Have Your Say 

Recent Comments

1. I can understand people apologising for their own sins. However, why is there this clone-like mdoern desire to apologise continually for the sins of others?
   
   Why can't people of today simply get on with their lives and do good works quietly without these continual apologies and mantra like statements about standing on such and such a tribes' land when delivering a speech?

   Posted By: Michael Webb

2. What a moving and welcome act on the part of Archbishop Wilson! I am filled with appreciation and feel quite emotional. This apology is an act of justice toward Mary MacKillop and all Sisters of St Joseph. We work toward justice and a fair go for others always - it is nice to be the recepients of the same in this act of apology. Mary Murphy rsj.

   Posted By: Mary Murphy

3. I have been following the stories on Bl. Mary MacKillop for some time.
   Could someone please explain to me why she was [wrongly] excommunicated?
   Michael Prabhu, Catholic apologist, INDIA

   Posted By: Michael Prabhu

4. Thank you, your Grace!

   Posted By: Tony LeClerc

5. Well, well only 130 years later!!
   Hopefully forgiveness can come along with this apology. Its long overdue(the apology) and only those who were alive in 1871 really know the hurt and pain that was caused and then carried by all the Sisters since then. I am an "ex Brown joey girl".
   Rosemary Keenan WA

   Posted By: Rosemary Keenan

6. Thank God for the "JOEYS"! My father's first wife died after giving birth to her eighth child.He moved with his 8 children to the country and was met by the "Good Sisters " who had been told of his pending arrival by the other "Good Sisters" on the north coast.I found this out when my mum died as the "G.S" were at her funeral. My mum was twenty when she married dad and gave him 7 more children.I was number 13.Thank God for "The Joeys".

   Posted By: Number thirteen

7. Miss Keenan, try "only five months later". As for "hurt and pain", Bl Mary went to great lengths to point out that she never felt hurt, only great love for the Church and her God-given authority, even as expressed in the excommunication.
   
   And again far from "hurt and pain", late in the 20th century some persons re-invented the abortive excommunication and adopted it to themselves as a badge of honour which they never stop talking about.
   
   Mr Prabhu:
   On Bishop Sheil's return from the First Vatican Council, he was very ill (in fact slowly dying) and unwisely took false advice from those with a grudge against Mother Mary about what had happened in his diocese during his long absence, and was persuaded that it was necessary to excommunicate her. He lifted the excommunication, which in any case was invalid, five months later and apologised. Hence as Michael pointed out, no need for a further tokenistic "apology" 137 years later by and to people who were not even born until long after Bp Sheil and Bl Mary had died.

   Posted By: Ronk

8. I suppose Michael Webb it is difficult for you to understand, because it is a very human thing to do; to ask for forgiveness is a simple admission that we don't condone what our predecessors had done, that we’re all connected through time and through our common humanity- if you like;
   and we commit ourselves to the process of reparation and healing- restorative justice if you like, but I suppose it is something you simply don't understand. It is after all a very catholic thing to do, to make penance for our fellow human beings.

   Posted By: TJ Lawson

9. High time too that Mother Mary's cause of canonization be completed.
   That would certainly finalize her status with God's people.

   Posted By: Ferruccio Romanin SJ

10. Thank God for Archbishop Wilson who can acknowledge the mistakes of the past and move forward from them. Research among Bl Mary's letters tells me that she had forgiven him before his death. As a Josephite educated woman I thank him for his humility.

    Posted By: Margaret McDonald

11. I, too, am a product of the "Brown Joeys", Rosemary Keenan: the many I knew were too busy saying their prayers and assisting our parents in developing our faith and love of the Church to be preoccupied with "hurt and pain", and too inspired by their foundress to harbour resentment and self-pity.

    Posted By: Ingrid

12. I know of no saint who expected or required an apology for suffering in the cause of Christ, and offering his or her sufferings with him for the salvation of the world - I doubt that Blessed Mary was an exception to this, or those of her community faithful to her spirit.
    
