Uniting to Care for our Common Home
What do NSW scuba divers, Josephite Sisters and a Catholic priest have in common? A commitment to care for the environment… Robert Purdon is a health worker, lover of nature and volunteer. He writes on behalf of the Josephite Laudato Si’ Action Plan Team. Bushrangers Bay is an aquatic reserve in Shellharbour, New South Wales […]
JJAMM 2025
We must fan the flame of hope that has been given to us and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart, and far-sighted vision. Pope Francis, 11.02.2022 Pope Francis’ words capture the spirit of JJAMM (Joseph, Julian And Mary MacKillop) 2025, a […]
Ordination Anniversary of Julian Tenison Woods
Twenty-four-year-old Julian Woods [1] was ordained a priest by Bishop Francis Murphy in Adelaide’s St Patrick’s Church on 4 January 1857. From his mid-teens, Julian’s one goal and longing had been ordination. Raised in London by his Irish parents with the general conviction of Christian faith, he had no clear denominational identity. His mother was […]
Julian Tenison Woods – No Ordinary Man
Let us see God in everything. Tenison Woods Calendar, 29 October (ON323) The early years are widely recognised to be the most important years of a child’s life. From all accounts, real love between parents and children was shown in the Tenison Woods family. As Sr Isabel Hepburn recalls in No Ordinary Man, Julian Tenison […]
Julian Tenison Woods – Encouraged by Saints
We celebrate the feast of All Saints on 1 November with a reflection by Sr Jan Tranter. Drawn to priesthood from youth and struggling to his goal, Julian Tenison Woods was encouraged by three priests who are now recognised or on the path to be recognised as saints. Venerable Ignatius Spencer, St Peter Julian Eymard […]
Love of God, love of neighbour, love of common home
Joy and Suffering One of the greatest joys I have experienced through the Josephite charism is the beauty of relationship between Mary MacKillop and Father Julian Tenison Woods. Jan Williamson captured it wonderfully in her painting The Vision. But joy and suffering often go together. I remember suffering when I first learned of Mary and […]
A Visit with Fr Julian
Father Julian Tenison Woods died on 7 October 1889 in Elizabeth Street, Sydney. Since May 1887, he had been cared for by a community of women who, under the leadership of Gertrude Abbott, would later found St Margaret’s Hospital. With their help, he was able to sort out his notes and dictate them into articles […]
Julian Tenison Woods: A many-sided mind
Photo of Julian Tenison Woods taken in Perak, Malay Peninsula in 1883. Father Julian Tenison Woods died on 7 October 1889. He was in his fifty-seventh year and extremely unwell. Julian had returned to Sydney after extensive and exhausting field work in parts of Australasia and the Northern Territory. Many of the letters and reports […]
The Gift of Fr Julian Tenison Woods
As we celebrate Father Julian Tenison Woods’ day (7 October) in our Josephite story, we give thanks for his gift to us, our Church and our world. Julian was a noted pastor, missionary, scientist, musician and writer. Julian had a deep love for nature and often encountered experiences of the Divine in his contemplation of […]
Fr Julian and the forests of Tasmania – his own words
Father Julian Tenison Woods was born on 15 November 1832 in England and entered eternal life on 7 October 1889 in Sydney. A young Julian arrived in Tasmania (from England) on 30 January 1855 and was a priest there from 25 February 1874 until 15 November 1876. Let us celebrate, in his own words, Fr […]
Julian Tenison Woods – ‘A Man of God’
On 9 June 1974, the Minister for Lands in Queensland, the Hon. Mr Wallace Rae MIA, officiated at the ceremony which named the highest peak in the D’Aguilar Ranges, forty-eight kilometres north-west of Brisbane, ‘Tenison Woods Mountain’. In his tribute to Fr Julian, Mr Rae described Julian as “one of the most picturesque personalities of […]
AJASS Principals Lochinvar Pilgrimage
We are but instruments in the hand of God. Father Julian Tenison Woods 1870 In mid-June, Principals of the Association of Josephite Affiliated Secondary Schools (AJASS) completed a pilgrimage to learn more about the history and charism of the Sisters of Saint Joseph, with a focus on the Sisters of St Joseph Lochinvar and Father […]