Celebration of 120 years of Mercy presence in Australia
The third of June 2008 was the start of a very memorable journey / pilgrimage for Colette Cullinan Eileen Troy. It was a trip that would involveretracing the steps travelled by our ancestors 120 yrs ago. During Easter 2008 Sr. Faye, the Mercy Leader in the Cairns Diocese invited us to join them in marking the arrival of the first Mercy Sisters from Dungarvan on 24th June 1888. The five Sisters left Dungarvan on 21st April andtravelled by boat to England, Sydney, Brisbane, and finally landing in Cooktown the very north of Queensland on 24th June 1888. We were making the same journey, but what a contrast. We were there in 24 hours by plane.
Colette’s Aunt Sr. Otteran Cullinan went to Australia in 1919 and died in 1989. My great-grand aunt, Sr. Evangelist Morrissey, who was one of the first five pioneers, lived to be 92 years and died in 1950. Being our first time in Australia, it was theadventure of a lifetime and we felt we not only represented ourselves, but all the families of the Sisters who travelled thousands of miles from their homeland to minister to the people of Cairns Diocese. We felt very privileged and honoured to be there so it was very much a sacred journey for us, as we climbed the stairs, touched the door handles and viewed the rooms - all part of their journey.
Srs. Colette Cullinan and Eileen Troy
Impressions…
The Sisters were so welcoming and it was evident there were very happy to have us there to celebratethis important milestone in their Mercy journey.
There are thirty two Sisters in the Diocese presently, most have retired from school ministry, andare now involved in pastoral and faith development programmes. We visited many of the schools where the Sisters taught and the Mercy spirit was very much alive among the teachers and the pupils. In one class the students were involved in a project about the life of Catherine McAuley and they were able to tell us that the Mercy Sisters were known as the Walking Nuns in Dublin long ago! How old was I when I heard that?
The Pastoral Centre, built in 1988, is attached to the convent at Earlville in Cairns. During the Centenary year, some Sisters decided that since they were near retirement and handing over their schools, they would involve themselves in faith development and prayer groups. The conference rooms are named – Dungarvan Room, Coolock Room, Morrissey House - an appropriate memorial of the origins of Mercy.
Everywhere they minister the Sisters are extremely well known and play a very significant role in the various issues affecting the people.
Their Nursing Home is called Bethlehem, and the Sisters who live around Cairnsgather each Friday morning to visit the Sisters in residence there. They have Mass, morning coffee and a chat with them.
Significant events
· Herberton – Mount St. Bernard. On 12th Junewe had a wonderful Eucharistic celebration involving the Sisters, pupils, teachers and about thirty clergy. The Liturgy began at the grave of Sr Evangelist with the Irish mist gently falling upon us! Afterwards we followed twelve flag bearers and proceeded to the Church. There was only one Augustinian among them all, whereas theAugustinians were the superior force when the Sisters went to Cairns Diocese. The atmosphere of joy and jubilation was very evident among the nearly four hundred who gathered including Mercy Associates and invited guests.
· Cairns – Colette and I visited St. Monica’s School which was started in the 1892. There we met Grade 8 students (12 year olds) and their teachers. Part of their Grade 8 programme is to get to know the Mercy story -where it began and what inspired Catherine McAuley to lead the Mercy Sisters in 1831.
· We visited the graveyards where the Sisters are buried in Cairns, Herberton and Cooktown. That was so emotional, as we knelt and prayed and placed roses on the graves of Srs Otteran, Evangelist and the many Irish Sisters who rest in peace there.
· Our last celebration took place June 21st – 25th in Cooktown – the very north of Queensland, where the five pioneer Sisters landed by boat on 24th June 1888. Mass was celebrated by Bishop James Foley on Sunday 22nd June using the Chalice that was used by Bishop Henderson who invited the Sisters, and the Ciborium which was a gift from the Dungarvan Community. All the time we felt we were connecting with the past and linking in with the present. The Conventis now the James Cook Museum. The Sisters have done truly excellent work in collecting and preserving the archival material on display there.
· On Tuesday 24th we had Mass at the cemetery where four of the five pioneers are buried. The event began with a prayer service at the graves followed by the Eucharist, celebrated again by Bishop Foley. All were invited afterwards to a celebratory meal at the Wharf Restaurant. At the wharf we looked out at the spot where the Sisters stepped ashore 120 years ago that very day.
· Overall Colette and I were overwhelmed with the awesomeness of it all. We were so privileged to be present at an occasion that was both historical and emotional. We felt very at home with the Sisters and are deeply grateful to Sr Faye and all the Sisters for their welcome and hospitality. It served to strengthen the bonds between Dungarvan and Cairns, Australia. Mercy is very much alive in far-off Queensland. I conclude with the quotation printed on a Mercy Cooktown postcard: -“With hearts aglow, they heard the call, to leave their homeland and gave their all, in 1888 on the ‘Elamang’ they sailed to Cooktown, their faith and courage never failed. Sisters of Mercy from Ireland, far ashore, came to serve the uneducated, the sick and the poor”.
A moment lasts all of a second, but the memory lives on forever.
Srs. Eileen Troy
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