Apostleship of Prayer - Saints
August 7 - Mary MacKillopMary MacKillop was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1842. The Catholic Faith she had learned from her Scottish parents gave her a vivid awareness of her Creator, and while still very young she decided to devote her life to the service of needy people. The MacKillop family life was unsettled, and at the age of sixteen Mary had to go to work to support her younger brothers and sisters. It was only at the age of twenty-five that she was able to begin the dedicated life she aspired to.
At eighteen she had journeyed as a governess to the little town of Penola in South Australia. The priest there, Julian Woods, was concerned that there was no education for the children in his vast parish. Building on Mary's desire for a dedicated life, he was able to solve his problem a few years later with the Foundation of the "Sisters of St. Joseph". When this group moved to Adelaide in 1867 it grew rapidly. Soon the "brown Joeys" were well known in remote parts of Australia and New Zealand.
Primary education for all comers was their first concern, but they also cared for orphans and old people and anyone else in need. They lived very poorly, never asking anyone for payment but relying on what they could collect from well-wishers. The Institute was organized under a head called the "Mother General", but there were four occasions when bishops treated it as though they were in control. Mary could not agree to this. She respected all authority as coming from God, but when someone tried to use authority beyond its legitimate limits she had to protect the rights of her Sisters. This led to tension and unpleasantness. At these times she held her ground without rancour, always dealing respectfully with her antagonists. She did not turn the issues into personal vendettas, but simply did what she saw as her duty, politely but firmly. The Roman authorities always stood by her in her defence of Rule they had given her.
Known as Mary of the Cross, she was based in Adelaide until 1883 and then in Sydney until her death in 1909. She visited New Zealand four times, spending there three years in all. She did not enjoy good health, but nonetheless travelled great distances in bumpy coaches on primitive roads, or in coastal vessels in nasty weather, bringing kindness and encouragement wherever she went. She wrote thousands of letters, many to her Sisters in isolated outposts. She was a woman of prayer, because she knew that her faith was in constant need of divine support.
Australians were so convinced that Mary was a saint that in 1925 they set about getting her officially declared one. The process was long, demanding, and tedious. On the local level a lot of work was done in collecting letters and other documents, and in formally interrogating witnesses. At the end of it all a huge dossier was sent to Rome, and this led in 1973 to a decree for the "Introduction of the Cause".
What remained to be done was the preparation of a full account of Mary MacKillop and her times, her problems and her activities. What emerged most conspicuously was her kindness. A panel of judges gave a unanimous verdict in her favour in November 1991, and the Cardinals endorsed this in May 1992. The Pope gave his approval in a decree on June 13th 1992.
There was then need for a certified miracle. This concerned a woman pronounced by doctors to be dying. To everyone's surprise she recovered, and this was claimed to be the consequence of prayer to Mary MacKil1op on her behalf. After rigorous scrutiny by medical specialists, and their declaration that they could not explain what happened in terms of medical science, the Church authorities were satisfied.
When the decree on this miracle was read at a papal audience on July 6th 1993, the way was open to beatification. This was celebrated by Pope John Paul II in Sydney on January 19 l995. It gave Mary "the honours of the altar" and allows her to be called Blessed Mary of the Cross.Paul Gardiner, SJ
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