In 2026, Mary MacKillop Spirituality Centre, Baulkham Hills marks 70 years since the opening of the original St Joseph’s Novitiate.
The story began when the Sisters of Saint Joseph purchased the Baulkham Hills property in the early 1950s to provide a new place for the formation of young women entering religious life. On 14 April 1956, the Novitiate officially opened, beginning a new chapter of Josephite life on this land.
In those early years, Baulkham Hills was very different from the busy surrounding suburbs we know today. The property was extensive and largely self-sufficient. The Sisters produced milk, bread and vegetables, and cared for livestock as part of the everyday rhythm of community life.
Yet from the beginning, this place was about much more than buildings or land.
It was a place of prayer, formation, community and welcome.
That spirit of hospitality has continued through the decades. One particularly moving moment came in 1975, when St Joseph’s Baulkham Hills opened its doors to 34 Mary Queen Sisters fleeing war-torn Vietnam. Beds were prepared, space was made, and the Sisters were welcomed into the community.
Over seventy years, much has changed. The Novitiate became St Joseph’s Baulkham Hills and, today, Mary MacKillop Spirituality Centre.
But something essential has remained.
For seven decades, this has been a place where people have come to pray, learn, gather, rest and be renewed.
As we mark this anniversary, we give thanks for the Sisters and communities who have shaped this sacred place and for all those who have crossed its threshold over the years.
Seventy years on, the spirit of welcome continues.