Mary MacKillop

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Lore & Background

Mary MacKillop was born on 15 January 1842 in what is now the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria, to Alexander MacKillop and Flora MacDonald. She was the eldest of eight children. Her family faced many hardships, and she started work at age 16 as a clerk in a stationery store in Melbourne. In 1860 she took a job as governess at her aunt and uncle's estate in Penola, South Australia, where she taught the farm children. This brought her into contact with Fr Julian Tenison-Woods. In 1866, Woods invited MacKillop and her sisters Annie and Lexie to open a Catholic school in a stable in Penola, teaching more than 50 children. On 21 November 1866, several other women joined them, and MacKillop adopted the religious name 'Sister Mary of the Cross'. The group called themselves the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart and moved to a new house in Grote Street, Adelaide, founding a school at the request of Bishop Laurence Sheil. By the end of 1867, ten other women had joined, adopting a plain brown habit. By the end of 1869, more than 70 members were educating children at 21 schools in Adelaide and the country. In December 1869, MacKillop travelled to Brisbane to establish the order in Queensland. By 1871, 130 sisters were working in more than 40 schools and charitable institutions across South Australia and Queensland. MacKillop clashed with Bishop James Quinn of Brisbane over control of schools, and in 1879 Quinn directed the sisters to leave his diocese; they left by mid-1880. After the Diocese of Rockhampton was excised from Brisbane in 1882, MacKillop and her sisters returned to Queensland, establishing a school in Clermont. Bishop Sheil's absences and poor health left the Adelaide diocese without clear leadership, resulting in bitter factionalisms. In September 2010, Fr Paul Gardiner reported that in 1871 MacKillop had been banished after uncovering and reporting clergy child sex abuse involving Fr Keating of Kapunda; Keating was removed and sent back to Ireland. Fr Charles Horan OFM, angered by the exposure, swore vengeance on Woods and the Josephites.

Reader's Guide

Mary MacKillop's significance lies in her role as co-founder of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, a congregation that established schools and welfare institutions for the rural poor across Australia and New Zealand. Her canonization on 17 October 2010 during a public ceremony in St Peter's Square at the Vatican made her the first Australian Catholic saint. The process to have her declared a saint began in the 1920s, and she was beatified in January 1995 by Pope John Paul II. Pope Benedict XVI prayed at her tomb during his visit to Sydney for World Youth Day 2008, and in December 2009 approved the Catholic Church's recognition of a second miracle attributed to her intercession. She is the patron saint of the Archdiocese of Brisbane and of Australia. Her legacy includes the continued work of the Josephite sisters, who by 1871 were already operating more than 40 schools and charitable institutions, and her example of dedication to the poor, especially in rural areas.

Did You Know?

• Mary MacKillop was baptised Maria Ellen six weeks after her birth, though she continued to be known as Mary.
• Her mother, Flora MacDonald, was killed on 30 May 1886 when the steamer SS Ly-ee-Moon ran aground and sank at Green Cape, New South Wales.
• MacKillop's brother Donald became a Jesuit priest and worked among the Aboriginal peoples in the Northern Territory.
• In 1871, MacKillop was banished after uncovering and reporting clergy child sex abuse involving Fr Keating of Kapunda parish.
• Pope Benedict XVI prayed at MacKillop's tomb during his visit to Sydney for World Youth Day 2008.