Within our small suburb of Maylands, groups of people have long gathered in places reserved for reflection and
worship.
Some groups have been here since the Hardey family arrived in 1830, others are relative newcomers. Each one, new and old, has become part of the history of Maylands.
The larger more established groups generally built dedicated places of worship while smaller less established groups would often share existing facilities. And given the evolving nature of these groups some have ceased to exist in their original form or no longer exist.
This walk focuses on buildings that were built by these groups which in some cases now serve alternative purposes. Where a group has ceased to exist but their original building or site still exist it has been included in this walk.
Listed below are the places of worship that we have included in this walk. You can read a detailed description on the history of each by clicking on the individual names below.
We trust that by undertaking this walk you will gain an appreciation of the history, extent and diversity of worship in Maylands.
Opened in 1924, Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Church was built on ‘Mt Carmel’. This hill was colloquially known as ‘Biff Hill’, the place where schoolboys sorted out their differences at ‘hometime.’
The Catholic Church had a presence in the area from
1893 and built its first church in 1905. While we can no longer be sure what that building looked like inside, we can be sure it lacked the magnificence of the present structure.
The Orthodox Church of St Nicholas in Maylands was consecrated on 12 July 1959 and the spire added in 1966.
The Ukrainian ‘Three Barred Cross’ represents, in its simplest form, the plaque placed above Christ’s head, the ‘cross timber’ onto which His arms were tied (not nailed) and the bent bar at the bottom where His feet stood. The raised arm represents the thief who repented and went with Christ to heaven, while the lowered arm represents the thief who did not repent and so went to hell.
The Ukrainian Catholic Community has been in WA since the 1940s. This parish was formed in 1951 and
the Church was built in 1965.
The roots of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church lie in the conversion of Prince Vladimir 1 of Kiev in 989. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church still retains many orthodox practices.
The West Australian of 18 June 1904 reported the opening of a Baptist Church at Maylands under the auspices of the Baptist Association. This does not appear to have thrived as another Baptist Church was begun in 1912 and Sunday school and services were held at what is now the ‘Perth Timber Floors’ shopfront.
The current church opened in 1936 now also hosts the WA MATU Christian Church.
The first church building in Maylands was the Methodist Church in Sixth Avenue. This building no longer exists.
R W Hardey’s sister donated the land on which the church stood and several members of the Hardey family were present when this church was opened in July 1902.
The original church opened in 1906 by the Lieut. Governor, Sir Edward Stone is now the Church Hall. Its replacement was the red brick church we now see. This was opened and blessed by the Archbishop of Perth, Henry Frewen le Fanu on Palm Sunday, 1934. It is now into its 84th year of service.
The modern St Luke’s congregation is active in the community. The original church building now operates as an ‘Op Shop’ on Friday and Saturday mornings. ‘Rainbow’ lunches for the disadvantaged, the lonely and the forgotten are held there fortnightly.
This Church was created following the unification of several local Christian churches in 1976. This unification process involved the congregations of the Forrest Park Methodist Church, the Maylands Methodist Church and
the Maylands Presbyterian Church.
Demonstrating a strong commitment to unification and inclusion, this Church building also hosts the St George Indian Orthodox Church and the Korean Immanuel Church.
Community service activities include organising both local and international aid.
This Church building is well worth a visit. It has memorable stained glass windows in both the worshipping space and other spaces within the church complex and houses a number of Honour Rolls collected from its predecessor churches. Its forecourt contains memorial and foundation stones from its predecessor churches. Their stories of devout members over the years will interest family historians.
Hidden away on top of a shopping centre, this friendly and welcoming group of worshippers have created an oasis of peace in a busy suburb.
Since February 1995, this mosque has been the centre of Muslim worship in Maylands and its surrounds.
There are also two classrooms for teaching the Koran to younger members of the congregation. The call to prayer, normally done by a Meuzzin from the top of a minaret, is conducted here at the same level as the worshippers.
For some years prior to the building of this Chapel in 1984, the Polish congregation had been worshipping in the old Salvation Army Citadel, still part of this church complex.
A copy of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa (the icon ‘crowned’ as Queen and Protector of Poland in 1652) has pride of place in this chapel. The feast day of Our Lady, Queen of Poland is May 3.
This chapel also has a bust of Pope John Paul II, the Polish Pope.
The Eritrean Orthodox Church has been in Australia since 1993 when Eritrea achieved independence from Ethiopia. This church congregation now worships in St Joseph’s Hall within the Our Lady Queen of Martyrs church complex.
The Eritrean Orthodox Church is a part of the Oriental Orthodoxy formed in 451 AD. Its congregation observes the Sabbath on Saturday and the Lord’s Day on Sunday. Men and women occupy opposite sides of the church during worship.
Nearby construction has led this congregation to leave its home in Eighth Avenue.
It is currently worshipping in the old Presbyterian Church in Seventh Avenue.
Buddhism is a practical religion devoted to conditioning the mind through normal daily life in such a way as to lead to peace, tranquility, happiness, wisdom and perfect freedom.
As a plan of living which derives the highest benefit from life, it is sometimes referred to as ‘Humanistic Buddhism’.
Born Prince Siddhartha, Sakyamuni Buddha rejected worldly titles and possessions founding Buddhism around 525 B.C.E.
The Fo Guang Shan Buddhist (literally meaning the Buddha’s Light Mountain) temple in Maylands was built in 1993. It is run by a Taiwanese order of Buddhist monks.
This temple complex includes a meditation room, classrooms and a cafeteria.
Statues of saints with descriptions of their virtues can be found in the gardens. The temple gardens are considered an important adjunct to meditation.
THE 7 PRINCIPLES OF SPIRITUALISM
• The Brotherhood of Man.
• The Fatherhood of God.
• Eternal Progress Open to every Human Soul.
• The Communion of Spirits and the Ministry of Angels.
• The Continuous Existence of the Human Soul.
• Personal Responsibility.
• Compensation and Retribution Hereafter for all the Good and Evil Deeds done on Earth.
Eckankar means ‘Co-worker with God’. It offers ways to explore one’s own unique and natural relationship with the Divine.
Eckankar believes each human being is connected to God through Divine Spirit (the ECK), which can be heard as Sound and seen as Light. Eckankar offers a spiritual toolkit to help people experience the Light and Sound of God.
The three congregations using this Kingdom Hall are:
• The Perth Central Mandarin Congregation – Perth WA.
• The Maylands Vietnamese Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
• The Mt Lawley Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
Hosted by the Maylands-Mt Lawley Uniting Church, this Church of St George was formed in February 2009 by a handful of Malayalee migrants originating from Kerala at the southern tip of India.
The Indian Orthodox Church is part of the Oriental Orthodoxy. Its formation within the scattered Jewish enclaves in India from 52 AD onwards is linked to visits by St Thomas the Apostle.
The Perth Immanuel Church is an evangelical Christian church that meets in the Maylands-Mt Lawley Uniting Church on Sundays.
This small, youthful group of Korean-speaking Perth residents has a simple and devout form of worship. Their friendly and enthusiastic services have a delightful touch of informality with the bonus of a talented young Christian musical group.
This church for the Christian MATU people of Northern Myanmar is a part of the Baptist Union of WA. This congregation meets in the Maylands Baptist Church.
Originally polytheistic, the MATU converted to Christianity in the 1940s. They belong to either the Baptist or Presbyterian denominations.
This group has ceased to use this building, and it is now a private dwelling.
This group has ceased to use this building and is now a part of the Polish Catholic Church complex.
Built in 1961 as the Pius X Hall, this building was by the early 21st century serving the Catholic Parish of St Ninian and St Chad, a Parish of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross. Its congregation blended Catholic theology and Anglican liturgy.
After the congregation moved to Rookwood Street in Mt Lawley, the building was sold in 2017 and then demolished.
Opened in July 1906, the Maylands Presbyterian Church remained in use as a church until the formation of the Maylands-Mt Lawley Uniting Church in the 1970s.
This building is now part of the Bold Park Community school.
Maylands Historical and Peninsula Association acknowledges the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we work, live, and learn. We acknowledge that we tell the stories of Noongar Country and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. This always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples should be aware that this website may contain images or names of people who have passed away.