Religious congregations withdrew from two significant sites recently, with St Joseph’s Perthville, near Bathurst in NSW, finally closing its doors after 153 years and Majellan House in Melbourne’s Brighton passing on to a new private owner.

The Sisters of St Joseph reported that the closure was a bittersweet occasion for the Sisters and others, many of whom had been associated with Perthville from their early days as boarders.

*St Joseph’s Perthville. PHOTO: Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart.*

Over the weekend of March 22-23, the Sisters first gathered on Saturday to remember, to give thanks and to farewell the Perthville complex with their own community. Then on Sunday, about 450 people including Sisters of St Joseph Lochinvar, Sisters of Mercy, Missionaries of Charity, Josephite Companions, family members, friends, ex-boarders, volunteers, local Perthville village friends, priests and others gathered to bid farewell.

Sr Maria Sullivan RSJ said that in the morning ritual, the Sisters remembered the significance of the Perthville site: it is the first permanent dwelling of the Sisters of Saint Joseph in New South Wales.

“Both St Mary MacKillop and Fr Julian Tenison Woods spent time at Perthville although they were never there together. It also holds the grave of Sr Teresa MacDonald – the Sister who stood by Mary MacKillop at her excommunication and the first Sister buried at Perthville,” Sr Maria wrote on the Congregation’s website.

Sr Monica Cavanagh, Congregational Leader of the Sisters of Saint Joseph, spoke with deep understanding of the significance of the day not only for the Perthville Sisters, the whole Congregation and the Bathurst Diocese, but for the Church.

“The community then prayed together to give thanks and to farewell Perthville,” wrote Sr Maria. “Prayers were shared in gratitude for the many people who have journeyed with the Sisters over the years. A symbol was placed in the prayer space for the past Sisters, for boarders of St Joseph’s College and their parents, the many schools which were opened in the Diocese and beyond, the benefactors and volunteers, the priest friends of the Sisters, Josephite Associates and Companions and people from the local Perthville and Bathurst community.

“The day concluded with a Mass of thanksgiving concelebrated by Bishop Michael McKenna and 12 priests. A very touching moment was the final prayer: ‘We let you go’.”

Many of the women who were boarders at Perthville expressed gratitude for the empowerment they were given from the College. In the words of one woman: “We were very naive when we arrived and the Sisters taught us we could do anything we wanted to do. You were into Women’s Lib before it was famous!”

Sr Anne Porter (New South Wales Regional Leader), thanked the many Sisters and other volunteers who spent so many hours preparing the Perthville complex, the rituals and the Mass. The beautiful choir, led by Sr Kerrie Cusack (who practised for hours), the visual presentations, the Perthville mementos, the volunteers who toiled tirelessly, and the solemn tolling of the bell all contributed to an amazing day.

Students from MacKillop College Bathurst carried a lantern in the entrance procession symbolising the coming of the Sisters in 1872. At the conclusion of Mass, the lantern was extinguished by Sr Monica, signifying the closure of the Perthville Complex.

Meanwhile, in Melbourne, Majellan House in Brighton recently passed from the Redemptorist community to its new private owner, signalling the end of an era, reports Majellan Media.

As a final farewell, a liturgy and lunch were organised, led by Redemptorists of Oceania Provincial Fr John Hodgson CSsR and Fr Sam Kono CSsR.

*Majellan House in Brighton, Victoria. PHOTO: Majellan Media.*

The Redemptorists bought the property in 1963 and for almost 60 years it served as a house of worship and the mailing hub for The Majellan magazine.

The Redemptorists first began their “magazine mission” in Ballarat in the 1940s but the monastery became too small to service their growing needs.

The search for a new home led the Redemptorists to Brighton, a Melbourne beachside suburb. When the house came on the market, Majellan editor Fr Bill Stinson sought permission from Melbourne Archbishop Daniel Mannix to establish a “religious house” and a place to publish the magazine.

Archbishop Mannix, who headed the Church in Melbourne for 46 years, approved the request.

As part of the 1963 sale, the priests agreed to keep as much of the house’s original look as possible.

Located next to the Brighton Yacht Club, the house was commissioned by William Carr in the early 1920s. It was designed by prominent Melbourne architect Cedric Ballantyne, who is credited with introducing the modern-style residential bungalow to Melbourne.

Majellan House appeared in Australian Home Beautiful magazine on three separate occasions (1925, 1965 and 1995), including on the front cover twice.

The first Home Beautiful front cover of Majellan House included the headline, “As good a house as money can buy”.

This article was drawn from an article on the website of the Sisters of St Joseph and a media release from Majellan Media.