4 Barton Street, Surrey Hills, Victoria, 3127
In 1901, Fr George Robinson, Parish Priest of Camberwell purchased the present site of Our Holy Redeemer Church, Surrey Hills, which at the time came within the Camberwell Parish. On 11 May 1902, the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer (the original title of the church) was blessed and opened by Archbishop Thomas Carr, Archbishop of Melbourne. Read more…
Each year, the Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Christ the King on the last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical year. This is also the feast day of Our Holy Redeemer Church.
Although Christ has always been recognised by the Catholic Church as the King of Kings, the Feast of Christ the King did not receive official recognition until it was instituted in 1925 by Pope Pius XI. It was celebrated in October but after the Second Vatican Council, the feast was moved to the last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical calendar. The change was made to emphasise that Christ will reveal to humankind the fullness of his glory as King only at the end of time.
Geoff Horgan was commissioned to paint the icon of the Holy Redeemer in 2019 by Fr Mark Reynolds, who was Parish Priest at the time. The icon is a full length image of Christ the Redeemer with arms outstretched embracing the viewer.
The image is painted on gesso (plaster) on a wooden base. The technique used is called egg tempera, that is, the paint applied being a mixture of dry colour pigment, egg yolk and water. The egg tempera technique is very old and dates from the first centuries AD. It was the standard European painting technique well into the Renaissance. For example, Botticelli’s Birth of Venus is painted in the egg tempera technique. Oil paint gradually replaced egg tempera from the 1500’s. The background is pure gold leaf applied using an oil size.
There are four symbols of the Evangelists around the central figure of Christ; the angel is St Matthew, the lion is St Mark, the eagle is St John and the ox St is Luke. The images come from the biblical books of Ezekiel and Revelations.
Our Holy Redeemer School, Surrey Hills, was established over 100 years ago by the Sisters of St Joseph. The first lay principal was appointed in the late 1970s.
The school continues to operate as an integral part of the Surrey Hills Wattle Park Parish. It is a community rich in diversity and welcoming to all. There is considerable parent involvement in the school through fundraising, social events and parental involvement in the classrooms. The school’s website provides further information about this welcoming community.
| 1911-1933 | Fr David Gleeson |
| 1933-1941 | Dr W. M. Collins |
| 1941-1972 | Fr Tim Fitzpatrick |
| 1972-1976 | Mons Kevin Toomey |
| 1976-1987 | Fr Michael Burke |
| 1987-1998 | Fr John Brosnan |
| 1998-2005 | Fr Peter Priestley |
| 2005-2010 | Dr Anthony Hicks |
| 2011-2017 | Fr John Dowling |
| 2017-2020 | Fr Mark Reynolds |
| 2020-2024 | Fr Brendan Reed (Our Lady of Pentecost Parish in October 2024) |
| 2024-continuing | Fr Sang Ho (Our Lady of Pentecost Parish) |