Edited by Sheila McCreanor. Published by AFT Press, 2016. Reviewed by Patricia Stevenson

Mary Helen MacKillop is revealed in her own words in this book. In 1873 Mary, an Australian, was 30 years old and the co-founder of a very young religious congregation, the Sisters of St Joseph. She was a letter writer and it is through the medium of these letters that we learn a little about this extraordinary woman.

Through her letters to priests, bishops, her own Sisters, family and friends we learn not only of her personal struggles but also something about the difficulties of travelling abroad alone. She adopted the name of Mrs MacDonald to provide security and privacy.

Prior to 1873 Mary and the Sisters suffered the poverty of the poor they lived among and the misunderstanding of the church leaders of Adelaide which resulted in her excommunication. They had been criticised for their mode of living, their teaching practice and the acceptance into the Sisters of untrained teachers. Mary believed in on-the-job training and she spent much time with the Sisters preparing lesson plans for beginners and instruction in classroom management. Her legacy to us was encouragement of life-long learning.

By 1893 Mary was advised by her Jesuit friend and mentor Fr Tappeiner to travel to Rome and ask Pope Pius IX to recognise the congregation officially and approve the Rule.

The bulk of the letters in the book concern her journey to Rome and visit to England and Scotland. When appropriate and to provide context and meaning some important replies are included. The list of letters in the Table of Contents arranges the list of letters according to month and date and includes approximately 65 letters interspersed with extracts from Mary’s iary. The book concludes with a short Afterword entitled: “What happened next?”

The volume of letters presents a problem for a reviewer who is providing a brief picture of the book and its contents. This book is a portion of an interesting life. It will engage diverse readers and be of interest to readers of biography, those interested in the life of Australia’s first saint and readers of social history.

Mary MacKillop obtained the approbation she needed and she went forward with hope into the future. The Church’s faith in her was further confirmed when in 2010 Pope Benedict XVI declared her Saint.

Tui Motu Magazine. Issue 224, March 2018: 13.