Calacutta Vagli Extra marble was laid in 1973. This necessitated the closure of the cathedral. A small bulldozer was used. It entered the building through the double doors on the McKenzie Street side of the nave with only an inch to spare after the doors had been removed. This enabled the old asphalt and tile floor of the nave to be removed. There were many cracks in the old concrete floor so a new suspended concrete floor was laid.

CEILING/WOOD USED IN THE BUILDING
The ceiling in the nave is a fine angel hammer beam roof. It was intended to spread over the transepts and the sanctuary. This did not happen, no doubt on the grounds of the expense of hand carving the angels. Peter Staughton, a Melbourne architect wrote in 1977 Tappin’s roof to the nave is undoubtedly one of the finest of its kind in Australia. Oregon and kauri is used in the nave ceiling and most of the others with mouldings of yellow and sugar pine and panels of King William pine.

The wood in the ceilings of the octagonal chapels had to be put into heated water tanks so the it could be bent to the correct shape. All the wood work in the new section of the building was carried out by Frank and Paul Coppock local Bendigo craftsmen. The wood used in the pews is Australian blackwood and were made in Bendigo before the opening in 1901.

THE CATHEDRA/CHAIR OF THE BISHOP
The bishop’s chair or cathedra is the red covered chair under the canopy, at the far [east] end of the Sanctuary, under the wooden-carved canopy. Symbolically, it is the seat which the Bishop shepherds and governs the Diocese. A most significant moment of a new bishop taking possession of the diocese is his being seated on the cathedra which gets its name from Cathedral, mother-church of the Diocese. The cathedra in this cathedral is very ornate. It was hand carved from Austrian oak by the Tyrolese wood-carver Ferdinand Stuflesser of St Ulrich, Groden early in the 20th century and installed in 1914. It features three carved and gilded statues: St Patrick and St Augustine occupy niches either side of the bishop’s coat of arms with one of the Sacred Heart within the canopy above. Each bishop has the right to his own coat of arms and motto. Our present bishop, Bishop Joseph Grech has chosen the last word of the bible as his motto Come Lord Jesus.

FOUNDATION STONE & STONE TO MARK MAJOR BUILDING
The formal laying of the foundation stone occurred on Friday, June 25, 1897 --- the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus by Bishop Reville, Bishop Crane being too infirm to be present. A stone with 13 roman numerals and the Alpha and Omega are to the right hand side of the great west doors (as you face them). The stone has the X symbol for Christ with AD surrounding it and MDCCCLXXXXVII below.

On September 28, 1901 Bishop Reville blessed the new building (the nave of the present building) and on Sunday September 29, 1901 His Eminence Patrick Francis Cardinal Moran formally opened the building. (Moran was Australia’s most senior bishop and Archbishop of Sydney). Bishop Crane was present but unable to see his dream come to fruition due to unsuccessful eye surgery in 1882 for cataracts.

In 1953 Bishop Bernard Stewart decided to finish the cathedral. Workers dug for days and finally unearthed the foundations which has been layed in the 1890’s. His Eminence Norman Cardinal Gilroy, Archbishop of Sydney, layed a commemorative stone on October 16, 1955. The translation reads:

His Eminence the Most Reverend Norman Thomas Cardinal Gilroy, Archbishop of Sydney, at the invitation of the Most Reverend Bernard Stewart, Fourth Bishop of Sandhurst, blessed and duly placed in position the foundation-stone of the works that will lead to completion of this Cathedral Church, placed under the protection of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. October 16th, 1955.

The interior was completed by October 1973 and formally opened by Bishop Stewart. The spire was finished by 1977. The building was consecrated by Archbishop Thomas Vincent Cahill, archbishop of Canberra-Goulburn ( a former Bendigo boy) and formally opened by His Eminence James Cardinal Freeman, Archbishop of Sydney. The plaque on the northern outside wall commemorating this translates as:

Under the patronage of the most Sacred Heart of Jesus, this church was completed by the Most Reverend Bernard Stewart, the fourth Bishop of Sandhurst. The Church was dedicated and consecrated by Thomas Vincent Cahill, Archbishop of Canberra, on 14 May, 1977.

On September 30, 2001 we will continue the Sydney link when His Eminence Edward Cardinal Clancy is principal celebrant and preacher at the Mass to mark the centenary of the nave of the cathedral.

LIGHTING
The original incandescent lighting in the nave which looked good but was ineffectual was replaced with high level indirect sodium flood-lights which highlight the timber roof as well as add to the general illumination. Additional quartz iodide spot-lights illuminate the main altar.

