St. Mary’s Church In Old Delhi Is A Pretty Oasis Of Tranquillity Amidst Never-Ending Chaos

Not far from the Chandni Chowk Metro Station, very close to the Old Delhi Railway Station and off the busy S.P. Mukherjee Marg lies in a peaceful lane, the halcyon St. Mary’s Church compound. Not only will it take you to another world but bring an unexplained sense of calm to you. You’re bound to feel the difference as you enter the gate and gaze at the narrow road, surrounded by trees, ahead. The noise of the outside traffic will suddenly cut off and soothing silence, occasionally interrupted by a few bird calls will welcome you. Come, follow us in!

A Small World Of Its Own

St. Mary’s Church will appear on your left as you walk up this quiet road. You’ll see a small gate, but it’ll be closed unless you’re going at 6 AM i.e. mass time. As you walk further, you’ll see a cave-like structure on your right with a picture of Mother Mary.  There’s a platform in front of it where people light candles and pray. The road bends leftward here and the first thing on your left is the main entrance to this magnificent church, while on your right is a small path which leads you to an old age nursing home, and right next to the church is a convent school.

One Of Delhi’s Oldest Churches

At 148 years of age, St. Mary’s Church is believed to be one of the oldest churches of the city. It was built in 1865 by William Keegan and is currently maintained by Brother Franklin. The church building occupies about 4.25 acres of land. Built in the Italian Romanesque style, it’s similar to the nearby St. Stephen’s Church in terms of architecture. At the main entrance is a bell tower and arched doors on the sides. It’s a big church, and as you walk around it you’ll find that there are many small entrances.

Inside The Church

The church is huge and very well maintained! Right next to the bell tower entrance is a small spiral staircase taking you to the balcony on the first floor. This balcony, facing Mother Mary, is seldom used as usually not many people come to the church. As you look around, you’ll realize that it’s been furnished beautifully. Both the side walls have beautiful pictorial descriptions on them, look closely and carefully and you’ll see that they tell or rather show you the entire life of Christ. 

Approach the front to get a better look at the serene picture of Mother Mary; there’s another picture of her near the donation box which says “Mother of perpetual help, pray for us”. On the sides are tiny open rooms that have mics used by the choir for prayers. One of these has a sculpture of Jesus while the other one, which has a few desks and musical instruments, has a small statue of St. Xavier. 

Right behind this statue is a glass painting of Mother Mary holding Jesus in her arms. The church has a good sound system with good quality speakers installed everywhere. The windows have also been painted to give a better effect.

All in all, it’s really good to see that such an old structure has been maintained so well. ASI should definitely take a cue and try to restore our heritage in a similar way so that the generations to come can get to see the remains of our history as well. Come drop by here for some peace and serenity!

Where |  St. Mary’s Church - 2417, Shyama Prasad Mukherji Marg, Katra Ghel, Khari Baoli