Mary MacKillop Spirituality Centre, Josephite Mission, Hobart

Chapel

The chapel is available for personal prayer, prayer meetings, celebrations of the Eucharist and liturgy. One wall of the Chapel has a memorial wall naming and honouring the lives of the Tasmanian Sisters of St Joseph who have died. We continue to pray for the Sisters of St Joseph who are very much alive and at work throughout Tasmania advancing the missionary work of Julian Tenison Woods and Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop.

Museum

Foundation Room

In this room visitors can listen to the story of the arrival of the first community of Sisters of Saint Joseph in Tasmania, at Westbury in 1887. Sister Francis McCarthy recalls the voyage of the founding group of sisters and their pioneering work in establishing the early schools and religious communities in Tasmania. A brief biography of each of the five sisters is presented, as well as Father Julian’s writings about the community and school lives of the sisters.

History Room

The History Room tells the story of the Sisters of Saint Joseph’s involvement in Tasmanian Catholic Education and Parish life since 1887. The History Room will transport you back in time to the last half of the nineteenth century, to witness the day-to-day life of the sisters living in a religious community and in service to Catholic education. Biographical information on every Sister who has lived, served or died in Tasmania is on display, including information about each Sister’s birth, family, reception, profession, service, death and burial.

Father Julian’s Room

Father Julian’s room depicts the co-founder of the Sisters of Saint Joseph in his multi-gifted dimensions — as a missioner-priest, educator, geologist, environmentalist, artist, poet and writer. Selections of his illustrations and writings about the Tasmanian environment and its flora and fauna are presented, as well as a selection of books he authored and artifacts from his time as a missioner in the Huon area.

Artefact Rooms

The Artefact Rooms contain artefacts from the schools which the sisters founded or held custodianship of artefacts from the time of Mary MacKillop’s canonisation and well-loved personal articles of prayer and daily industry.

Heritage Schoolhouse

The Heritage Schoolhouse takes visitors back in time to view an early school classroom complete with the Josephite timetable for learning each day. The schoolhouse contains objects of the time including: wooden desks with ink wells, slates, a blackboard and a weekly timetable highlighting teaching methods of the time. The Schoolhouse showcases the innovations in education made by Mary MacKillop as a pioneer educator and her pioneering Sisters of St Joseph in Tasmania who commenced teaching in Westbury in 1887.  The original Josephite Mission and History Centre building began life as the convent for the Sisters who answered the invitation of Archbishop Murphy to take responsibility in 1908 for the small Sacred Heart Parish school which had been operating since 1888.