Faithful gather in droves to celebrate Mary MacKillop anniversary

14 Aug 2009

By Robert Hiini

Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, numerous other Religious
Sisters and friends celebrated the 100th anniversary of Blessed Mary
MacKillop’s death on August 7 at St Benedict’s Church, Applecross.

 

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Josephite Sister Julia Della Franca looks at a picture of Blessed Mary MacKillop painted by her mother Lucia and displayed at the gathering on August 7. Photo: George Grainger.

 

Story by Glynnis Grainger,

Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, numerous other Religious Sisters and friends celebrated the 100th anniversary of Blessed Mary MacKillop’s death on August 7 at St Benedict’s Church, Applecross. 
More than 400 people packed the new church and the adjacent function rooms for a special Mass, concelebrated by Archbishop Barry Hickey, parish priest Fr Peter Whitely and Fr Robert Cross, assisted by a number of other priests from the diocese.
A serious accident near the Narrows Bridge held up traffic on the freeway and the Archbishop and others were caught in the traffic, causing the ceremonies to start 15 minutes late.
An educational video display on the wall of the church about Mary MacKillop and the Order of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, which she founded, and their work in Australia, New Zealand, Peru and Timor, helped entertain the congregation while they waited.
Born in Fitzroy, Victoria, in 1842, Mary MacKillop was 67 when she died on 8 August, 1909, and Archbishop Hickey said in his homily that she will become Australia’s first saint.
Noongar representative Marie Taylor spoke in the Noongar language “welcoming us to our country, Aboriginal land” and said “we all walk this land together,” after the song “Great spirit of this Southern land” was sung, accompanied by didjeridoo, tapping sticks and guitar.
She said: “The Noongyars built this land from sticks and bark” and added, “we are one, I am, you are, we are Australians.”
Sr Pauline Morgan, the Provincial leader of the Sisters of St Joseph, welcomed everyone to the Mass, saying, “We are here tonight at this family celebration because we want to honour Mary MacKillop for the person she was and for the many gifts we have received because of her.
“We are inspired by her trust in God, her capacity for friendship, her kindness, because she was an Aussie battler, because she knew heartache and trouble in her own family, the list can go on.
“We rejoice when we see these attributes in each other. Like Mary, each of us is capable of placing God at the centre of our lives and helping the poor and those who are marginalised in any way.
“Mary MacKillop was a young woman with a dream to make a difference.
“She was born and lived in the 19th century.  She died early in the 20th century.  We are here in the 21st century. Her spirit and values continue to inspire us to make a difference in these times. Using Mary’s own words, perhaps we are being called to: ‘Listen to the whisperings of God to your own heart’;
“To know that ‘There where you are, you will find God’;
‘Seek first the poorest and most neglected in our society’;
‘Never see a need without trying to do something about it’.
“And so, tonight, we give thanks for Mary MacKillop and for the opportunity to be here with so many others who are inspired by her life of holiness and wholeness.
“May her heroic life continue to influence our contemporary Church and world.”
Archbishop Hickey said in his introduction, “The joy of the memory of Mary MacKillop, the joy of her continuing influence is a source of inspiration for hundreds of thousands of people around Australia and elsewhere.”
Members of the Vietnamese community brought up some of the gifts at the Offertory and some of their children performed a dance in the procession.
The Archbishop said in his homily: “Blessed Mary MacKillop caught the imagination of many people despite the suspicion with which many Catholics were held.
“. . .In all sectors of society Mary MacKillop is one of whom we can be immensely proud.”
He said in the reading from Colossians, St Paul talks about clothing herself in compassion – her heart went out in genuine compassion: don’t worry about clothes, food and drink – these things will come.
“She faced many difficulties in her life – she went out and did God’s will.  She went out to many, many country towns,” Archbishop Hickey said.
“We take faith and courage from her.  I thought the (Sisters’) constitution was the cause of the problem.  She stood up to more than one bishop about the rules, and she fought the battle and won the war.
“This led to her (temporary) excommunication.
“Jesus never promised us an easy life; she was trusting always that God would be with her.
“Give thanks to her for her works for schools, shelters for homeless people, the witness of holiness, that determination to do the will of God, that radical understanding of the Gospel requirements – that person we honour tonight.
“Courage, fortitude, understanding . . . were some of her gifts.  When she died there were thousands of Sisters.
“My mother was instructed in the faith in Boulder by the Josephite Sisters.  That is why I am standing here tonight.
“We thank God for her gifts.”
Mary MacKillop and the Sisters established “bush schools” and later, as needs arose, orphanages, refuges and other services for those most vulnerable in the society of their time.
She said those who were most needy in our world come first. In her letters in 1874 she says: “Never be ashamed of work done for God and for God’s poor.”
The distinctive badge worn by the Sisters of St Joseph includes the cross, Mary, the mother of God, Jesus, Joseph and John the Baptist.
Mary MacKillop’s endurance of suffering seems to have been an intimate part of her experience.  She says in her letters in 1899: “God is good and has brought light and help when all was very dark.”
Her dream was to make a difference in our world and she achieved this dream.