Supporting One Another
August 8, 2021
We are all in the gift of much older work. We are looking often by others’ eyes and we are only preparing ourselves to do something larger. [1]
Visiting the beautiful country of Scotland gave me a marvellous insight into the character and background of Mary MacKillop’s parents, Alexander and Flora MacKillop. It also provided an understanding of the harsh history of the country and the determined resilience of the Scottish Highlanders.
Saint Mary MacKillop Feast Day 2021
Greetings on this feast of Mary MacKillop as parts of Australia and our world are in lockdown which means that celebrations for this feast need to be held in homes.
Mary’s mother Flora and her siblings had to enter a period of quarantine when they arrived in Australia in 1839. I imagine that Flora shared this experience with her young family, both the gifts and challenges. One gift was that it was while in quarantine that she met her future husband Alexander who was assisting the newly arrived immigrants from Scotland. So let us ask Mary MacKillop to show us the gifts that have come through the experience of lockdown while sharing with her the struggles that we face.
Mary MacKillop, an Example of Compassion
July 8, 2021
More than ever the poor of this world, as well as the rich and famous, suffer from a hunger of some kind.
The words and actions of Jesus, often accompanied by miraculous results, are signposts for our Christian lives.
The recent biblical reading of the story of the raising of the daughter of Jairus opens up a deeply human Jesus who tells the family to give her something to eat. (Luke 8: 55)
To Love Like Mary MacKillop, Love the Poor
June 7, 2021
Mary MacKillop, a strong woman of deep compassion, had a real love for the poor. Her love of God led her to reach out to the most deprived and despised in the colony in her time. Joan Healy rsj wonderfully describes this phenomenon:
God’s Spirit wove the threads of her circumstances into a spiritual fabric resilient enough for her tumultuous times and ours. It is spirituality tough and tender, simple and practical, grounded and mystical. It led Mary to seek and serve God at the margins of Australian society, where poor people struggled in the remote outback and sordid slums of the rapidly growing cities.1
Mary’s greatest concern was for the marginalized in society. Her deep care led her and the early sisters to set up places for older women, especially those who were frail. She demonstrated support for young women recently released from prison by giving them shelter and set up an orphanage for the neglected children.
Mary and Flora MacKillop
May 9, 2021
A mother’s love is epitomized by sacrifice, self-giving, nurturing, shaping and supporting.
Mothers rejoice in the creation of a child and enjoy the happiness of family life.
Flora MacKillop was an exceptional mother to her children, despite shouldering many of the burdens of the family alone.
Flora – A Woman of Faith
April 17, 2021
Their voyage was marred by tragedy, for Alexander aged 28 years, fell overboard during a fit of delirium brought on by an attack of typhoid fever. They eventually arrived in Melbourne in April 1840; however the sorrowing family had to spend two months in quarantine.
Reflection on Mary MacKillop
April 8, 2021
Strong women are rising up and making their voices heard in the workplace, in society and in the home.
The Australian of the Year, Grace Tame at a recent march for justice, implored women to be united in stamping out patriarchy. She boldly reminded us that allowing to let fear stop us from doing anything enables evil to thrive in silence.
Reflection on Mary MacKillop
March 8, 2021Reflecting on Mary MacKillop’s eventful life there is a realisation that she lived a type of nomadic existence.
Her grounded spiritual approach to life enabled her to travel to establish new foundations and to meet the needs of the sisters and the needs of the times. Her journeys took her to many parts of the continent by many means of transport. As a woman of this era she imbibed a remarkable knowledge of the land and the conditions that ordinary Australians endured.
Her journeys were always taken in the spirit of Joseph. Joseph experienced many journeys into the unknown. We think of his life as being hidden and silent, yet he was a strong man of his time seeped in faith and spirituality as he protectively and courageously took on this special role. We are grateful for his witness of the Incarnation, for ensuring a safe return to Nazareth, for searching for Jesus, for teaching his child and for preparing Jesus for the enormous ministry he was about to embark on. Pope Francis reminds us: