Cathedral of Saint Theresa of Lisieux

The Cathedral of Saint Theresa of Lisieux

The 'Cathedral of Saint Theresa of Lisieux', or the Cathedral of Saint Theresa of the Little flower, normally referred to as St. Theresa's Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the City of Hamilton, Bermuda. It is one of two cathedrals in Hamilton, the other being that of the state church, the Anglican church of Bermuda (before 1978, a bishopric of the Church of England), the Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity.

Although Catholicism, along with any other denomination not considered part of the Church of England and any non-Christian faiths, was outlawed in Bermuda, as in the rest of English territory, from the time of settlement (1609 to 1612), numbers of Catholics began to increase during the 19th century, due to the encouragement of immigration of labourers from Portuguese islands, such as the Azores. Although the Catholic Church began to operate openly in the 19th century, its priests were not allowed, at first, to conduct weddings or funerals. Today, Portuguese-Bermudians represent at least ten percent of the population, and the Roman Catholic Church is the second largest denomination, with fifteen percent of the population (the Anglican church is the largest, with twenty-three percent, while all the Protestant churches, together, account for fifty-two percent).

St. Theresa's was consecrated in 1932, having been built on Cedar Avenue, in Hamilton, on land obtained in 1915 by Father Isaac Comeau. It subsequently became a Cathedral upon the creation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hamilton in Bermuda in 1967. It was built in a style reminiscent of Iberian architecture, rather than that of traditional Bermudian architecture, or the Gothic style of the Anglican cathedral. It was named in honour of its patron saint, Thérèse of Lisieux, who was known as the Little Flower of Jesus.

St. Theresa's is the seat of the Catholic Bishop of Bermuda.