    Let's move beyond what political orthodoxy requires and rediscover efficacious religious orthodoxy.

    Posted By: Sienne

13. Dear Mr. Webb, it is my humble belief that hearing an apology from someone from whom one has felt being wronged goes a long way toward healing of the heart. Even tho' the wound may have been caused many years ago by someone else. A sincere apology can be discerned from an insincere apology. I think you may sense that a lot of the apologizing going on today is insincere.
    
    What I believe is even more important, and brings much more healing and reconciliation, is being able to forgive when one receives an apology. There is so much healing in the heart when one does forgive. Naturally, forgetting the wrong is almost impossible but forgetting is not necessary to forgiving. I have seen many instances in public life where an apology is offered and instead of being accepted the person is attacked for not apologizing enough. There is no way one can go back and change the past. One can only go forward with renewed hope of peace and amity.
    
    To whomever may know, I do have one question concerning the Josephites. Are these the same as the Sisters of St. Joseph operating in the U.S.? I am just curious.

    Posted By: Stella

14. Rosemary,
    
    I'm sure forgiveness came a long, long time ago. That's what Christians are called to do, if you remember.
    
    TJ,
    
    Well said. Thanks!

    Posted By: Paul Keen

15. Do we not express personal and communal regret and sorrow for our part in an event that happened over 2000 years ago?
    
    I can't see how Catholics could have a problem with this and not see it for what it was: an important gesture of reconciliation.
    
    It may be that it wasn't 'needed' (do apologies have to be 'needed'?) but it was much appreciated.
    
    
    

    Posted By: Faz

16. Dear TJ Lawson,
    It is enough and a good thing to just KNOW the history concerning the injustice done towards Mother Mary MacKillop. There is no need for this wallowing and apologies by proxy for those of a previous generation. It is simply enough to know the history and to do things differently in our generation.
    Previous generations of Catholics didn't take up the modern peer group pressure behaviour of apologising for the sins of others. Each generation fo Catholics simply has to pray for those who have done injustice and also pray for their victims. We also have the duty to learn form history and not repeat the sins of the past.
    The apology industry is a phenomenon of recent times only and needs to stop.

    Posted By: Michael Webb

17. What a shame there are now not so many Sisters of St Joseph around as there were previously.
    I pray for their increase.
    

    Posted By: Uncle Chop, Chop

18. I have a grateful heart today, and I am sure Mary has as well. Like many of you I have wept with a deep gratitude for this profound gesture. God bless all who work in the name of the church especially those who work in the name of Mary MacKillop. Sonia and Bob White

    Posted By: Sonia White

19. Thank you, Bishop Wilson. Thank you, Ronk, also - I didn't know that Bishop Sheil had apologized at the time of the excommunication, although I did know this was lifted quite quickly. Perhaps in those days it wasn't 'done' to publicise apologies from churchmen, in that it might shake the faith of the simple faithful (whoever they are). In any case, it's very good and healing for us to know, via Archbishop Wilson in this case, that the official Church has acknowledged a serious mistake. (And it doesn' t make us think less of them, of course, but more).

    Posted By: Joan Seymour

20. I really don't know why we have to continue to apologise for things that have happened over 100 years ago. The only person involved is the Bishop of the day: he lifted the excommunication, if anything,he is answerable to God for his actions. Get on with life.

    Posted By: Noel T.

21. Faz, think about what you’re saying. Your analogy is haywire. Of course the sins of people of all times and places crucified Christ. The Church tells us so. But surely Abp Wilson did not cause Bp Sheil to do something before Abp Wilson was born!
    
    “an important gesture of reconciliation”?
    I was not aware that there had been any enmity between Abp Wilson and the Srs of St Joseph which required them to be reconciled to each other. And if it wasn’t needed, how could it be “important”?
    

