General News
23 April, 2026
Extensive spiritual journey
AS Cairns celebrates 150 years since its founding in 1876, the city’s spiritual journey stands out as one of resilience, diversity and cultural evolution.
Over the decades, many religious traditions established themselves across the region, reflecting the city’s changing population and its increasingly interconnected identity.
In more recent times, Cairns’ multicultural heartbeat has broadened its spectrum of worship even further.
Newer faith communities, including Muslim and Buddhist groups, have become part of the city’s rich cultural weave, contributing to a more expansive understanding of spiritual life.
Now, as Cairns marks its 150 year anniversary, the city’s story of worship stands as a testament to its spirit: diverse, evolving and deeply rooted in community.
A silver jubliee
On 8 September 1939, Cairns hosted a rare and historic Catholic celebration: the silver jubilee of Bishop Heavey, marking his 25 years as a bishop – an event only twice previously seen in Australia.
The occasion drew Archbishop Duliig, four bishops and 50 priests to Cairns for the ceremony.
Born in Ballyhaunis, County Mayo, Ireland, Bishop Heavey entered the Order of St Austin in 1885, later studying in Rome before returning as an ordained priest in 1891.
He went on to lead a vast northern diocese – the second largest in Australia – serving around 18,000 Catholics with 25 priests, 95 nuns and 12 Marist brothers across a region stretching from Cardwell to Cape York and west to the Northern Territory border.
The grand Methodist church
The primitive Methodist Church was one of the first religious orders to arrive in Cairns as part of its evangelical mission across Queensland.
To establish a church, a site was purchased on the corner of Aplin and Sachs streets, later known as Grafton Street.
Under the watchful eye of Rev Slaughter, a new church was erected, and the former Abbott Street building was relocated behind it on the site.
With the establishment of the new church came the expansion of the parish, the introduction of Sunday school and the holding of regular religious services.
The church continued to flourish into the 20th century.
In 1937, the community constructed a handsome new masonry brick church with a tower and church organ.
It remained on the same site opposite the ambulance centre for the next 50 years, until the congregation merged with the Presbyterian Church and the Congregational Union of Australia to form the Uniting Church in Australia. The masonry church was demolished in 1987.