THE SPIRE OR TOWER
The tower is made of precast concrete panels on a steel frame to match the Mt Gambier stone. This provided less weight and a quicker finish to the project. Gutters, flashings and downpipes associated with the spire are stainless steel. The gargoyles (to ward off evil spirits), which discharge storm water from the spire are in cast aluminium, sculptured by Stanley Hammond and cast by Joe Lemon. They are the size of a grown man. Special precautions were taken to prevent blockage of gutters and outlets by nesting pigeons. The height of the main spire to the top of the cross is 284’3" (86.64m). The cross is 7 metres high and weighs three tonnes.

THE ALTAR
The Altar is the central piece of furniture of the whole cathedral, ---the bishop, priests, the people all gather round it. It is there that the sacrifice of Christ is made present. The consecration of the altar was a most solemn moment in the cathedral’s consecration. In it are buried the relics of some martyrs. There are actually six altars in the cathedral.

Latin inscriptions on the altars
Main Altar: Unigenitus filius in sinu Patris ("The only begotten Son who is close to the Father's heart" John 1:18 NRSV). The X and P are the first two letters of CHRISTOS (Christ in Greek). The A and W are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, Alpha and Omega (See Apocalypse {Revelation} 22:13.)
St Joseph’s or Mortuary Chapel: Requiem aeternam dona eis Domine (Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord)
St Augustine: Tolle lege (Take up and read)
St Patrick: Unitas in Trinitate (Unity in the Trinity)
The Blessed Sacrament Altar and Lady Chapel are to the left and right of the main altar.

THE MORTUARY CHAPEL
In the crypt under this chapel are buried four former bishops of Sandhurst, their names are displayed on the plaques. The crypt is accessed by lifting the marble panels in the centre of the floor. It is about three metres deep and the same width as the chapel above it. The coffins are placed and sealed in niches in accordance with local health regulations.

ST AUGUSTINE AND ST PATRICK
These saints are featured in several ways in this cathedral: in the back window (west end),  in two chapels dedicated to them respectively, in the little painted hand-carved wooden statues on the Bishop’s chair ornamentation. (Though the Augustine in the Stained glass back window is said to be not Augustine of Hippo but Augustine of Canterbury!)

THE TAPESTRIES
The tapestries were woven by Sonia Carrington-Zakrzewska and they depict (on the left side as one faces the cathedra) the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The cathedral and a poppet head can be seen on it as well as Chinese dragons and gumnuts.

On the right side is St Kilian (buried in the cathedral of Wurzburg, a city not too far from Dr Henry Backhaus birthplace). St Kilian was an Irish missionary bishop, who was martyred at Wurzburg for defending the Catholic faith on marriage. Hence the symbols: A sword (at the base) because he is a martyr. He wears a mitre and carries a crozier to signify he is a bishop; he carries a cross because he is a missionary.

The building on the left hand side is a Benedictine abbey that still stands in Paderborn. The building on the right is a Roman church, next to the cathedral in Paderborn, which has been standing there for about 1000 years or more.

SANCTUARY LAMP
The sanctuary lamp is centuries old, thought to be 17th Century, probably of Florentine origin. It was a gift of Rev Fr John Stockdale in memory of Rev Fr John Daley.

STATUES
In the cathedral there are several statues to remind us of role models who are special among the saints. Above the double doors on the McKenzie Street side of the nave is the only plaster statue in the building. It represents St Vincent de Paul, the champion of the poor. It was never removed from the building during the whole time of the internal renovations. In each chapel we have statues of the appropriate saint except for the Baptistry which is the chapel of St Francis Xavier but houses the statue of St Therese of Lisieux "the little flower". The statues of the Sacred Heart, Our Lady, St Patrick and St Augustine were sculpted by Mariano Fracasso.

Externally there are statues above the two transept doors On the McKenzie street side is one to Our Lady of Monte Berico, recalling the stone masons who came from that region, and over the High Street side is one to St. Francis of Assissi, protector of animals. In the grounds are a Calvary scene and a grotto depicting the Blessed Virgin Mary appearing to Bernadette at Lourdes, France. Both these sets of marble statues were brought in to the cathedral when the St Aidan’s Orphanage, conducted by the Good Shepherd nuns, was closed and sold. Another fine statue from there depicting the Good Shepherd stands outside the Anglican church of St Peter’s Eastern Hill (opposite St Patrick’s Cathedral, Melbourne).

Also in the burial chapel is a statue representing the buried Christ. It was previously located at St Aidan’s Orphanage.

