The Cathedral of St John the Evangelist in Kuala Lumpur has a long history, beginning as a small wooden structure in the 1880s. It was the first and only Catholic church in Selangor at that time. As the parish grew due to the establishment of nearby schools, a larger church was needed. Construction began on the current cathedral in the 1940s thanks to donations. When completed in the 1950s, the cathedral featured innovative designs like hidden lighting and speakers. Today, it remains an important house of worship as the mother church of the Kuala Lumpur Archdiocese.

1. The
of the Cathedral of
St John the Evangelist,
HISTORY
Ku ala Lu mp u r

3. Bukit Nanas
Today it contains the only virgin tropical rain forest left in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.
In the late 1800s a war, known as the “Klang war” took
place and there are still traces of a tunnel during the war
that has been found here.
According to one story, pineapples were grown all around
the “fort” as a deterrence against attackers..and that is
how it became to be known as Bukit Nanas meaning
"Pineapple Hill"
To strengthen his authority, a Malay ruler sent his team to serve as the
garrison, and they chose this place to build their enclosure.
History shows that it is known to be one of the earliest Malay settlements
in Kuala Lumpur and the center of Malay power.

4. So how old is St John’s Church??
No one really knows!
The first Church was a long
wooden hall with a few
windows…
What do we know?

5. The first records of baptism was dated August
11, 1883.
It is known that the building we know are
the “Old Church” (Fatima Kindergarten),
was built sometime in 1883 with the help of
a ‘towkay’ named Goh Ah Ngee, a Catholic
miner who lived in Kajang.

6. • The French Missionary
(MEP), Fr. Charles Hector
Letessier was assigned to the
Mission of Malaya.
1880
1883
Fr. Letessier was sent to KL and became the
first parish priest of St John’s.
His parishioners were a handful of Chinese converts,
a few Europeans and Eurasians from Malacca.
St John’s was the only Catholic church in Selangor at
that time.

8. • The French Missionary
(MEP), Fr. Charles Hector
Letessier was assigned to the
Mission of Malaya.
1880
1883
Fr. Letessier was sent to KL and became the
first parish priest of St John’s.
His parishioners were a handful of Chinese converts,
a few Europeans and Eurasians from Malacca.
1900
Fr Letessier passed away in
1900 at the age of 69 and was
succeeded by Fr Victor M.
Renard.
Who extended his pastoral care to the Catholic Indians working
in the railway workshops in the Sentul area.
He carried out renovations and
extension works on the Church
from time to time and when funds
were available.

10. • The French Missionary
(MEP), Fr. Charles Hector
Letessier was assigned to the
Mission of Malaya.
1880
1883
Fr. Letessier was sent to KL and became the
first parish priest of St John’s.
His parishioners were a handful of Chinese converts,
a few Europeans and Eurasians from Malacca.
1900
Fr Letessier passed away in
1900 at the age of 69 andd
was succeeded by Fr Victor
M. Renard.
Who extended his pastoral care to the Catholic Indians working
in the railway workshops in the Sentul area.
1900
by the early 1900s, the community
grew to number more than 1,000
people.
1904
This increase in numbers can
be attributed the establishment
of the St John’s Instituition

12. • The French Missionary
(MEP), Fr. Charles Hector
Letessier was assigned to the
Mission of Malaya.
1880
1883
Fr. Letessier was sent to KL and became the
first parish priest of St John’s.
His parishioners were a handful of Chinese converts,
a few Europeans and Eurasians from Malacca.
1900
Fr Letessier passed away in
1900 at the age of 69 andd
was succeeded by Fr Victor
M. Renard.
Who extended his pastoral care to the Catholic Indians working
in the railway workshops in the Sentul area.
1900
by the early 1900s, the community
grew to number more than 1,000
people.
1904
This increase in
numbers can be
attributed the
establishment of the St
John’s Instituition
tragedy struck when part
of the church building was
badly damaged by a fire.
1910
The Convent of
the Holy Infant
Jesus at Bukit
Nanas
1911

14. With the growing number of parishioners, the building could only
accommodate a maximum of 800 people and as a result, many had to stand
in doorways and outside the Church to follow Sunday services.

15. Fr Donat Perrisoud
Began his ministry among
the Indians scattered in
Negeri Sembilan
Parish Priest
of St John’s for 22 years
Realized the need for a
much larger Church and
started a Church
Building Fund.
A donation of RM6,000
was left to Fr Perrisoud
by an English woman
with whom he had
become acquainted with
when he was a stretcher-
bearer in France during
World War I – and she
remembered him in her
will.
The building works on
the new church was able
to commence thanks to
this and other funds.
He died after a long
illness on 8th May 1950
In many ways responsible
for building the Cathedral.

16. In 1955..

17. Concealed lighting,
Hidden loud speakers,
Built- in confessionals
Built-in side altars.
At that time, many of the designs and ideas found in the new church were relatively new and had yet
to be introduced in any church in the country… it was state-of-the-art!
More than 400 feet of
fluorescent and lighting tubes
were installed – though the
entire interior of the church
was flooded with light, but
none of the tubes could be
seen.
All were hidden in specially
built crevices in the walls and
ceilings.
– changes were made later on.

18. OVER THE YEARS…
SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONS WERE MADE
An interesting feature that stands out on the altar is the inscription in mosaic chips,
which reads ECCE AGNUS DEI (Behold the Lamb of God)
Another historical feature of the altar is that the table top is made from the largest piece of marble
ever exported from Italy to this part of the world.

19. A set of stained glasses that were flown in from Paris – which is now the backdrop to the altar.

20. In 1963, three church bells were blessed and installed –
they are named Mary Fatima, Clare and Carol Anne.

22. Today, it is the mother church of the Roman
Catholic Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur and is the
seat of our Archbishop.
We have more than 3000 parishioners who
attend weekly masses at the Cathedral – which
is a landmark of hope and love in the heart of
Kuala Lumpur.
On January 8th 1962, the status of the church was
elevated to that of a Cathedral.

23. -THE END-