Hope shines bright on pilgrims’ journey
By Wendy Shaw
Parishioners took inspiration from the faith and perseverance of Australian saint Mary MacKillop during a pilgrimage to Holy Trinity Church at Westbury last month.
About 25 people from Circular Head, Mersey-Leven, Meander Valley and Burnie-Wynyard met on 8 August for Mass, a talk on the life of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop on her feast day, and a shared lunch.
Burnie-Wynyard administrator Fr Jessie Banez said that as with many pilgrimages, Mary MacKillop’s journey to sainthood was beset with obstacles.
“Mary MacKillop’s mission was never easy,” Fr Jessie said. “She faced a lot of challenges on the way. She was about to be excommunicated at one stage but eventually it goes well, and then she becomes a saint.
“This is a reflective point for us. We all start with a journey and it is not always smooth. We might experience different kinds of rough roads on the way.
“But at the end of the day, whatever struggles we have here on Earth, our ultimate destination is Heaven and eternal life.”
Burnie-Wynyard parishioner Dr Megan Robinson gave a reflection on St Mary MacKillop, who co-founded the Sisters of St Joseph in1866 with Fr Julian Tenison Woods. The first Josephite Sisters arrived at Westbury in 1887 and went on to set up 25 schools around Tasmania. Fr Julian was the homilist at Holy Trinity’s opening Mass in 1874.
“We considered the meaning of pilgrimage, including the concept of the inner pilgrimage of the spirit, in the light of the depth of Mary’s spirituality,” Dr Robinson explained.
“She was described as ‘a woman wrapped in God’.”
Another Burnie-Wynyard parishioner, Judith Jones, said that old friendships were renewed and new ones made during the pilgrimage to the ‘lovely old church’.
“There was an atmosphere of God’s love and blessings,” she added.
“We travelled home in sunshine after a wonderful God-filled day.”
Fr Jessie said it had been a fruitful and reflective day for the pilgrims in the Catholic Jubilee Year.
“It is a year of hope. That is a quality we carry with us on our journey,” Fr Jessie said.
“Whatever road we are taking, rough or smooth, the thing that facilities our journey is hope. We carry a lot in our lives – our problems, our struggles – but one thing that makes the struggle easier is the virtue of hope.
“Whatever happens in our lives, whatever darkness we encounter on the road, hope is the light that we cling to. Hope should never be lost.”
Catholic Women’s League members enjoyed a pilgrimage to Holy Trinity at Westbury and then on to Holy Redeemer Church at Deloraine on 15 May.
State president Wendy Harrap reported: “Fr Ben Brooks kindly offered Mass for us in Westbury before lunch in the park and then we drove on to Deloraine. Both beautiful churches were built by Irish ex-convict farmers in the 1860s and 1870s [and they are] well worth a visit.
“In Deloraine, Fr Ed Travers kindly led us with the Rosary and Benediction. It was a memorable pilgrimage.”
Holy Trinity is one of four pilgrimage destinations in the Archdiocese of Hobart for the Catholic Jubilee Year of Hope. The other sites are Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Church in Ross, St John’s Church in Richmond, and the Shrine of Our Lady of Victories in Lutana.