“This is a great result and I would like to acknowledge the assistance received by police from members of the public.”

Police previously released images of a man they believed was connected to the fire.

The man was wearing a black beanie and a dark long-sleeve jumper with distinctive orange patterns on it.

Father Andrew Matthew said he awoke at 4am to the sound of the windows popping.

“When I looked out the window, all I could see was a sea of red flames. It’s a real shock,” he said.

Matthew rang 111 as he walked out into the church carpark.

“Our poor church was on fire. All I could do was watch and pray.”

Even at that stage, Matthew could see the church was lost.

Parishioners hugged and cried in front of the smouldering wreckage in the late morning.

Auckland Catholic Diocese general manager James van Schie, who was also at the church in the hours after the fire, said the parish was established in 1921 and the church was built in the late 1950s.

“For over 100 years, it’s been a vital part of the fabric of the Avondale community,” he said.

“There are so many Aucklanders who trace their family history here; baptisms, funerals, weddings. It is a vibrant parish.”

Fire and Emergency Assistant Commander Phil Larcomb said they were called to Great North Rd just after 4am, where the brick St Mary’s Catholic Church, in front of St Mary’s School, was on fire and had been “severely damaged”.

At the fire’s peak, eight fire trucks were on the scene.