On the front of the Tabernacle in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel are two exquisite figures of St John and Our Lady by the silver-smith Dan Flynn. These and the tabernacle were covered in gold leafing by A. Pierini. The tabernacle is surmounted by a fine gold and enamel mosaic crucifix depicting, around its base, the major churches of Rome.

ENGRAVINGS
In the Transepts there are confessionals with the four evangelist on each door.

In the wood work surrounding the confessionals and the doors are the crests of the 12 apostles. Beginning at either Bishop’s or Mgr Duffus’ confessionals: Ss. Peter, Andrew, James the Great, John, Philip Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the Less, Jude, Simon, Matthias.

In the front of the altars in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and Our Lady’s chapel are scenes depicting respectively the Last Supper and the Annunciation . These are by Stanley Hammond.

MOSAICS
These were designed and created by Anne Graham The ones in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel are in rich orange, yellow, red and gold and depict new life and sacrifice. From left to right:

  1. Monogram: X
  2. Pelican: Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross.
  3. Candlestick: Christ the Light of the World.
  4. The Butterfly: Eternal life through Jesus Christ.
  5. Cornerstone: Christ the key or Cornerstone, the foundation.
  6. The Lamb Slain: Symbol of Christ.
  7. Fish and Loaf of Bread: Fish in Greek letters---initial letters of Jesus Christ, God’s Son and Saviour. Bread: "I am the bread of life, this is my body which is given for you."
  8. Wheat: Bread of the Eucharist.
  9. Peacock: immortality.
  10. Pomegranate: inner unity of countless seeds in one fruit.
  11. Phoenix: resurrection of Christ.
  12. Son of Righteousness: refers to Jesus.
  13. Ciborium: Chalice refers to Last Supper and sacrifice of Jesus.
  14. Monstrance: used to house Jesus for exposition and Benediction.

The symbols in the Lady Chapel are taken from the Marian Litany of Loretto which is said after saying the Rosary. These are in Marian blues, gold and silver. From left to right:

  1. Mater Dei: Mother of God.
  2. Star. Stella Maris Star of the Sea, Symbol of the Virgin.
  3. Ark of the Covenant.
  4. Rose (Mystic) (or No.11?) White rose, symbol of purity.
  5. The Pierced Heart.
  6. The Gate: or closed gate, in reference to her unblemished Virginity
  7. Monogram.
  8. The Tower of David.
  9. Hare (Rabbit) white hare: Her triumph over lust.
  10. Fountain of living water: Sealed well of the symbol of Virginity of Mary.
  11. Lilium Candidum---The Annunciation (or No.4?): Symbol of Purity.
  12. The crescent moon: identify the Virgin of the Immaculate Conception.
  13. Fleur de lys
  14. Mater Dei

Vine: (only leaves here) flourishes under the care of God "the Keeper of the Vineyard": ‘blood of Christ’.

PORTRAITS
In the south transept are the portraits of our Bishops, the Vicars of Christ in our diocese! From left to right:

  1. Bishop Martin Crane O.S.A.,D.D., 1874-1901.
  2. Bishop Stephen Reville O.S.A., D.D.,1901-1916.
  3. Bishop John McCarthy D.D., 1617-1950.
  4. Bishop Bernard Stewart D.D., B.A., LL.B., 1950 –1979.
  5. Bishop Noel Daly D.D. 1979- 2000.
  6. Bishop Joseph Grech D.D., B.A., 2001- (Presently there is no portrait of our current leader).

The crucifix shown in Reville’s portrait now sits on the main altar when it is not in use. The table Reville is resting his hand on is one of pair, near the transept doors, and used by wedding couples to sign the wedding register.

Stations of the Cross
Along the walls of the nave are 14 pictures tracing the last journey of Jesus on the way to Calvary. They are one of two examples of the artist’s work in Bendigo, the other being the frescos in St Mary’s Chapel at the Coolock Campus of Catholic College Bendigo (formerly St Mary’s College—a Mercy school). They were painted by the Italian artist A F D Cavallaro. One, unsubstantiated story is that he shipped the painting out from Rome and painted Bendigo faces on them when he arrived here. They were installed in the cathedral in 1902.

Paintings
 Cavallaro also painted the large picture of the Sacred Heart now in the narthex. Originally this large picture hung on the false wall at the end of the nave above the high altar looking rather small and always looked crooked no matter what one did to straighten it.

