Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart facts for kids
The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, often called the Josephites or Brown Joeys, are a Catholic religious order. They were started by Saint Mary MacKillop (1842–1909). Members of this group use the letters RSJ after their names.
The order began in Penola, South Australia, in 1866. Mary MacKillop and Father Julian Tenison Woods founded it together.
The main home for the Josephites is at Mary MacKillop Place in North Sydney, New South Wales. Saint Mary MacKillop's tomb is there in the Mary MacKillop Memorial Chapel.
Today, there are about 900 sisters. They live and work across Australia (in all states except Tasmania) and New Zealand. They also work in Ireland and Peru. The current leader of the Josephites is Sister Monica Cavanagh.
Besides the main centre in North Sydney, the Josephites have "Mary MacKillop Centres" in other places. These include Penola, South Australia; Kensington, South Australia (a suburb of Adelaide); East Melbourne, Victoria; Annerley, Queensland; and South Perth, Western Australia. The Josephites were named after Saint Joseph.
Contents
History of the Josephites
How it Started in 1866
Father Julian Tenison Woods was worried that many children in South Australia did not get a good education, especially a Catholic one. In 1866, he asked Mary MacKillop and her sisters, Annie and Lexie, to come to Penola. They opened a Catholic school there in an old stable.
After their brother helped fix up the stable, the MacKillop sisters started teaching over 50 children. At this time, Mary MacKillop decided to dedicate her life to God. She began to wear black clothes.
In 1867, Mary MacKillop became the first leader of the new Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. She moved to a new convent in Grote Street, Adelaide. She was 25 years old and took the name "Sister Mary of the Cross."
In Adelaide, they opened another school because the bishop, Laurence Bonaventure Sheil, asked them to. This school was for poor children. The Josephites were the first religious group started by an Australian.
Father Woods and Mary MacKillop wrote rules for the sisters. These rules said the sisters should live simply and trust that God would provide for them. They should not own many personal things and be ready to go wherever they were needed. The bishop approved these rules.
By the end of 1867, ten more women had joined the Josephites. They wore plain brown clothes. Because of this, people started calling them the "Brown Joeys."
Growing and Expanding (1866–1880s)
To help more poor children, especially in country areas, a school opened in Yankalilla, South Australia, in October 1867. By 1869, more than 70 Josephite sisters were teaching in 21 schools. These schools were in Adelaide and the countryside.
Mary MacKillop and her sisters also helped with an orphanage. They cared for neglected children, girls in danger, and the elderly poor. They also ran a home for the aged and the very sick.
In December 1869, Mary MacKillop and some sisters went to Brisbane to start the group in Queensland. They were based at Kangaroo Point. They would take a ferry or row across the Brisbane River to go to church. Two years later, Mary MacKillop was in Port Augusta, South Australia, for the same reason.
The Josephite group grew very fast. By 1871, 130 sisters worked in over 40 schools and charities across South Australia and Queensland.
After getting a main house in Kensington in 1872, Mary MacKillop went to Rome. She wanted the Pope to approve the Josephites' rules. She traveled to Rome in 1873 and was encouraged by Pope Pius IX.
The church leaders in Rome made some changes to the rules. They said the Josephites could not live in extreme poverty. They also said the leader of the group and her council were in charge. They promised that the rules would be fully approved after a trial period.
These changes caused a disagreement between Mary MacKillop and Father Woods. He felt the new rules changed their original idea of poverty. He thought Mary MacKillop should have gotten the original rules approved. Before Father Woods died in 1889, he and Mary MacKillop became friends again. But he did not work with the Josephites anymore.
The sisters split into two groups. Father Woods' group wore black clothes and were called the "Black Josephites." Mary MacKillop's sisters wore brown clothes and were known as the "Brown Josephites."
While in Europe, Mary MacKillop visited many places to learn about different ways of teaching.
During this time, the Josephites also started working in New South Wales and New Zealand. Mary MacKillop moved to Sydney in 1883. When she came back in 1875, she brought approval from Rome for her sisters and their work. She also brought school supplies, books, priests, and 15 new Josephites from Ireland. Even with this success, some priests and bishops still disagreed with her. This did not change even after she was chosen as the leader again in 1875.
The Josephites were special for two reasons. First, the sisters lived in the community, not just in convents. Second, their rules said they should be led by a main leader, not by the local bishop. This was very unusual then. Because of this, they had to leave Bathurst in 1876 and Queensland by 1880. The bishops in those places did not accept their way of being led.
Even with these problems, the group grew. By 1877, they ran over 40 schools in and around Adelaide. They also had many schools in Queensland and New South Wales. With help from friends, the Josephites continued their good work. This included visiting prisoners in jail.
Sister Bernard Becomes Leader in 1883
Sydney's Archbishop Roger Vaughan died in 1883. Patrick Francis Moran became the new Archbishop. He was somewhat positive about the Josephites. However, he removed Mary MacKillop as the main leader. Sister Bernard Walsh took her place.
Pope Leo XIII made the Josephites a special religious group under the Pope's direct authority in 1885. Their main office was in Sydney. He gave final approval to the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart in 1888.
Even though they still relied on donations, the Josephite sisters were very successful. In South Australia, they had schools in many country towns. Mary MacKillop continued to work for the Josephites in Sydney. She tried to help the sisters in South Australia as much as she could.
In 1883, the group successfully started in Temuka in New Zealand. Mary MacKillop stayed there for over a year. In 1889, they also started working in Victoria.
