Maternal Heart of Mary Parish is the personal parish for the traditional Latin Mass in the archdiocese of Sydney. The parish is under the pastoral care of the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter (FSSP) and operates with the blessing and authority of the Archbishop of Sydney, the Most Rev Anthony Fisher OP.

Maternal Heart of Mary Parish provides full access to the Mass, Sacraments and sacramentals according to the ancient form of the Roman liturgy (liturgical books of 1962), offered with solemnity and reverence. Our parish also prides itself on fidelity to traditional Church teaching, with a particular emphasis on the theology of St Thomas Aquinas and the early Church Fathers.

Both demographically and by date of foundation, we are the youngest parish in the archdiocese of Sydney, having been canonically erected by His Eminence George Cardinal Pell on 15 August 2013. Our faithful are of all ages and come from many different backgrounds, cultures and language groups; yet during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass we are all united as we pray “with one voice” in the venerable ancient language of Holy Mother Church.

We desire to offer the liturgy in its most solemn form, when possible. For this reason, we place a special importance on music in the liturgy, especially Gregorian chant, polyphony and traditional Catholic hymnody. We are blessed with a committed group of laymen who form a Schola Cantorum, as well as a mixed choir and Our Lady of Ransom’s women’s choir, which is the only all-female Early Music liturgical choir in the southern hemisphere (to our knowledge). We also have a committed team of young men who generously sacrifice their time for the service of God at the altar.

Outside the liturgy, we offer weekly catechetical classes for children and adults, spiritual direction, marriage preparation and many opportunities for social interaction. We encourage the laity to take an active part in the daily life of our parish.

Currently, Fr Duncan Wong FSSP is parish priest of Maternal Heart of Mary, being assisted by Fr Noel Soares FSSP and Fr Richard Wallace FSSP. The parish presbytery, located nearby in Petersham, also serves as a novitiate house of studies (Ezechiel House) for young men discerning a vocation to the priesthood in the FSSP in the context of the traditional liturgy, praxis and teaching of the Church.

For information on joining our choirs, please contact sydney@fssp.net

Please see the other pages on this website for more information on Mass times, etc.