In St Augustine’s Chapel where morning mass is celebrated (in the choir stalls from the former Mount Alvernia Chapel) is an imitation of Raphael’s Transfiguration. It used to hang in the Bendigo Art Gallery(on loan). It was probably brought back from Rome after one of Mgr. Rooney’s visits there. Opposite it is the Diocesan Quilt.

At the rear of the building is a picture of the current pontiff, Pope John Paul II. He is our Vicar of Christ on Earth. It is traditional for the picture of the current Pope to be displayed in churches.

WOOD CARVINGS

CONSECRATION CROSSES
There are twelve of these spread throughout the cathedral. When the cathedral was consecrated it was anointed with chrism. The red and gold crosses mark the points where this happened. There is a candle which sits below each cross. According to tradition the candles are lit on the anniversary of the consecration of the cathedral.

SHRINE
Inside, near the Great West Doors is a carved shrine of St Dominic praying the Rosary.

QUILT
The Diocesan Quilt was a project to show the unity of the diocese during the great 2000 Jubilee Year. Each parish designed and created a square each.

EAGLE LECTERNS
The brass eagle lectern in the sanctuary (on the left as you face the altar) was the gift of Bendigo’s "Quartz King", George Lansell. The one on the right is a duplicate cast from it to provide a book rest for the presider.

OILS REPECTACLE
On the McKenzie street side of the sanctuary is a special safe to house the Sacred Oils blessed at the Chrism Mass held annually in the Cathedral. These oils (of Baptism, the Sick and Chrism) are used in the administration of the sacraments throughout the diocese.

GARGOYLES
See notes above under ‘The Tower’.

STAINED GLASS & COLOURED GLASS
The windows, apart from the Great West Window, are in coloured glass. There is no intention of having stained glass installed any where else in the cathedral as the golden light floods the building with the most beautiful colour representing Christ our truth and light.

The west window was made by the celebrated firm of John Hardman and Co in Birmingham, England. It is a superb example of ecclesiastical glass. It was the gift of Bishop Martin Crane. The central figure is Jesus depicted as the Sacred Heart. On the left of Jesus is Our Lady, on the right is his foster-father, St Jospeh. On the far right is St Patrick and on the far left is St Augustine. In the circle at the top is the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove descending on the apostles (It looks as if he is telling the time at 7.00)! It is 32’ high (10.1m x 4.9m). Also depicted in the window are blue cornflowers---a symbol of Germany and a tribute to Rev Dr Henry Backhaus DD.

PIPE ORGAN
The organ was made by Bishop & Sons London in 1904 and installed and opened by 1906. It has 2,731 pipes spread over 5 divisions. It is a very fine cathedral organ and highly regarded nationally.

DEDICATION OF ALTARS
The main ceremony was performed by Archbishop Cahill. The special chapels were to be memorials to people associated with the diocese at various times and in various ways, and were originally highlighted by Bishop Stewart in his 1953 Pastoral Letter announcing the decision to complete the cathedral

RELICS IN ALTARS.

MOSAIC ENAMEL CROSS IN BLESSED SACRAMENT CHAPEL
This was brought back to Sacred Heart Cathedral, by Bishop Reville, after one of his ad limina visits to Rome. It is an 18th century gold and enamel crucifix depicting the famous churches of Rome around its base.

OCTAGONAL SIDE CHAPELS/CEILING & FLOOR
The ceilings were mentioned above when dealing with the wood work. The floors radiate out from the centre stone. This is easily seen in St. Augustine’s & St. Patrick’s chapels.

BELLS AND THE SAINTS
Five bells will be installed in the Cathedral by September 30, 2001. They will have been blessed by Cardinal Degenhardt, Archbishop of Paderborn, on September 16, 2001. They are an European peal of 5 bells which will compliment, but be different from the peal of 8 bells in the English manner at St. Paul’s Anglican Cathedral in Bendigo. The notes that they sound can play the Salve Regina & Te Deum, using the notes E, G sharp, B, C sharp and E’. They have been cast by Paccard Fonderie de Cloches, Annecy-le-Vieux, France. The supervision of the installation is by Mr. Hervey Bagot of Bagots Bellfoundries, South Australia.

Traditionally bells are given a name, usually that of a Saint, at the time of blessing. The five bells (beginning with the biggest) are:

COST
 1896-1901, £33,000
1954-1977, $2,600,000 over 24 years. Approx. $100,000 pa was released, basically interest on funds from the Backhaus Estate. Today, the building insured for $49 Million!

NOVELTY TASK
Between the fourth and fifth Stations of the Cross on the floor is a "donkey". Can you find it?