The Cathedral of Macau, also known as Sé Catedral, or simply Sé, is the mother church of the catholic Diocese of Macau, which once included the Catholic parishes in China, Japan and Korea. Its formal name is the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady of Macau. The diocese was formed even before Macau belonged to the Portuguese. The church has stood on the site of the cathedral going back to as early as 1576, when it was a mere wooden shed built. This was replaced by a more permanent structure in 1622.
Services were held here except when it underwent repairs in 1780, when Mass was done at the Holy House of Mercy. However, the repairs did not save it from a mighty typhoon that blew it down in 1836. Services were then continued at the St Dominic's Church, until its replacement, designed by local architect Tomas d'Aquino, was built between 1844 and 1850.On 14 February, 1950, Bishop Jeronimo José da Mata consecrated the cathedral church of Macau and the first Mass was held there.
Cathedral of Macau (8 November, 2007)
Cathedral of Macau at night (8 November, 2007)
The cathedral stood firm against several more typhoons. Nonetheless, by the 1930's, it had to be rebuilt. The present building, in the shape of a basilica, dates to the reconstruction which was completed in 1937. It was finished in Shanghai plaster, which gives it a greyish appearance. Compared to the other churches in Macau, the Cathedral is somewhat plain. The cathedral has a pair of towers in front, and a massive front entrance. It holds sacred relics of Japanese martyrs from the persecution of Christians in the 17th century.
To the left of the Cathedral (or right, if you're looking out from it) is the Bishop's House (Paço Episcopal). It is finished in stucco, and painted cream with white trimmings, more like the other churches in Macau. Right in front of the Cathedral is the Cartório da Sé, or Cathedral Registrar. This was where marriage registrations, births and deaths are recorded.
Cathedral of Macau (8 November, 2007)
The courtyard was beautified recently (2005-2006?) and a fountain added in the place of a car park. Visitors can now sit here and take a rest from exploring the sites in Macau.
Getting there
From Largo do Senado, there was several alleys that lead to the Cathedral. If you are unsure, look for signboard pointing the direction. The main way is to walk towards the St Dominic's Church, then turn right. Go up the road a short distance, then turn right again, and the road leads to the Cathedral.
One of the altars at the Cathedral of Macau (8 November, 2007)
Let me take you to explore and discover Penang through my series of walking tours on YouTube. You may use these videos as your virtual tour guide. At the beginning of each video, I provide the starting point coordinates which you may key into your GPS, Google Maps or Waze, to be navigated to where I start the walk, and use the video as your virtual tour guide.
Disclaimer
Please use the information on this page as guidance only. The author endeavours to update the information on this page from time to time, but regrets any inaccuracies if there be any.
Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.