    Posted By: Ronk

22. How come you apologists for 'apology' can't see that it effectively reinforces the feminist myth of oppressive male patriarchy and dreaded male hierarchy? I've actually heard Mary MacKillop lauded by feminists for being excommunicated, while saying nothing of her obedience and love of the Church. Come in, spinner!

    Posted By: Joe

23. Oh, for heaven's sake! These belated and unnecessary apologies are getting so tedious. If only the present members of the order could re-discover the splendid spirituality of their sainted Foundress (and be recognised to be religious - minus the little bits of jewellery).

    Posted By: Ro Ro

24. Stella, the order founded by Bl Mary MacKillop, the "Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart", is confined mostly to Australasia with a few branches in other countries such as Peru (not in the USA AFAIK). It is a separate order from and has no direct connexion to the much larger "Sisters of St Joseph" founded in France in the 17th century, which has many members in the USA.

    Posted By: Ronk

25. A superflous action.
    
    According to Fr Paul Gardiner SJ's biography of Mary MacKillop, the action of the succeeding bishop, Bishop Christopher Reynolds in banishing her from Adelaide, was far worse.
    
    Bishop Sheil had been badly informed about Mary's situation, and a few days before his death rescinded the excommunication, realising the mistake.
    
    Many decisions in church history that were mistaken, were not corrected like this, such as her expulsion, the basis of which was outright calumny from Reynolds.
    
    Perahaps it might be better, if matters were studied a bit better, instead of responding to sentiment.

    Posted By: Andrew Rabel

26. From what I learned while teaching, it seems Blessed Mary was excommunicated because the Bishops wanted to be in charge and she didn't want that because it meant that she would not have a real say in what happened to her order.
    
    She was then excommunicated, the Sisters at Perthville were very "KIND" to her - she slept in a cow shed down the road from the convent. Tenison Wood was then in charge. These were the black Joey's.
    
    She then went to Rome, got her rights back - came back and started the Brown St. Josephs's.
    
    I was taught by the Black Joeys and until I started teaching in a Brown St. Joseph's school, I had never heard of her. We were taught about Tenison Wood but never Mary Mc.
    
    The Brown St. Josephs have a head centre where the Bishop had not control and they are not controlled by a diocese. The nuns can be sent anywhere whereas the ones from Perthville stayed in the diocese and under a bishop.
    
    I was very surprised to see how these two groups came together when it was announced that she could become a saint.
    
    Josie

    Posted By: Josie

27. Fair dinkum - enough with these sickening apologies already! Shiel is long dead, and so is Bl MacKillop.
    "She said the excommunication had caused much anxiety and many sisters had ended up homeless."
    That certainly isn't the case today! Do modern Joeys know anything about poverty?

    Posted By: Xavier Thompson

• » Advertise in CathNews

Email to Friend Please fill out the following details (fields marked with a * are mandatory):
Send To Email Address*:
Send To Name *:
Sent By Email Address*:
Sent By Name *:
Text to include in email:
Captcha validation:	please enter the code above:

^ Page Top

Comment on this article

More from this section

1. Farrelly flags loss of priestly faculties for Kennedy

   Brisbane chancellor, Fr Adrian Farrelly, has said that former St Mary's South Brisbane administrator Fr Peter Kennedy's move to set up a separate congregation would have "serious consequences" possibly including loss of priestly faculties.

2. ACU prepares pandemic plan

   Australian Catholic University has updated protocols developed during the SARS crisis in order to be prepared for the possibility of a swine flu pandemic.

3. McKenna meets his Bathurst brothers

   Bathurst Bishop elect Michael McKenna visited his new diocese this week to take part in the annual clergy seminar which brought together about 20 active priests in Mudgee.

4. Fake Popemobile charges dropped

   Police have withdrawn charges against a Sydney man, Ian Bryce, who transformed a car into an imitation Popemobile during World Youth Day in Sydney last year.

5. Jewish jokes out: Wilson

   Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson has said that Catholics should not tell Jewish jokes or use the Jewish name Yahweh in readings and songs.