Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillopPrint Page

The sculpture commemorates the 10th anniversary of the Canonisation of Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop, the founder of the Sisters of Saint Joseph order. 

Mary Helen MacKillop RSJ, also known as St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, was an Australian of Scottish descent who has been declared a saint by the Catholic Church. Together with the Reverend Julian Tenison Woods, she founded the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, a congregation of religious sisters which established a number of schools and welfare institutions throughout Australasia, with an emphasis on education for the rural poor.

On 17 July 2008, Pope Benedict XVI prayed at her tomb during his visit to Sydney for World Youth Day 2008. On 19 December 2009, Pope Benedict approved the Catholic Church's recognition of a second miracle attributed to her intercession. She was canonised on 17 October 2010 during a public ceremony in St Peter's Square at the Vatican. She is the only Australian thus far to be recognised by the Catholic Church as a saint.

A new statue of St Mary MacKillop will be unveiled in Adelaide's St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral to mark the 10th anniversary of her canonisation. 

Sculpted by local artist Judith Rolevink, the one-metre coloured bronze statue is the seventh of 10 limited editions and depicts Australia’s first saint as a woman in her early thirties. Ms Rolevink also sculpted the much-loved statue of Mary holding hands with two children commissioned by the Adelaide Archdiocese for Mary MacKillop Plaza, Victoria Square.

The Adelaide cathedral parish received donations for the new artwork which will be installed near the cathedral sanctuary in an alcove where a portrait of the saint now hangs.

Ms Rolevink said the half-size statue was “Mary as I imagine her, on the go, fitting all the hours she can into her day, visiting schools and guiding her band of Sisters to work hard, too”. “She is striding out to reach her next port of call, to advise and instruct, or to organise the next new school. Her day is endless, always on the move.

“I see in Mary a driven spirit, someone who is overflowing with ideas of what is needed to help this young Australia and educate all children, advantaged and disadvantaged. She could see the advantages of taking charge and organising education through a band of dedicated women living and travelling to country towns and cities.”

The statue will be unveiled and blessed by Adelaide Archbishop Patrick O’Regan on Saturday, October 17. 
The Southern Cross (SA). 2 October 2020. 

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