August 8--St. Mary MacKillop, Virgin, Religious, and Foundress

Australian Stamp of St. Mary MacKillop.

She is the first saint of Australia and, at one time, was excommunicated by her bishop. Now that’s a headline! The daughter of Scottish immigrants, St. Mary MacKillop was born in Melbourne in 1842. As a teen she became a governess and eventually taught at a school and opened her own boarding school. In 1866 Fr. Julian Woods invited her and her sisters to open a Catholic school. That same year other women joined St. Mary and they became the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart, also known as the Josephites. The local bishop invited them to found a new school. The religious community developed a rule which “emphasized poverty, a dependence on divine providence, no ownership of personal belongings, faith that God would provide and willingness to go where needed.”

They expanded, but this sometimes caused issues about control of the schools. Bishops wanted episcopal control, while St. Mary MacKillop wanted control of the schools by the religious order. Two bishops told the sisters to leave their dioceses and another excommunicated her on grounds that she was insubordinate. Eventually, the excommunication was lifted. St. Mary persevered, her order was approved by Pope Leo XIII and their structure, living in the community and not in convents, along with the superior general being chosen by the congregation, was maintained. They primarily educated children, but also served the poor and those in need. St. Mary MacKillop died in 1909 and was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010. Today there are over 600 Josephites serving in six countries.

It takes a strong will as well as a loving, holy life to become a saint! Sometimes, our fallen brothers and sisters in the Church can be a source of suffering! Let us not be discouraged! St. Mary MacKillop, pray for us.

August 8--St. Dominic, Religious

We may meet people on the street begging for food or money or anything that can be given. They may be veterans, homeless, families, or just passing through. Nonetheless, their situation is not enviable. Our present saint chose to be a beggar, but through the desire to offer good example to others.

St. Dominic de Guzman was from Spain in the 12th century, but on a trip through southern France encountered a dangerous heresy located in and near the town of Albi, thus the name Albigensianism. This group of "the pure" believed that there were two basic principles of the world, good and evil. But good was only spiritual, and anything material was thus evil, including the human body. This led to the denial of the Incarnation, as well as the sacraments and the preference of living together without Marriage to Marriage. They also preferred suicide as a way to "release" the soul from its confinement in the body. They were also anti-clerical due to the wealth and preferential benefits given to priests.

St. Dominic founded a religious order to preach to these people, but they would live lives of self-sacrifice rather than luxury. To that end, the Dominicans were a mendicant, or begging order, just like the Franciscans, their contemporaries. They preached by word and example. We are called to share our faith by word and example. Do we defend Church teachings when the rest of society attacks it in the name of autonomy or equality? Do we respect the dignity of all people, even when they support living contrary to natural law? Word and example--truth and love--are what are needed today to share Jesus' message.