Jill Hall (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

On indulgence: this is a really unusual subject for me to speak on since I am not a Catholic or even a very religious person, but I would like to acknowledge a fine woman who made an enormous contribution not only to Australia and the Catholic Church but also to how a person should live their life. Mary MacKillop was an exceptional woman who achieved so much at a time when women found it very difficult to achieve things on the scale that she did. She was principled, and she was highly committed to her community and to the most disadvantaged people in the community. She was a pioneer in social justice. She was compassionate, she was caring, she was an activist and she recognised how important education was for all people. She challenged ideas and the traditional approach to handling issues in the community.

The simple fact that she was so committed to those people really disadvantaged in the community makes it even more special for me that Kathleen Evans—the grandmother whose cure from inoperable brain and lung cancer was the miracle which was performed—came from Windale within the electorate of Shortland. It is a very disadvantaged area and I think it really goes together with the type of person Mary MacKillop was. Kathleen Evans is somebody from a disadvantaged community who prayed while holding a piece of cloth from Mary MacKillop’s nightie and she was able to recover from those incurable cancers. If my reading of Mary MacKillop is correct, I think that would be very special for her.

I also want to mention the Josephite order. I have some exposure to the Josephite order because my daughter-in-law has three aunties who are all Josephite nuns. They are women who are committed to education and who take their vow of poverty very seriously. They have done the most incredible things in their lives, such as teaching very disadvantaged people in China when it was not the country it is today and when the doors to China were closed. These women were able to make their commitments to their various communities because of the Josephite order. It is an order that was founded by Mary and which stands for the values that everyone in this parliament would be committed to.

I feel quite humble in speaking on this subject. I am particularly humble as I am not a person of this particular faith, but I do recognise this exceptional woman who gave so much not only to Australia but to the world. I think it is a very proud day for Australia, particularly for all those of the Catholic faith.

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