STORY - Celebrating a woman before her time

Not too many people celebrate their ruby wedding anniversary by attending a canonisation in Rome, but then again, the canonisation of an Australian is not a regular event.

MacKillop Parish is celebrating the recognition of the sainthood of Mary MacKillop by hosting a pilgrimage to Rome in October. Mary will be canonised at St Peter’s Square on 17 October. The pilgrimage was proposed at Sunday Mass some months ago. Mike Lavercombe of Redhead was on the phone to parish priest Fr Bob Searle at 8.30 the next morning! Mike and Maggie, who marked forty years of marriage earlier this year, had planned to celebrate by returning to England where Maggie was born. The couple married in June 1970 at St Peter's Church Eyensham, Oxfordshire.

When the pilgrimage was announced, each felt immediately that this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that they did not want to miss.

“To go somewhere like this is going to be quite amazing,” says Maggie. As Redhead residents, the Lavercombes feel a special connection to St Mary. “In the little church here at Redhead we have a liturgy at 9am every Wednesday, and we begin by saying the prayer to Blessed Mary. I just feel she was a woman before her time, she was so strong. She relates to ‘now’ in many, many ways. She soldiered on in very hard times – and she had a Cairn terrier just like ours!”

There will be one highlight for the 35 pilgrims, but Mike and Maggie are particularly looking forward to Padua and Assisi too. Saints Anthony of Padua and Francis of Assisi are significant to the Lavercombe family; in fact, son Damian included the “Prayer of St Francis” in his wedding ceremony. “Anthony has been very well used for lost things!” adds Maggie.

When Our Lady appeared to Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes in 1858, Mary MacKillop was a young working girl, helping to support her parents and seven siblings. She probably had no knowledge of the French apparitions, but the MacKiIlop Parish pilgrims will visit Lourdes before travelling to Italy. Mike says, “My memory of Lourdes – and I haven’t been there – is that as a child in Queensland, my aunt and uncle sailed on the “Oronsay” to Europe. The whole family gathered, and one of the big things they were doing was going to Lourdes. We were all regaled with the stories afterwards, so I’m quite happy to be going there.”

The Lavercombes will combine the pilgrimage with a visit to England and Scotland where they will catch up with family and friends. They will be away for seven weeks, with five days in Rome forming the centrepiece of their personal pilgrimage.

While the number of MacKillop pilgrims is a small proportion of the parish community, those travelling will be carrying the prayers and hopes of all. “As 35 parishioners and associates will be proudly representing the parish community, it is my hope that the charism of Mary MacKillop will touch them and remain with them as we return – a charism of welcoming outreach not only to our own but also to those marginalised by life’s hardships,” says Fr Bob.

In fact, Fr Bob was in St Peter’s Square on 17 October when Pope John Paul II declared St Therese of Lisieux a Doctor of the Church. “Little did I realise then that I would be back on the same date, thirteen years later, to witness an Australian raised to the official list of saints in our church!”

St John Vianney’s Church Redhead is on corner of Beach Road and Hutchinson Street and all are welcome to the Wednesday liturgy.

Tracey Edstein

Back to Aurora Homepage