The church, designed by Edward Gell, was opened in 1870 with Fr Phillip Ryan as Parish Priest. The Convent (1874) and the new Presbytery (1877) followed soon after.

The church has been built in the Gothic style with stone rubble marble walls and finely detailed pink granite. There are several interesting architectural features of note – the two shallow decorative transepts flanking the altar, the impressive north-west porch, the bellcote spire, a ventilation system where the air enters via cavities in the walls and window sills.

The 1880’s hand-pumped organ, manufactured in London and delivered directly to Carcoar, is the only surviving Kirkland organ in Australia, and was recently restored. The carved wood altar has painted and gilded icons of biblical saints.

In the 1980s, the church became part of the ‘Shalom Diocesan House of Prayer’ and was decreed as a Diocesan Shrine on 8 December 2022.