For the past few years, we have been celebrating Josephite Companions Day on 5 September. This recognises the birthday of Mary MacKillop’s sister, Annie, who accompanied Mary to many places over the years and supported the Josephite Sisters throughout her life. Hence, we ‘adopted’ Annie as a fellow Companion!
Each year we have an online gathering in honour of Annie. This year the title of our gathering was Companioning with an Inclusive Heart, reflecting the theme of our recent Conference in Sydney and of the Sisters’ Chapter Direction Statement for the coming five years, decided at the 2025 Chapter.
Over 40 Companions from across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand logged in and participated in the session which was coordinated by the Queensland Companions.
Josephite Companion, Bernadette Roche, led us in a beautiful prayer which focused on the colours of the rainbow. Each colour was linked with the Companions… Red reflected God’s steadfast love for us all, Green reminded us that we are stewards of all created life and it represents our growth through Prayer, Friendship and Service, and Blue reflects peace and serenity, mirroring us as Companions journeying with God and each other.
We broke into small discussion groups online and this provided the opportunity to share thoughts about being Companions.
We reflected on ‘when the seed of Companionship took root in each of us’ and ‘what challenges we may face as Companions’. For some, being connected to the Josephite story, it has been a lifelong connection, while others have come to it through different experiences and people in life.
Following the theme of Inclusion, we discussed how as Companions can we truly be inclusive. This can sometimes be challenging when living and working with people in different circumstances. Acceptance of difference and recognising the innate goodness in others is key to this and believing that often our ‘presence is enough’ in the life of another, as we are the face of God to those with whom our lives intersect.
Several people were interested in how E-Companioning occurs. In Queensland a group has been gathering monthly for a few years and this has become very important to people who are considerably distant from one another. To be able to ‘sit around the table’ (online) enables community to be built and helps ‘keep the story alive’. This has some appeal to others who may choose to explore this concept further.
Having the opportunity to visibly ‘meet’ with fellow Companions who share in the spirit of Mary MacKillop and the Sisters is a great gift in which to participate each year. May it strengthen our bond of unity of sharing in Friendship, Prayer and Service.
Find out more about the Josephite Companions here.
Mary Hemmings
Josephite Companions