During these years, Mary MacKillop helped Mother Bernard manage the Sisters of St Joseph. She wrote letters to support, advise, and encourage the sisters. By 1896, Mary MacKillop was back in South Australia. She visited sisters in many towns. That same year, she traveled to New Zealand again. She spent several months there. During her time in New Zealand, the Sisters of St Joseph opened a school in the South Island.
In 1897, Bishop Maher of Port Augusta asked the Sisters of St Joseph to take over the St Anacletus Catholic Day School in Petersburg (now Peterborough).
Mary MacKillop started a convent and base for the Sisters of St Joseph in Peterborough on January 16, 1897. She arrived with four other sisters to take over the school. They were met by Father Norton, who took them to their new convent.
Mary MacKillop's Illness and Death (1889–1909)
After Mother Bernard died, Mary MacKillop was chosen as the main leader again in 1899. She held this position until she died. In her later years, her health got worse. She had rheumatism. After a stroke in Auckland, New Zealand, in 1902, her right side became paralysed.
For seven years, she had to use a wheelchair. But her speech and mind were still sharp. She continued writing letters by learning to write with her left hand. Even after her stroke, the Josephites trusted her. They re-elected her as leader in 1905.
Mary MacKillop died on August 8, 1909, at the Josephite convent in North Sydney. The Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal Moran, said, "I consider this day to have assisted at the deathbed of a Saint."
She was buried at the Gore Hill Cemetery. People kept taking earth from around her grave. So, her body was moved on January 27, 1914. It was placed in a special vault in the new memorial chapel on Mount Street, Sydney. This vault was a gift from a friend.
The 20th Century
The many schools and community groups started by the sisters kept growing throughout Australia, New Zealand, and other places in the 20th century. While fewer people joined religious groups in Australia later in the 20th century, the Josephites' work continued. Mary MacKillop became a saint in 2010, which brought them worldwide recognition.
St Aidan’s Catholic Primary School in Rooty Hill, Western Sydney, opened in 1907. The Sisters of St Joseph ran it. The sisters would travel to the school from a nearby suburb until they got a horse and cart. The Sisters of St Joseph ran the school until 1969. Then, the Franciscan Monks of Mary took over.
The 21st Century
Since 1979, the Sisters of St Joseph and their helpers around the world have worked with the United Nations. They are a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO). In 1999, they got special permission to work with other UN programs. As an NGO, they focus on helping people who are poor, helping women and children, caring for the environment, and supporting immigrants.
Fewer sisters are teaching in schools now. However, the Josephites have started new projects to meet today's needs. These include:
- Mary MacKillop Today – This group runs projects in Australia. They also help communities in Timor Leste, Peru, Papua New Guinea, and Fiji. They have a fair trade company in Australia called ethica.
- Good Grief – This group offers education programs about change, loss, and sadness. Programs like Seasons for Growth help children and young people after natural disasters. Seasons for Healing is a special program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults.
- St Anthony's Family Care – This group helps families and children.
- MacKillop Community Rural Services – This group serves people in country areas of New South Wales.
The work of the Sisters continues through many people who are not sisters. These people lead and serve in the Josephite projects. One group started by people who are not sisters is Josephite Community Aid. It began in 1986 to involve young people in helping refugees and others. Mary MacKillop Centres were also created as places for visits, learning, and spiritual growth.
By 2010, the Josephites reported about 850 sisters working in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Peru, East Timor, Scotland, and Brazil. The sisters continued to work in education, aged care, and rural areas. They also helped Indigenous Australians, refugees, families, and people who were homeless.
In 2003, a group of Josephite and Carmelite women, along with Aboriginal mentors, started meeting regularly. They worked for fairness and reconciliation in Indigenous matters. In 2006, the Josephite leaders created the Josephite Justice Office. This office works to speak up for people in the community.
Between 2012 and 2014, several other Sisters of St Joseph groups joined with the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. These included groups from Tasmania, Goulburn, Whanganui, and Perthville.
Mary MacKillop Becomes a Saint
In 1925, the leader of the Sisters of St Joseph, Mother Laurence, started the process to have Mary MacKillop declared a saint. Archbishop Michael Kelly of Sydney began an official investigation. After more studies, Mary MacKillop's "heroic virtue" was officially recognized in 1992.
Her canonisation (the process of becoming a saint) was announced on February 19, 2010. It took place on October 17, 2010. About 8,000 Australians were in Vatican City to see the ceremony.
Important Members
Irene McCormack
Irene McCormack (born August 21, 1938 – died May 21, 1991) was an Australian Sister of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. She worked as a missionary in Peru. She was killed there in 1991 by a rebel group called Sendero Luminoso ("Shining Path").
In October 2010, Australian news reported that Irene McCormack might become a saint after Mary MacKillop's canonisation. News reports said that Catholic leaders in Peru and Australia planned to ask the Vatican to consider her for sainthood.
Sister Ann Derwin, the leader of the Sisters of St Joseph, said that people in Huasahuasi, Peru, already saw Irene McCormack as a saint. People who are judged to have been martyrs (killed for their faith) do not need miracles to be proven for them to become saints.
Schools Started by Josephites
Here are some schools that the Josephites founded:
- St Joseph's School, Russell Street, in Adelaide city centre. The sisters took over this school in 1877. It closed in 1965.
- Some notable students included:
- Dan Clifford (1887–1942), who later owned many movie theatres.
- Albert Augustine Edwards (1888–1963), known as Bert, who became a politician in South Australia.
- Some notable students included:
- Mary MacKillop College, a high school for girls in Kensington.
- St Benedict's College, Newton, Auckland, founded in 1884.
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