Mary MacKillop 1

Saturday 26^th March

Begin in Melbourne

Pilgrimage route.

Peter and I are embarking on a Harvest pilgrimage entitled “Footsteps of Mary MacKillop” from Melbourne to Adelaide.  Our chaplain is Fr Michael Dyer (call me Michael), who was the chaplain on the Harvest pilgrimage I did on the Camino in Spain in 2019.  There are about 27 of us in the group.

St Patrick's Cathedral from the bus window, which is why it didn't quite fit.

Michael took us to Melbourne's St Patrick's Cathedral, where, amongst other things, he read to us from the Archbishop's St Patrick's Day oration, which included some passages particularly relevant to pilgrims.  Michael asked members of the group to share some aspects of the cathedral which impressed them,  These included: the powerful image of the crucifix; the symbol of the pelican feeding its young with its own blood, representing Christ's sacrifice; the knowledge that the cathedral contained a sculpture of Mary MacKillop; the fact that places of worship, in all religions, inspire creativity.  One member of the group, commenting on the depiction in one of the stained glass windows of the flight to Egypt, recounted how when she was discussing this event with her nine year old grand daughter, was told by the little girl that the Holy Family did not take a flight to Egypt, but they walked. 

Stations of the Cross in the Cathedral.

Michael asked us to contemplate the wording of this Station of the Cross in terms of the women of

 Ukraine.

Nave of St Patrick's Cathedral.

This statue of St Mary MacKillop by local sculptor Louis Laumen was unveiled in St Patrick's Cathedral in 2012.  Mary was born not far from here.

St Patrick's Cathedral from the side, also from the bus window.

St Francis Church, Melbourne CBD.

After dinner, a group of us ventured out through a nightclub area of Melbourne, throbbing with young people out on the town after months of Covid lockdown, to see the church of St Francis, where Mary was baptised, and where her parents were married.  This is the oldest Catholic church in Victoria, built between 1841 and 1845.

Site of the first Christian Brothers' School in Australia.

In the grounds of St Francis' Church was this plaque commemorating the first Christian Brothers' School in Australia in 1869.  I took this rather bad photo though a fence and in the dark for my Christian Brother friends at Viridian.